Cambridge, Massachusetts, May 3, 2017 – Root Capital’s sound fiscal management practices and commitment to accountability and transparency have again earned it a 4-star rating from Charity Navigator, America’s largest independent charity evaluator. This is the 11th consecutive year that Root Capital has earned this top distinction, placing it in the top 1 percent of all evaluated nonprofits.
Since 2002, using objective analysis, Charity Navigator has awarded only the most fiscally responsible organizations its 4-star rating. In 2011, Charity Navigator added 17 metrics, focused on governance and ethical practices as well as measures of openness, to its ratings methodology. These Accountability & Transparency metrics, which account for 50 percent of a charity’s overall rating, reveal which charities operate in accordance with industry best practices and whether they are open with their donors and stakeholders. On June 1, 2016, Charity Navigator upgraded its methodology for rating each charity’s’ financial health with enhancements that further substantiate the efficiency and accountability of 4-star charities.
“Root Capital’s exceptional 4-star rating sets it apart from its peers and demonstrates its trustworthiness to the public,” according to Michael Thatcher, President & CEO of Charity Navigator. “Only 1 percent of the charities we evaluate have received at least 11 consecutive 4-star evaluations, indicating that Root Capital outperforms most other charities in America. This adds Root Capital to a preeminent group of charities working to overcome our world’s most pressing challenges. Based on its 4-star rating, people can trust that their donations are going to a financially responsible and ethical charity when they decide to support Root Capital.”
“None of the work we do would be possible without the generous support of our donors,” said Willy Foote, founder and CEO of Root Capital. “This recognition from Charity Navigator lets our supporters know we are using their funding in the most efficient way possible as we deploy capital and critical resources to help agricultural businesses grow and become engines of impact in rural communities around the world.”
Root Capital’s rating and other information about charitable giving are available free of charge on www.charitynavigator.org. More detailed information about Root Capital’s rating is available to Charity Navigator site visitors who become registered users, another free service.
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About Root Capital
Root Capital is a US-based agricultural impact investor that helps increase incomes and stabilize employment for rural farmers by investing in the agribusinesses that collect and market their crops. Root Capital provides these agribusinesses with a unique combination of capital, training, and access to markets to help them grow and become engines of impact for rural communities. Since 1999, Root Capital has disbursed more than $1 billion in credit to 630 businesses representing 1.2 million smallholder farmers. For more information, visit www.rootcapital.org.
About Charity Navigator
Charity Navigator is the largest charity evaluator in America and its website attracts more visitors than all other charity rating groups combined. The organization helps guide intelligent giving by evaluating the Financial Health and Accountability & Transparency of more than 8,000 charities. Charity Navigator accepts no advertising or donations from the organizations it evaluates, ensuring unbiased evaluations, nor does it charge the public for this trusted data. As a result, Charity Navigator, a 501 (c) (3) public charity itself, depends on support from individuals, corporations and foundations that believe it provides a much-needed service to America’s charitable givers. Charity Navigator, can be reached directly by telephone at (201) 818-1288, or by mail at 139 Harristown Road, Suite 101, Glen Rock, N.J., 07452.