Helen Keller, our co-founder, envisioned a world without barriers to human potential. We are continuing her work.


Helen Keller, our co-founder, envisioned a world without barriers to human potential. Guided by her fierce optimism, we have been working on the front lines of health and well-being for more than 100 years. We deliver life-changing health care to vulnerable families in places where the need is great, but access is limited. Our proven, science-based programs empower people to create opportunities in their own lives.


Helen Keller International

Prevention, control and treatment of malaria and other communicable diseases  among vulnerable populations.

Our mission is to improve lives in Africa and Asia through sustainable, evidence-based programs  that combat targeted diseases and promote child and maternal health. 

We will accomplish this together with partners and all levels of government, by:

designing and implementing cutting edge research, surveillance and monitoring and evaluation;
selectively scaling up and delivering sustainable evidence-based health programmes;
providing technical assistance and consulting services that shape and strengthen national and international health policies, strategies and systems and build local capacity;
seeking to ensure that our experience, thought leadership, practical findings and research results are effectively communicated and contribute to the coordinated improvement of access to and quality of healthcare. 
Our areas of expertise include: 
disease prevention, diagnosis and treatment
disease control and elimination
health systems strengthening
research, monitoring and evaluation leading to best practice
behavior  change communication
national and international advocacy, and policy development


Malaria Consortium

We provide cash incentives for childhood vaccinations. It’s one of the most cost-effective ways known to save lives.


Childhood vaccines prevent an estimated 2 to 3 million deaths every year. They are recognized as one of the most cost-effective child health interventions in low-income countries. Yet, an estimated 25 million children missed out on vaccination in 2021, 5.9 million more than in 2019 and the highest number since 2009. 

In Nigeria, 40% of under-five deaths are from vaccine-preventable diseases – low immunisation rates are a significant contributor to its high under-five mortality rate (111 deaths per 1,000 live births). 

See RCT findings here: https://www.newincentives.org/evidence

New Incentives

Delivering unconditional cash directly to the world's poorest households via secure mobile transfers. 

Since 2009, GiveDirectly has delivered more than $580 million in unconditional cash transfers to families in need. These one-time cash transfers allow recipients to invest in what they need most and have been shown to improve their earnings, children’s school attendance, health, nutrition, and mental well-being.
 
GiveDirectly uses government data to target villages where most or all residents are living in extreme poverty, defined by the World Bank as earning under $2.15/day. In-country GiveDirectly staff enroll one member of each household in the entire village to receive a one-time transfer of about $1,000 USD sent in two installments using mobile money. Recipients can then withdraw the mobile funds as cash with local agents and use the funds to invest in what they need – whether it’s on starting a business, education, making their home safer/sturdier, healthcare, or livestock.
 
GiveDirectly uses rigorous experimental research (randomized controlled trials) to measure the impact of their unconditional cash programs and answer public policy questions, generating evidence on key design and implementation questions across varied contexts. You can find over 300 studies on the positive impacts of cash transfers in GiveDirectly’s Cash Research Explorer.

GiveDirectly

One of GiveWell's top charities for the past several years, AMF provides anti-malarial bednets to people in need. 

From Givewell: 
What do they do? AMF (againstmalaria.com) provides funding for long-lasting insecticide-treated net (LLIN) distributions (for protection against malaria) in developing countries. (More)

Does it work? There is strong evidence that distributing LLINs reduces child mortality and malaria cases. AMF conducts post-distribution surveys of completed distributions to determine whether LLINs have reached their intended destinations and how long they remain in good condition. AMF's post-distribution surveys have generally found positive results but have some methodological limitations. (More)

What do you get for your dollar? We estimate that the cost to purchase and distribute an AMF-funded net is $4.95, or $4.65 excluding in-kind contributions from governments. The numbers of deaths averted and other benefits of distributing LLINs are a function of a number of difficult-to-estimate factors, which we discuss in detail below. (More)

Is there room for more funding? We believe that AMF is likely to be constrained by funding. We estimate that AMF could use up to an additional $37.8 million to support LLIN distributions that will occur between now and late 2023. 

AMF is recommended because of its:

Focus on a program with excellent evidence of effectiveness and cost-effectiveness.
Processes for ensuring that nets reach their intended recipients and monitoring whether they remain in homes and in good condition over the long-term.
Room for more funding – we believe AMF will be able to use additional funds to deliver additional nets.
Transparency – AMF shares significant information about its work with us and we are able to closely follow and understand its work.

Jessica Kaiser

Helen Keller International

GiveDirectly

Malaria Consortium

The Against Malaria Foundation

New Incentives