World Vision Canada is a 5-star charity with High Demonstrated Impact. The charity has an A+ Results Reporting grade, which is above average. Its overhead spending and reserve funds are within Ci's reasonable range.

Founded in 1957, World Vision Canada (WVC) is a Christian international aid charity. Its primary goal is improving the lives of impoverished children worldwide. In order to accomplish this, it works to reduce poverty, and improve nutrition, education, healthcare, and water access in poor regions of the world. WVC also directly runs programs to protect children. In F2024, World Vision Canada spent $208.7m cash (or $395.1m including donated goods) on its programs, of which $152.2m went to World Vision International. The charity reports it reached over 7.6 million people in F2024.

A Charity Intelligence 2024 Top 100 Rated Charity.

WVC is shifting its work to focus away from medium-developed countries to highly vulnerable communities where the need is greatest. Specifically, it works in communities with unstable governments and high rates of poverty. Children who live in fragile communities are more likely to face hunger, violence, and exploitation. In F2024, 61% of WVC’s program spending was in the most fragile communities (45% in F2023).

Livelihoods represented 61% of program costs in F2024. WVC states that 281.6 million people across 59 countries face extreme food insecurity. WVC provides food, cash vouchers, and runs economic empowerment programs. The Livelihood program primarily ran in Ethiopia, South Sudan, and the Democratic Republic of Congo. In F2024, World Vision Canada reached 4,527,483 people, of which 1,254,717 were girls, 1,185,648 were boys, 1,129,808 were women, and 957,310 were men. The charity distributed 65,949 metric tons of food and distributed $74 million in cash vouchers for food assistance. WVC distributed 24,595 large and small livestock to families to increase household income.  

Child Protection represented 17% of program costs in F2024. WVC states that 10,000 children die every day due to hunger. The Child Protection program primarily ran in Honduras, Iraq, and Mozambique. In F2024, WVC reached 2,256,297 people, of which 533,256 were girls, 520,447 were boys, 610,860 were women, and 591,734 were men. The charity trained 486,328 people on child protection and was involved in 22,712 child protection cases.

Health represented 11% of program costs in F2024. WVC states that in 2022, 4.9 million youth died before their fifth birthday. The Health program primarily ran in Thailand, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Somalia, South Sudan, and Yemen. In F2024, WVC reached 1,812,571 people, of which 451,013 were girls, 420,131 were boys, 548,102 were women, and 393,325 were men. WVC’s community health workers provided 963,800 patient consultations in F2024. The charity shipped 2,565,000 packets of “ready-to-use therapeutic food”.

Education represented 6% of program costs in F2024. WVC states that there were 250 million out-of-school children in 2023. WVC runs programs to educate youth and improve people’s access to education. The Education program primarily ran in Zambia, Ethiopia, and Zimbabwe in F2024. In F2024, WVC reached 1,353,868 people, of which, 412,811 were girls, 403,881 were boys, 271,404 were women, and 265,772 were men. In F2024, WVC trained 12,831 caregivers to support children’s early development. The charity also created 425 early childhood development centres.  

WASH (Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene) represented 5% of program costs in F2024. WVC reports that over half of the world doesn’t have access to safe sanitation and 1.7 billion people use a contaminated water source. WVC works to improve access to clean water, sanitized washrooms, and hygiene kits. The WASH program primarily ran in South Sudan, Chad, Malawi, Mauritania, Senegal, and Uganda. In F2024, WVC reached 1,317,852 people, of which, 277,708 were girls, 264,325 were boys, 399,706 were women, and 376,325 were men. The charity constructed 7,161 water sources and trained 281,513 people in WASH initiatives.

World Vision Canada’s audited financial statements use activity-based costing, which is a best practice.

World Vision Canada received $198.6m in Canadian donations and $42.4m in international donations in F2024. The charity also received $186.3m in donated goods and $32.3m in government funding. It spent $208.7m on its programs, which is 76% of revenue (excluding donated goods). The charity recorded a deficit of $6.5m in F2024.

WVC spent $47.8m on fundraising, which is 24% of donations, and $26.4m on administration, which is 6% of revenue (excluding investment income). Total overhead spending is 30%. For every dollar donated to World Vision Canada, 70 cents are available to go to the cause, which is within Ci’s reasonable range.

WVC has $30.1m in reserve funds (cash and investments). These reserves can cover 14%, or under two months of its annual program costs. This is within Ci’s reasonable range.

World Vision Canada uses external fundraisers. In F2024, WVC paid fundraisers $506k to collect $55.2m. It costs less than one cent to raise a dollar through external fundraisers.

World Vision Canada has committed $3.8m of Global Affairs funding over the next five years.

This charity report is an update that has been sent to World Vision Canada.

Updated on June 17, 2025 by Liam Chapleau.

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