Jewish National Fund of Canada

740-5160 Decarie Blvd.
Montreal, QC H3X 2H9
CEO: Lance Davis
Board President: Nathan Disenhouse

Charitable Reg. #:10753 4877 RR0001

STAR RATING

Ci's Star Rating is calculated based on the following independent metrics:

[Charity Rating: 1/5]

FINANCIAL TRANSPARENCY

Audited financial statements available only through official request for information from Charities Directorate.

C

RESULTS REPORTING

Grade based on the charity's public reporting of the work it does and the results it achieves.

n/r

DEMONSTRATED IMPACT

The demonstrated impact per dollar Ci calculates from available program information.

NEED FOR FUNDING

Charity's cash and investments (funding reserves) relative to how much it spends on programs in most recent year.

77%

CENTS TO THE CAUSE

For a dollar donated, after overhead costs of fundraising and admin/management (excluding surplus) 77 cents are available for programs.



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OVERVIEW

About Jewish National Fund of Canada:

Jewish National Fund of Canada is a 1-star charity with a below-average results reporting score. It is not financially transparent and has reserve funds to cover program costs for over nine years.

Founded in 1901, Jewish National Fund of Canada (JNF) is the Canadian branch of Jewish National Fund, working to develop the land and infrastructure of Israel. JNF is committed to building strong foundations for Israel’s communities. By 2007, Jewish National Fund owned 13% of the land in Israel, much of which is in the Negev area. The charity has planted over 240 million trees, turning 700,000 acres of desert into livable land.

DONOR ADVISORY: On August 20, 2019 the CRA Charities Directorate notified JNF that it intends to revoke its charity status as it no longer met the conditions for charitable registration. JNF has submitted a detailed objection and appeal. As of December 2021, this issue remains unresolved. The financial note in the audited financial statements about this issue is redacted in the most recently available financial statements (F2021).

JNF Canada works in Israel and Canada. Its programs in Israel focus on funding social and environmental infrastructure, while its Canadian projects focus on outreach and education in Jewish communities. JNF states that it has five core programs: Builders Circle, Climate Solutions Prize, JNF Education, JNF Families, and JNF Future. The charity does not provide a breakdown of spending by program.

In F2022, JNF funded 20 projects, including a woman’s shelter, playgrounds, and therapy and treatment rooms. The Climate Solutions Prize aims to fund innovations and research that address climate change. In F2022, the charity awarded recipients of the Climate Solutions Prize with over $2.2m in prizes.

The data used above reflects JNF Canada’s most recent 2022 Impact Report, while the financial analysis below reflects F2021 financial information.

Old News: On January 4, 2019 CBC and other media reported on Canadian donations to JNF Canada used to fund projects linked to Israeli military, which contravenes Canada's charity laws.

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Results and Impact

Charity Intelligence did not find any quantified outcomes on Jewish National Fund of Canada's website. This may not be a complete representation of JNF Canada’s results and impact.

This charity is not yet rated on impact (n/r).

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Finances

JNF Canada is not financially transparent. Its audited financial statements are not posted on its website nor provided when requested. Charity Intelligence's financial review uses the F2021 audited financial statements. This is the most recent information we have received from the Charities Directorate from our request for information.

Jewish National Fund of Canada received $20.6m in donations in F2021, up 162% from $7.9m in F2020.

Administrative costs are 15% of revenues (less investment income) and fundraising costs are 7% of donations. This results in total overhead spending of 23%. For every $1 donated, 77 cents go to the cause. This is within Ci’s reasonable range for overhead spending. 

JNF Canada has reserve funds of $32.9m, up 36% from $24.2m in F2021. The charity could cover almost nine years and five months of annual program costs at the F2021 level with existing reserve funds.

This charity report is an update that has been sent to Jewish National Fund of Canada for review. Comments and edits may be forthcoming. 

Updated on August 3, 2023 by Kiara Andrade.

Financial Review


Financial Ratios

Fiscal year ending December
202120202019
Administrative costs as % of revenues 15.2%34.5%33.2%
Fundraising costs as % of donations 7.4%13.3%23.9%
Total overhead spending 22.7%47.8%57.1%
Program cost coverage (%) 938.9%877.7%152.0%

Summary Financial Statements

All figures in $000s
202120202019
Donations 20,5757,86511,759
Government funding 6929320
Investment income 1,9661,3861,144
Total revenues 23,23310,18412,904
Program costs - International 1,9721,57010,046
Grants 1,5361,1862,510
Administrative costs 3,2373,0373,907
Fundraising costs 1,5291,0452,812
Total spending 8,2746,83919,275
Cash flow from operations 14,9593,345(6,371)
Capital spending 073
Funding reserves 32,93924,19519,091

Note: Ci reconciled for deferred revenues, affecting total revenues by $12.0m in F2021 and ($174k) in F2020. Ci did not include increase in cash surrender value of life insurance policies in revenues, affecting revenues by ($8k) in F2021, ($6k) in F2020, and ($2k) in F2019. Ci included unrealized investment gain in revenues affecting revenues by $756k in F2021, $825k in F2020, and $871k in F2019. Ci reported international program costs and grants from the charity’s T3010 filings with the CRA.

Salary Information

Full-time staff: 40

Avg. compensation: $74,321

Top 10 staff salary range:

$350k +
0
$300k - $350k
0
$250k - $300k
1
$200k - $250k
2
$160k - $200k
0
$120k - $160k
2
$80k - $120k
5
$40k - $80k
0
< $40k
0

Information from most recent CRA Charities Directorate filings for F2021

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Comments & Contact

Comments added by the Charity:

Charity Contact

Website: www.jnf.ca
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. Tel: 1-866-775-1563

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