IF YOU WANT TO HELP the poor folk affected by the Bangladesh Cyclone, the best thing to do is not to send your money to your favourite charity. Instead, give to the Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC) (see profile). Here’s why:

1. A good reputation. The DEC will distribute your cash to its 13 member charities, all of which have solid reputations and a proven track record of helping people in emergencies.
2. Smart distribution. The member charities thrash out between themselves who will get how much money, and for what purposes, and these decisions are based upon each one’s experience, location and abilities. It’s difficult to know whether it always comes to the right conclusions, but it’s a good start.
3. Very low fundraising costs. No charity can match the DEC for the astonishing amount of free publicity it gets when an emergency appeal is declared. Most charities have to pay for their advertising – and that payment has to come from donations.
4. Low admin costs. The DEC has low overheads – meaning that, financially, it is often as effective as giving to individual charities.
5. Honest reporting. The DEC has an impressive-sounding array of checks to assess how your money is spent. At various stages after the disaster, it commissions independent consultants to visit the affected areas and check whether projects have been running according to plan. If things haven’t gone well, this is made very clear; no charity produces assessment reports which are this critical.

The only thing it’s impossible to know is whether the members learn from the reports’ recommendations.

The DEC's member charities World Vision | TearFund | Save the Children | Oxfam | Merlin | Care | Islamic Relief | Concern Worldwide | Christian Aid | CAFOD | British Red Cross | ActionAid | Help the Aged |

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