Traditional ways of giving internationally are complex. Donors typically give to international NGOs that manage money, fundraise, and implement programs through partner organizations abroad which have their own (usually hidden) cost structures. Overall it is hard for donors to tell how their money will be used, what this will cost, and whether there is any evidence that it works.

At GiveDirectly we've created a simpler way: we take money from donors and give it to the poor. We can do this because modern payments technology has drastically cut the costs of sending money directly to the extreme poor, at the same time as new research has shown the powerful effects this has on their lives. At GiveDirectly we see these trends converging to make direct giving the benchmark against which the old, top-down models are evaluated.