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Nonprofiteer
← BUSARA CENTER FOR BEHAVIORAL ECONOMICS INC

Form 990 for tax year 2025

Filed by BUSARA CENTER FOR BEHAVIORAL ECONOMICS INC.

Totals

Total revenue
$8,275,441
Total expenses
$8,573,217
Contributions and grants received
$2,554,476
Grants paid
$0
Program service revenue
$5,490,874
Investment income
$156,481
Other revenue
$73,610
Total assets, end of year
$7,581,051
Total liabilities, end of year
$3,252,462
Net assets or fund balances, end of year
$4,328,589
Program services expenses (Part IX)
$6,374,062
Management and general expenses
$2,199,155
Fundraising expenses
$0
Program service expenses (Part III)
$6,374,062

Program services were 74.3% of total expenses calculated — Part IX's program-services column over total expenses, both as filed.

Line items

Every line the filer filed in Parts VIII, IX and X, as filed and in filed order. Blank columns are left out, and the lines are not forced to add up to the totals above.

Revenue

Part VIII, the statement of revenue.

  • 1f · All other contributions, gifts and grants

    $2,554,476

  • 2a · Program service revenue: CONSULTING FEES

    total $5,466,338 · related or exempt $5,466,338

  • 2b · Program service revenue: PROJECT REVENUE

    total $21,926 · related or exempt $21,926

  • 2c · Program service revenue: REGISTRATION FEES

    total $2,610 · related or exempt $2,610

  • 3 · Investment income

    total $156,481 · excluded $156,481

  • 11a · Other revenue: FOREIGN EXCHANGE GAIN

    total $39,018 · excluded $39,018

  • 11b · Other revenue: INC. TAX BEN. (SEE SCH

    total $29,044 · excluded $29,044

  • 11c · Other revenue: MISCELLANEOUS INCOME

    total $5,548 · excluded $5,548

  • 11e · Other revenue, total

    $73,610

Functional expenses

Part IX, the statement of functional expenses.

  • 5 · Compensation of officers, directors and key employees

    total $168,757 · program services $118,130 · management and general $50,627

  • 7 · Other salaries and wages

    total $4,264,868 · program services $3,107,104 · management and general $1,157,764

  • 8 · Pension plan contributions

    total $124,158 · program services $90,319 · management and general $33,839

  • 9 · Other employee benefits

    total $522,921 · program services $380,397 · management and general $142,524

  • 11b · Fees: legal

    total $5,968 · program services $4,844 · management and general $1,124

  • 11c · Fees: accounting

    total $56,519 · management and general $56,519

  • 11g · Fees: other

    total $820,200 · program services $711,622 · management and general $108,578

  • 13 · Office expenses

    total $144,798 · program services $60,661 · management and general $84,137

  • 16 · Occupancy

    total $166,330 · program services $103,783 · management and general $62,547

  • 17 · Travel

    total $881,300 · program services $743,223 · management and general $138,077

  • 20 · Interest

    total $4,125 · program services $134 · management and general $3,991

  • 22 · Depreciation, depletion and amortization

    total $52,273 · program services $1,488 · management and general $50,785

  • 23 · Insurance

    total $48,881 · program services $20,078 · management and general $28,803

  • 24a · Other expenses: FIELD GUIDES

    total $631,231 · program services $630,439 · management and general $792

  • 24b · Other expenses: DUES & SUBSCRIPTIONS

    total $281,752 · program services $107,662 · management and general $174,090

  • 24c · Other expenses: SURVEYS AND PARTNERS

    total $213,706 · program services $173,577 · management and general $40,129

  • 24d · Other expenses: TAXES AND LICENSES

    total $58,645 · program services $28,795 · management and general $29,850

  • 24e · All other expenses

    total $126,785 · program services $91,806 · management and general $34,979

Balance sheet

Part X, book values.

  • 1 · Cash, non-interest-bearing

    beginning of year $1,578,991 · end of year $597,081

  • 2 · Savings and temporary cash investments

    beginning of year $4,242,439 · end of year $4,878,442

  • 4 · Accounts receivable

    beginning of year $921,508 · end of year $1,331,076

  • 9 · Prepaid expenses and deferred charges

    beginning of year $76,632 · end of year $47,581

  • 10a · Land, buildings and equipment: cost or other basis

    $584,537

  • 10b · Land, buildings and equipment: accumulated depreciation

    $515,509

  • 10c · Land, buildings and equipment, net

    beginning of year $96,941 · end of year $69,028

  • 15 · Other assets

    beginning of year $690,964 · end of year $657,843

  • 17 · Accounts payable and accrued expenses

    beginning of year $1,672,123 · end of year $1,787,155

  • 19 · Deferred revenue

    beginning of year $934,081 · end of year $1,210,203

  • 24 · Unsecured notes and loans payable

    beginning of year $148,225 · end of year $97,350

  • 25 · Other liabilities

    beginning of year $226,681 · end of year $157,754

  • 27 · Net assets without donor restrictions

    beginning of year $1,866,135 · end of year $1,995,348

  • 28 · Net assets with donor restrictions

    beginning of year $2,760,230 · end of year $2,333,241

Mission and programs · 2025

Mission

BUSARA WORKS WITH RESEARCHERS AND ORGANIZATIONS TO ADVANCE AND APPLY BEHAVIORAL SCIENCE IN PURSUIT OF POVERTY ALLEVIATION. CURRENT STUDIES ARE CONDUCTED IN NAIROBI-KENYA, PRINCETON-NEW JERSEY, LAGOS-NIGERIA, DELHI-INDIA, UGANDA AND TANZANIA.

Activities or mission (Part I)

SEE PART III, LINE 1.

  • WE HAD 154 ACTIVE PROJECTS RUNNING IN THE YEAR IN VARIOUS FIELDS AND APPLYING BEHAVIORAL SCIENCE. WORK INVOLVED CONDUCTING RESEARCH TO AID IN THE PREPARATION OF DATA FOR NUMEROUS PUBLICATIONS AND WORKING PAPERS AND ANALYZING OF EXISTING DATASETS FOR FURTHER EXPERIMENTATION AND DESIGN.

    Expenses $6,374,062 · Revenue $5,490,874

As filed on the 2025 return.

Listed in Part VII

  • Francis Odhiambo Meyo

    CEO

    Total calculated
    $168,757
    From this org
    $168,757
    From related orgs
    $0
    Other
    $0
    Hours/week
    40

    Schedule J breakdown matched by us

    Base
    $168,336
    Bonus
    $0
    Other
    $421
    Deferred
    $0
    Nontaxable benefits
    $0
    Filer's total
    $168,757

  • James Hugh Vancel

    BOARD PRESIDENT

    Total calculated
    $0
    Hours/week
    1

  • Nira Jethani

    TREASURER

    Total calculated
    $0
    Hours/week
    0.5

  • Jeremy Place Shapiro

    BOARD MEMBER (END 03/25)

    Total calculated
    $0
    Hours/week
    0.5

  • Lynn Chang Eisenhart

    BOARD MEMBER

    Total calculated
    $0
    Hours/week
    0.5

  • Syon Bhanot

    BOARD MEMBER

    Total calculated
    $0
    Hours/week
    0.5

  • Neela Saldanha

    BOARD MEMBER

    Total calculated
    $0
    Hours/week
    0.5

Compensation is as filed in Part VII: reportable pay from this organization and from related organizations, other compensation, and hours per week. The total, marked calculated, is our sum of the three dollar columns, with a blank column counted as $0; the form itself has no total. On a Form 990-EZ the columns are Part IV's instead, and on a Form 990-PF Part VIII's — compensation, contributions to benefit plans, and expense account — and the total sums those. A Schedule J breakdown is as filed: base pay, bonus, other, deferred compensation and nontaxable benefits from this organization, with any from related organizations beside each, and the filer's own total. It is shown with the Part VII listing of the same name on the same return. The form gives no key between the two, so that pairing is ours, and is marked matched by us.

Schedule J

Answered yes

  • 1a · Travel for companions
  • 1b · Written policy on the line-1a expenses
  • 2 · Substantiation required before reimbursing expenses
  • 3 · Compensation survey or study
  • 3 · Approval by the board or compensation committee

Answered no

  • 4a · Severance or change-of-control payment
  • 4b · Supplemental nonqualified retirement plan
  • 4c · Equity-based compensation arrangement
  • 5a · Pay contingent on this organization's revenues
  • 5b · Pay contingent on a related organization's revenues
  • 6a · Pay contingent on this organization's net earnings
  • 6b · Pay contingent on a related organization's net earnings
  • 7 · Other non-fixed payments
  • 8 · Paid under the initial-contract exception

The filer's explanations (Part III)

PART I, LINE 1A
GIVEN AS PART OF STAFF TRAVEL ANNUAL BENEFIT.THIS IS COVERED IN THE BUSARA BENEFITS POLICY, AS WELL AS THE EMPLOYMENT CONTRACT.

Part I's answers as filed. A line not listed was left unanswered; on lines 1a and 3 that means the box was not checked.

Grants on this return

No itemized grants to organizations on this return.

Provenance

Return type
form_990
Tax year
2025
Filed
15 May 2026
IRS schema version
2025v4.1
Source object
202611359349302056

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