The criteria for donor selection was updated for the 2018 Index and has not changed for the 2024 Index. The full list of donors is included in the 2024 Technical Paper

To be included in the Index, donors must meet 3 out of 4 of the following:

• The organisation is in majority public ownership, with one or multiple governments as shareholders;
• Its primary purpose is providing aid and/or development finance across borders, or it is responsible for the oversight and administration of significant proportions of aid for development resources;
• Its budget for aid and/or development – or the resources that organisation has at its disposal to spend upon aid and development – is at least US$1 billion per year ;
• The organisation plays a leading role in setting aid and/or development policy in its home country, region or specialist sector.

At a minimum, all organisations included in the Index must have a budget to spend on aid and/or development of at least US$250 million per year. Publishing data in the IATI Standard is neither a necessary nor a sufficient condition for inclusion in the Index.

In addition we also look to ensure that the organisations in the Index cover a wide geographic area and ensure to select organisations for their comparability.