The foundation's budget and spending policies are designed so the foundation can continue to address major societal issues worldwide for many years to come. Most of the problems we address require long-term attention, steady engagement and periodic adjustments. The foundation also gains expertise by sticking with problems over time. To pursue multiyear programs and strategies, we try to invest and budget in ways that produce relatively smooth spending patterns, while preserving the value of the investment portfolio.
Report of Independent Auditors
To The Board of Trustees of The Ford Foundation:
In our opinion, the accompanying statements of financial position and the related statements
of activities and cash flows present fairly, in all material respects, the financial position of the
Ford Foundation at September 30, 2007 and 2006, and the changes in its net assets and its cash
flows for the years then ended in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted
in the United States of America. These financial statements are the responsibility of the Ford
Foundation's management. Our responsibility is to express an opinion on these financial
statements based on our audits. We conducted our audits of these statements in accordance
with auditing standards generally accepted in the United States of America. Those standards
require that we plan and perform the audit to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the
financial statements are free of material misstatement. An audit includes examining, on a test
basis, evidence supporting the amounts and disclosures in the financial statements, assessing
the accounting principles used and significant estimates made by management, and evaluating
the overall financial statement presentation. We believe that our audits provide a reasonable
basis for our opinion.
December 4, 2007
