Fewer donations, more expenditures: these are the key findings of the aid agency NAK-Humanitas in its annual report for 2024. But the Swiss have a rainy day fund for such times.
The foundation estimates its current income for the past year at a good 1.5 million francs. That is almost 160,000 francs less than in 2023. Donations without a specified purpose remained almost unchanged at 1.4 million francs.
But this time there were no bequests at all, and donations for specific projects declined noticeably. Funding for war and disaster areas is often influenced by the amount of news coverage, or lack thereof.
Finances are stable
Expenditures were slightly more significant in 2024 than in the previous year. Aid projects accounted for more than 1.8 million Swiss francs and administrative expenses a good 120,000 Swiss francs. The bottom line is a deficit of CHF 420,000.
However, NAK-Humanitas also recorded income from financial investments and real estate. Last year, these were almost 50 per cent higher than in 2023, reducing the deficit to around CHF 170,000. The foundation has set aside funds as a reserve for such cases. Even after deducting the residual costs for 2024, more than 5.4 million Swiss francs remain.
Uses in Switzerland
Activities in Switzerland accounted for around 44 per cent of the actual project costs. The largest item here is disaster relief to the tune of CHF 120,000: in the summer of 2024, storms with floods and landslides caused considerable damage, the annual report explains. NAK-Humanitas responded quickly, providing emergency and reconstruction aid for the worst-hit regions.
The foundation mentions a total of 50 charitable, social, and humanitarian projects in Germany, including the Garden of the Senses as a therapy and education project for people with disabilities, the PluSport project to promote exercise and preventive health care for children and young people with psychological impairments, and a project to qualify and help deaf and hard-of-hearing people in finding a job.
Active all over the world
Almost one million francs went to a good 30 projects abroad, mostly in countries where the New Apostolic Church Switzerland provides pastoral care and administrative support. Around half of this will go towards the foundation’s passion project: the operation and expansion of a children’s home, and two day care centres in Romania and Moldova.
The war in Ukraine continues to significantly impact the charity’s aid efforts. Emergency aid on the ground and for refugees in neighbouring Moldova, which was already facing poverty challenges, totals 150,000 Swiss francs. Sudan, Lebanon, and Syria each received 30,000 Swiss francs in support of humanitarian aid. A good 42,000 francs will go towards a school building project run by the partner organisation NACSEARelief in the Philippines.
“I am grateful for the many small and large donations that our foundation received again in the reporting year,” Jürg Zbinden writes, the retired District Apostle and president of the board of trustees. He took over as president of the board of trustees in mid 2024, succeeding Thomas Deubel, who was appointed to succeed him as District Apostle.