Catholic Relief Services/Catholic Relief Services

Catholic Relief Services (CRS) was founded in 1943 by the Catholic Bishops of the United States to assist survivors of World War II in Europe.

Its mission is to assist the poor and homeless abroad, working in the spirit of Catholic social teaching to promote the sanctity of human life and the dignity of the human person. Its operations assist people in need, regardless of race, religion, or ethnicity. Within the United States, CRS invites Catholics to live their faith in solidarity with the poor and suffering around the world.

Inspired by the example of Jesus Christ in alleviating suffering, they provide development assistance and promote charity and justice. The Gospel of Jesus Christ motivates them to value and defend the sacred nature and dignity of human life. Furthermore, it impels them to be charitable and to embody the social and moral doctrine of the Church in order to:

• Promoting human development by responding to major emergencies, fighting poverty and disease, and building more just and peaceful societies.
• To serve Catholics in the United States as they live out their faith in solidarity with their brothers and sisters around the world.

As the official international humanitarian agency of the Catholic community in the United States, CRS is governed by a board of directors made up of priests, most of them bishops elected by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, as well as religious and lay men and women.

• Holiness and dignity of the person.
• Rights and duties.
• The social nature of humanity.
• The common good.
• Subsidiarity.
• Solidarity.
• Option for the poor.
• Faithful management of resources.

CRS's story began during World War II when they responded to the call to serve migrants and refugees.

From the beginning, their primary mission has been to help people according to their needs, regardless of race, creed, or nationality. To this end, they have partnered with local organizations, particularly agencies of the Catholic Church.

Responding with compassion and care, they realized there was more to be done and accepted the challenge. Their mission to serve the most vulnerable continues. They feed the hungry, act as instruments of peace, and empower communities.

Catholic Relief Services (CRS) works in more than 30 countries in Africa. The continent is home to vast natural and cultural resources, but also widespread poverty and, in some areas, persistent conflict.

In Africa, CRS works in three main areas: disaster relief, health, and agriculture. Within these sectors, it supports specific projects:

• Food assistance
• Hostels
• Water and sanitation
• HIV and AIDS
• Mother-child health and nutrition
• Agriculture
• Information
• Communication
• Technology for development
• Civil society and peacebuilding
• Refugees and assistance to displaced persons

CRS is committed to our brothers and sisters on this vast and diverse earth. Our supporters and partners have a burning desire to end abject poverty and chronic hunger.

Catholic Relief Services works in 17 countries in Latin America and the Caribbean.

CRS's humanitarian work in the region provides people with access to health care and education, helps tens of thousands of farmers improve their productivity and environmental resilience to climate change, and helps communities prepare for and respond to natural disasters.

CRS also works with the Catholic Church and civil society partners to defend Indigenous peoples' and labor rights, and to defend the rights of migrants throughout the region through humanitarian aid, education, and advocacy. CRS's humanitarian aid programs in Latin America and the Caribbean focus on meeting critical and immediate needs through disaster relief, health services, and viable agricultural options. Responding thoughtfully and responsibly to human needs begins to address the long-term, structural factors that make poverty a chronic problem in the region.

Because this region is prone to hurricanes, earthquakes, and droughts, CRS's humanitarian work in Central America, South America, and the Caribbean empowers communities to plan carefully and respond effectively to disasters. In coordination with local government and community groups, we develop and promote emergency plans. In the Caribbean, youth emergency action committees mobilize young people to map evacuation routes and establish emergency shelters. In rural areas, CRS helps farmers improve soil quality, protect vital water sources, and replant areas prone to landslides and flooding.

They have also used their experience in emergency and disaster preparedness to develop other programming. Building on the large-scale water programs they implemented in response to Hurricane Mitch, CRS has developed expertise in watershed management, an innovative and holistic approach that enables communities to better protect and manage their water resources.

Their programs also create the conditions that allow small farmers to enter and thrive in more stable and profitable markets. Sixty percent of people in rural areas live below the poverty line. For more than half of them, agriculture is their main source of income.

CRS builds value chains that support poor farmers on a large scale. The Cacao Alliance El Salvador, a CRS-led collaboration with private companies, governments, and research institutions, is transforming El Salvador into a source of cacao for the international gourmet market. The three-year project will increase the income of 10,000 farming families and create 26,000 jobs.

To encourage the consumption of nutritious foods, CRS teaches families how to create home gardens and educates them on the care and consumption of domestic livestock. They work with health centers to vaccinate children and treat malnutrition-related illnesses.

Latin American and Caribbean countries face some high-profile challenges including poverty, gang and youth violence, social conflicts, human trafficking, and unaccompanied minors leaving their homeland.

To address the root causes of migration, CRS's humanitarian work in Central America, South America, and the Caribbean invests in youth, who play a crucial role in transforming their communities. Jóvenes Constructores (Youth Builders), CRS's flagship program, has helped more than 4,000 young people in Central America develop vocational and life skills so they can find jobs or start small businesses.

CRS has more than 200 partners in Latin America and the Caribbean. All CRS programs are designed to strengthen the capacity of local communities to meet their own needs and work more effectively with their local governments.

In 21 countries and territories across the Asia region, Catholic Relief Services (CRS) and its partners focus on promoting good governance, alleviating poverty, and building peace.

CRS helps empower local residents to become active participants in the decision-making processes that affect them, as well as to identify and solve their own problems. Some examples of CRS's work in the region:

• In the Philippines, CRS provides international aid to thousands of people by supplying them with food and temporary shelter following emergencies and natural disasters. Combining its expertise across multiple areas and working in partnership with its allies, CRS helps communities identify risks, prepare for emergencies, and better cope when they occur.
• CRS's focus on creating formal microfinance entities ensures that poor entrepreneurs, mostly women, have access to small loans to provide for the well-being and development of their families.
• CRS health programs focus on children under 5 and women of reproductive age. These programs include activities related to clean water and hygiene, supplemental feeding, and health education.

In 11 countries and territories of Eastern Europe, Catholic Relief Services (CRS) promotes relationships and supports programs that protect human dignity and rights. By fostering tolerance and reducing socioeconomic and civic exclusion, CRS encourages Europeans to manage their differences peacefully.

CRS began its humanitarian work in Europe in 1943, in the midst of World War II. The agency's presence gradually diminished as the war-torn countries recovered. With the disintegration of the Soviet Union and Yugoslavia in the 1990s, CRS re-established its presence in Eastern Europe and the Caucasus.

The main areas of focus included providing emergency aid in countries that suffered armed conflict (e.g., Bosnia-Herzegovina, Kosovo, Moldova and Armenia) and strengthening civil society systems and structures.

Currently, CRS works in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, Albania, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Greece, Bulgaria, Ukraine, Moldova, and Armenia. Its core humanitarian focus is on rebuilding Caritas' national structures and strengthening their capacity to better serve the poor and marginalized in their communities.

CRS has been present in the Middle East and North Africa providing aid for the past 50 years.

It currently supports charitable programs in seven countries and territories that alleviate injustice and human suffering through emergency aid to victims of natural disasters, the humanitarian crisis in Iraq, and the conflict in Jerusalem, the West Bank, and Gaza.

CRS promotes integral human development, justice, peace and solidarity through programs that vary widely in scope, from microfinance and health to peacebuilding and understanding between different beliefs.

CRS's work in the United States focuses on a single mission: to help Catholics put their faith and generosity into action.

Since 2002, CRS has worked with dioceses, parishes, schools and organizations in the United States to offer Catholics concrete ways to “contribute to the progress of the world,” as urged by Benedict XVI in his message for the 2007 World Day of Peace.

CRS maintains five regional offices throughout the United States in Atlanta, Chicago, Philadelphia, San Antonio, and San Diego.