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CWS Corporate Profile

Church World Service is a global relief, development, and refugee assistance agency working in partnership in some 80 countries. With a membership of 35 Protestant, Orthodox, and Anglican denominations in the United States and connecting with indigenous grassroots organizations worldwide, CWS programs support self reliance and sustainable development; meet emergency needs; seek durable solutions for uprooted people; address the root causes of poverty and powerlessness; and promote fair national and international policies.

Founded in 1946, Church World Service responds to natural and human-caused disasters domestically and internationally. Over the past five decades, Church World Service has provided more than 5.3 billion pounds of material assistance to disaster survivors. Domestically, Church World Service is one of the first agencies called to respond to disasters, offering emergency relief and long-term recovery assistance for vulnerable and under-served populations.

Internationally, CWS administers refugee-processing programs in Nairobi, Kenya, and Accra, Ghana, through an agreement with the U.S. Department of State. One of nine Voluntary Agencies that work with the Department of State to resettle refugees in this country, Church World Service has resettled more than 450,000 refugees in the U.S.

Multi-Year Africa Initiative: Church World Service’s current, multi-year Africa Initiative is building on the foundation of the agency’s decades of programs in Africa. The initiative seeks to bring increased attention and resources to the successes and strengths and the struggles still faced by the majority of Africans, particularly its most vulnerable populations—including people living with HIV/AIDS, orphans and vulnerable children, and women.

Africa Initiative programs include focus on key issues of: food security; water for all; durable solutions for displaced people; solutions for decimating diseases including malaria and HIV/AIDS; and peace and reconciliation. Its innovative Orphans and Vulnerable Children and School Safe Zones programs are now expanding beyond pilot sites to other African countries. The initiative’s development programs focus on self-reliance, income generation and micro-enterprise, empowering women, and building local capacities.

In FY2005, CWS raised $88,132,534 in total income from diverse sources including its community CROP Walks, public fundraising appeals, contributions from grants and major gifts, from the agency’s member denominations and other organizations, donated materials, investments, and other income. The not-for-profit organization has corporate offices in New York, New York, and Elkhart, Indiana, public policy offices in Washington, D.C., and regional offices in Africa, Asia, Latin America, and Eastern Europe.

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