International Red Cross Funding

The American Red Cross is one of several community organizations working together to respond to disasters.

The Red Cross involves annually matching knowledge, skills, interests and experience of individual's with opportunities to serve their community. Funding Sources:

Charitable donations from the American public

Participation in the United Way and Combined Federal Campaigns

Reimbursements and grants from local, state and federal government agencies for specific projects The Federation coordinates cooperation between national Red Cross and Red Crescent societies throughout the world and supports the foundation of new national societies in countries where no official society exists.

1919, representatives from the national Red Cross societies of Britain, France, Italy, Japan, and the US came together in Paris to found the 'League of Red Cross Societies'.

The original idea was Henry Davison's, president of the American Red Cross. This move, led by the American Red Cross, expanded the international activities of the Red Cross movement beyond the strict mission of the ICRC to include relief assistance in response to emergency situations which were not caused by war. The ARC already had great disaster relief mission experience extending back to its foundation. Most of money comes from the States, Switzerland, from national Red Cross societies, states of the Geneva Conventions, and European Union.

All payments to the ICRC are voluntary and are received as donations based on two types of appeals issued by the Committee: an annual Headquarters Appeal to cover its internal costs and Emergency Appeals for its individual missions. The ICRC is asking donors for more than 1.1 billion Swiss francs to fund its work in 2010.

Afghanistan is projected to become the ICRC's biggest humanitarian operation (at 86 million Swiss francs, an 18% increase over the initial 2009 budget), followed by Iraq (85 million francs) and Sudan (76 million francs). The initial 2010 field budget for medical activities of 132 million francs represents an increase of 12 million francs over 2009.