The Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) works in some of the world's most challenging crises to assist people forced to flee. As a humanitarian organisation operating in 40 countries, we believe in being transparent about how we work and how we're funded. Here are answers to your most common questions.
Understanding NRC's work and funding: your questions answered
Read our statement: NRC forced to suspend essential aid for 100,000s
Why does NRC receive funding from USAID and other international donors?
NRC is an independent humanitarian organisation and is not part of the Norwegian government. While our headquarters are in Norway, we receive funding from many international donors to help people forced to flee in 40 countries worldwide.
International donor funding works as a partnership. Donors like USAID, the EU, donor agencies of other governments and the UN contribute to organisations like NRC that have proven expertise in delivering humanitarian aid. We're chosen for our ability to reach people in the world's most challenging crises and for our track record of using funds effectively.
NRC receives funding from about 40 countries and multilateral organisations, as well as private sector organisations and individual donors. In 2024, our largest donors included Norway, the US, the EU, Germany and Sweden, with US funding comprising just under 20 per cent (USD 150 million) of our total funding.
You can read more about our finances here.
How does NRC spend its funding?
At least 90 per cent of NRC's funding goes directly to our humanitarian programmes helping people forced to flee. The remaining amount covers essential administrative costs to ensure we can deliver aid effectively, respond rapidly to emergencies and comply with donor requirements.
Read our statement: NRC forced to suspend essential aid for 100,000s
Why does NRC receive funding from USAID and other international donors?
NRC is an independent humanitarian organisation and is not part of the Norwegian government. While our headquarters are in Norway, we receive funding from many international donors to help people forced to flee in 40 countries worldwide.
International donor funding works as a partnership. Donors like USAID, the EU, donor agencies of other governments and the UN contribute to organisations like NRC that have proven expertise in delivering humanitarian aid. We're chosen for our ability to reach people in the world's most challenging crises and for our track record of using funds effectively.
NRC receives funding from about 40 countries and multilateral organisations, as well as private sector organisations and individual donors. In 2024, our largest donors included Norway, the US, the EU, Germany and Sweden, with US funding comprising just under 20 per cent (USD 150 million) of our total funding.
You can read more about our finances here.
How does NRC spend its funding?
At least 90 per cent of NRC's funding goes directly to our humanitarian programmes helping people forced to flee. The remaining amount covers essential administrative costs to ensure we can deliver aid effectively, respond rapidly to emergencies and comply with donor requirements.
This graph shows NRC spending in 2023:
Who benefits from NRC's work?
Every year, NRC helps millions of people who have been forced to flee their homes due to conflict, violence and disaster. In 2024, we assisted people in 40 countries – from Syria and Ukraine to Sudan and Afghanistan.
Our work directly supports displaced families and their host communities. In 2023, we helped nearly 10 million people survive and rebuild their lives through emergency response and longer-term assistance. This included providing shelter, education, legal assistance, food security, water and sanitation.
Most of our 15,000 staff are locals who have been hired in the countries where we work. Many have experienced displacement themselves. This means we have strong community knowledge and understanding of local needs, while maintaining the ability to scale up quickly during emergencies.
We work in some of the world's most dangerous and hard-to-reach places, where few other organisations operate. Our presence ensures that lifesaving aid reaches families who might otherwise be forgotten or ignored.
Does NRC have reserves that it can spend in this funding crisis?
NRC maintains equity reserves equivalent to around 10 per cent of our annual income and expenditure – enough to cover around six weeks of operations. While these reserves are vital for responding rapidly when crises strike and keeping enough cash available to run our operations, they are not sufficient to fill the current humanitarian funding gap.
Following the United States' immediate suspension of programmes and payments, we are using a significant portion of these reserves to responsibly wind down affected programmes, but our equity alone cannot sustain these operations long-term.
How much money does NRC spend on fundraising?
Our total spending on fundraising is less than 2 per cent of our income.
Our financial reports are independently audited and publicly available. They show that at least 90 per cent of our funding goes directly to humanitarian programmes helping displaced people. The remaining amount covers essential administrative costs to ensure we can deliver aid effectively and comply with donor requirements, as well as fundraising costs that allow us to raise more funds for humanitarian assistance.
When you see NRC's name in the media, it's usually because we're speaking up about humanitarian crises or sharing information about the situations facing displaced people. This is part of our core mandate, not paid advertising. When we do use paid advertising channels, the space is often donated by media partners, which keeps our costs to a minimum.
Does NRC help organise migration to Europe or Norway?
No. Our mission is to help people forced to flee their homes due to conflict and disasters by providing emergency assistance and protection.
Most of the displaced people we assist remain either within their own country or in neighbouring countries. For example, we support Syrian refugees in Lebanon and Jordan, displaced families in Sudan, South Sudan and Chad, and communities affected by conflict in Yemen and Afghanistan. Our goal is to help people rebuild their lives and find lasting solutions.
How does NRC ensure aid ends up where it should?
NRC has processes and policies in place to make sure that aid reaches the people it is meant to assist. We carefully choose who receives assistance based on clear guidelines and needs assessments, making sure help goes to the most vulnerable people first.
After aid is delivered, we monitor the situation to make sure that the intended people receive the aid, both by speaking to them directly and by monitoring the distributions remotely.
We also have strict financial controls. Our finances and procurement are thoroughly checked, both internally and by external auditors. Before working with suppliers or partners, we screen them against relevant sanctions and counterterrorism lists.
All NRC staff and partners must follow strict rules around conduct, anti-corruption and financial and logistics procedures. If anyone suspects aid is being misused, they must report it immediately. Specialised teams investigate these reports, inform our donors about any problems, and put extra safeguards in place if needed.
To ensure funds are spent properly, we have detailed procedures for purchasing supplies and managing money. Regular audits help prevent fraud and make sure aid gets to those who truly need it.
Read more about anti-corruption work in NRC here.
Why does NRC advocate for humanitarian exemptions to sanctions?
NRC advocates for humanitarian exemptions in sanctions and counterterrorism measures so that we can deliver aid effectively in challenging places. These exemptions let us and other aid agencies work within the restrictions to pay for essential things like work permits and office costs, without which we couldn’t help people in crisis in countries like Syria or Afghanistan.
We must also engage with local administrations to operate legally, even in areas where some authorities may be under sanctions. Humanitarian exemptions allow us to do this while maintaining proper oversight.
Humanitarian exemptions do not increase the risk of aid diversion or misuse. Rather, they enable aid organisations to work effectively in complex environments while maintaining transparency and accountability.
The UN Security Council highlighted how important these exemptions are when it unanimously passed Resolution 2664 in 2022. The resolution created specific exemptions to ensure that sanctions don't accidentally harm civilians or stop humanitarian work. By passing this resolution, the Security Council showed it recognises that without such exemptions, sanctions could end up hurting those most in need of humanitarian assistance.
How does NRC transfer funds to the countries where we operate?
NRC mainly uses banks to transfer funds from our head office in Norway to our countries of operation. However, there are some countries where banking services are very limited. Sometimes this is because banks restrict the transfers of funds to certain countries because they are concerned about violating sanctions and anti-money laundering or counterterrorism financing regulations. This can mean that some of our transfers can be delayed or completely blocked.
When banking options are limited, NGOs like NRC must sometimes rely on the use of money service providers (MSPs), sometimes also referred to as 'hawala', to transfer funds into certain countries to be able to run our programmes. While these services differ from banks, governments are still required to regulate how they operate, and NGOs implement careful checks when using them. We select MSPs that are formally registered and only pay the service providers after the funds have been transferred.
You can read more about how and why NGOs use MSP in this reference guide: Humanitarian Organisations’ Use of Money Service Providers.
How does NRC ensure transparency and accountability?
The Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) ensures transparency and accountability through a robust open information policy that commits to sharing details about our work and allocation of funds with all stakeholders, including displaced people, staff, host authorities, donors, and the public.
We have achieved the Core Humanitarian Standard (CHS) certification and are a signatory to the International Aid Transparency Initiative (IATI), demonstrating our commitment to ethical humanitarian response.
We maintain stringent oversight through multiple mechanisms, including our "Speak Up" whistleblowing system, a zero-tolerance anti-corruption policy, and a conflict of interest policy that covers employees, board members and consultants. We also prioritise continuous learning by fostering a culture that encourages reflection on both successes and failures, conducting regular monitoring and evaluations, and systematically applying lessons learned to improve our humanitarian programmes and organisational strategies.
Read more on our Accountability page.