KOLPING INTERNATIONAL presents annual report for 2020
(Cologne, 23-06-21) In its annual report 2020, KOLPING INTERNATIONAL looks back on a challenging year. Despite the difficult pandemic situation, the Catholic social association was able to support 171 projects in 41 countries, including educational and agricultural projects, income-generating measures, and well and cistern construction.
In addition to sustainable “help for self-help,” numerous emergency measures were also supported in 2020. “The Coronavirus crisis hit the poor and disadvantaged in the Global South particularly hard. Our local associations reported hunger and great suffering. Therefore, we created the Kolping Corona Fund and provided 29 Kolping associations with financial means for humanitarian aid”, reports General Praeses Msgr. Ottmar Dillenburg. The focus of this worldwide emergency aid was on the supply of food and hygiene articles as well as on health education so that the pandemic would not spread further.
In total, KOLPING INTERNATIONAL had around 10.7 million euros in revenue available for its work in Africa, Asia, Latin America, and Central and Eastern Europe in 2020. Of this, around 5.8 million euros came from public funds (previous year: 6.9 million euros). In addition, the year of the Coronavirus pandemic saw the highest donation income in the history of KOLPING INTERNATIONAL at 4.78 million euros. Compared to 2019, this represents a strong increase of 21 percent, and a five-year average increase of 42 percent. The vast majority of donations come from within the association. “The pandemic sparked overwhelming solidarity,” says Managing Director Karin Wollgarten with gratitude. “More supporters than ever before got involved with KOLPING INTERNATIONAL to help people in need in the Global South.”
General Secretary Dr. Markus Demele also sees the Coronavirus crisis as an opportunity for change toward a more equitable global economy. “The virus has shown us forcefully that we are an interconnected world community and can only solve global problems together. There is no alternative to acting in solidarity. Together, we must now ensure that vaccines are distributed equitably and that the backward steps in poverty reduction that have occurred worldwide are made up for,” he stressed. This responsibility now lies primarily with the rich industrialized countries, he said. “But each and every one of us can also make a contribution to this: be it through mindfulness of global interrelationships, One World work, involvement in politics or donations.”
