About Caritas Norway
We are a humanitarian organization that works to improve the lives of people in Norway, as well as countries in Europe, Africa, Asia and Latin America.
Our work areas:
- Long-term development (food security), where the main goal is to help eradicate hunger and poverty. We work to increase food security and nutrition through efficient, sustainable and climate-friendly agriculture (agriculture, livestock and fisheries), skills development, vocational training and strengthening civil society.
- Humanitarian work, where we respond quickly with emergency response to humanitarian crises caused by natural disasters, war and conflict.
- In Norway, we work with migration and the integration of immigrants and refugees into Norwegian work and society. We help immigrants and their families into active participation in society and work and out of poverty by offering Norwegian language training, social and labor market skills and general advice and guidance.
Our vision is a world where people's inherent dignity is respected and their human rights are realized.
Caritas Norway was established in 1952 as Norwegian Catholic Refugee Council. In 1964, Caritas Norway became an independent foundation. The board is our supreme body and is elected by the council meeting, where all the congregations in the Catholic Church in Norway have the right to vote.
We are an active member of the worldwide Caritas confederation, consisting of national organizations around the world, thousands of sub-national organizations and our sister organizations in tens of thousands of communities. Together, we are the world's second largest humanitarian network.
Read our articles of association and annual report for 2022 here.
Guide for newly arrived asylum seekers
Since June 1, 2023, we have been responsible for the national guidance service for newly arrived asylum seekers to Norway. Through the guidance service, we prepare asylum seekers for the asylum process and provide information about their rights and obligations. The assignment is on behalf of the Norwegian Directorate of Immigration (UDI).
What have we achieved in 2023?
Of these, 31 percent were reached through our humanitarian efforts, 57 percent through our long-term development projects and 12 percent through cross-project collaboration.
food security means having access to enough food, safe food and nutritious food to live an active and healthy life all year round. Climate change is a major threat to food security. That's why we provide training in climate-smart agriculture so that small-scale farmers are better equipped to deal with droughts, floods and other extreme weather.
The aid consists of everything from food, water, medicine, hygiene kits, blankets, cash grants to shelter and psychosocial support.
In addition to Oslo, Caritas has resource centers in eight other cities. Nationwide, a total of 40,000 visits were made to our centers.
On June 1, 2023, Caritas Norway took over the guidance service for newly arrived asylum seekers. The guidance service has a physical presence at the National Arrival Center in Råde (NAS), as well as at some reception centers nearby. In addition, digital counseling is provided to private residents and residents at other reception centers. Since the start, we have provided guidance to 16,043 people. Ukrainians with collective protection account for over 80 percent.