Bündnis Entwicklung Hilft

Bündnis Entwicklung Hilft – Gemeinsam für Menschen in Not e.V. is a German registered association (eingetragener Verein) that unites eleven humanitarian and development organisations under one umbrella for joint fundraising and coordinated relief. Its registered seat is in Aachen, while its day-to-day office is in Berlin-Tiergarten. The alliance was founded in early 2005 in the wake of the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami, when several German aid agencies decided to combine their experience and fundraising capacity to respond faster and more effectively to major disasters. The alliance describes itself as a union of church-based and secular humanitarian organisations. Its full members include Brot für die Welt, Christoffel-Blindenmission, DAHW Deutsche Lepra- und Tuberkulosehilfe, Kindernothilfe, medico international, Misereor, Plan International Deutschland, terre des hommes Deutschland and Deutsche Welthungerhilfe. German Doctors and Oxfam Deutschland are associated members. Together they cover a broad range of humanitarian fields, from food security and health to child protection and emergency medical aid. Bündnis Entwicklung Hilft does not implement projects itself. Instead, it acts as a Mittelbeschaffungsverein (a fundraising association) under German tax law: it collects donations centrally, especially through media appeals, and passes 100 percent of donations on to its member organisations, which carry out projects in crisis regions worldwide. Administrative costs and public relations are financed by contributions from the member organisations. Donations are distributed equally among the members and used for their projects. The alliance publishes an annual report detailing how funds are used, and both the alliance and its member organisations hold the DZI donation seal. A central feature of the alliance's public work is the annual WeltRisikoBericht (World Risk Report), published since 2011. It presents the World Risk Index, which assesses disaster risk for 181 countries, and is produced with academic partners — initially the Institute for Environment and Human Security of the United Nations University, and since 2018 the Institute for International Law of Peace and Armed Conflict at Ruhr University Bochum. The report aims to explain why extreme natural events become catastrophes and where sustainable development policy can intervene. In Germany, the alliance is known for large-scale donation appeals in cooperation with public broadcaster ARD. Under a 2011 agreement with the two other German donation alliances, Aktion Deutschland Hilft and Aktionsbündnis Katastrophenhilfe, Bündnis Entwicklung Hilft receives 60 percent of donations raised in an ARD appeal. The alliance also engages in development policy advocacy, promoting realistic reporting on disasters and raising public awareness of the complex causes of crises. Its guiding principle is that development assistance is the best prevention.

Bündnis Entwicklung Hilft was founded in early 2005, in the immediate aftermath of the Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami of December 2004. The disaster prompted several German humanitarian organisations to seek a more coordinated approach to fundraising and relief. By pooling their long-standing experience and local partnerships, they aimed to ensure that donations reach the places where they are most urgently needed and that aid can be delivered quickly and effectively. The alliance was established as a registered association (eingetragener Verein) with its seat in Aachen. Its founding members were nine German aid agencies: Brot für die Welt, Christoffel-Blindenmission, Deutsche Lepra- und Tuberkulosehilfe (DAHW), Kindernothilfe, medico international, Misereor, Plan International, terre des hommes and Welthungerhilfe. German Doctors and Oxfam Deutschland later joined as associated members, bringing the total to eleven organisations. The alliance describes itself as uniting church-based and secular humanitarian organisations. From the outset, the alliance functioned as a fundraising and coordination body rather than an implementing organisation. Under its statutes, it is a Mittelbeschaffungsverein (a fundraising association) that collects donations centrally and forwards them to member organisations for use in tax-privileged projects in crisis regions worldwide. Administrative costs and public relations are covered by member contributions, while 100 percent of donations are passed on to members and distributed equally among them. A major milestone was the launch of the WeltRisikoBericht (World Risk Report) in 2011. Published annually, it presents the World Risk Index, which assesses disaster risk for 181 countries. The report was initially produced in cooperation with the Institute for Environment and Human Security of the United Nations University; since 2018, the Institute for International Law of Peace and Armed Conflict at Ruhr University Bochum (IFHV) has been the academic partner. The report combines interdisciplinary research with practical experience from member organisations and aims to show why extreme natural events become catastrophes and where sustainable development policy can intervene. In 2011, the alliance also reached a general agreement with the two other major German donation alliances, Aktion Deutschland Hilft and Aktionsbündnis Katastrophenhilfe, governing cooperation with public broadcasters. Under this agreement, when ARD issues a donation appeal, Bündnis Entwicklung Hilft receives 60 percent of the donations raised. The decision whether to launch an appeal rests with the broadcaster. The alliance has coordinated appeals for major disasters, including the 2015 Nepal earthquake and Hurricane Matthew, which struck Haiti in October 2016, as well as the humanitarian crisis in Ukraine. Leadership of the alliance's office has changed over time. Peter Mucke managed the organisation for 17 years before Ilona Auer-Frege became managing director in 2022. The association's affairs are overseen by a board on which each full member holds a seat, while the members' assembly is the highest body, with each full member sending one voting representative and each associated member one representative with speaking rights. The alliance follows the code of conduct for development-related public relations of the German association of development policy and humanitarian aid NGOs (VENRO). It continues to publish the WeltRisikoBericht — the 2026 edition focuses on storms — and to run joint donation appeals with ARD and other partners.

• 2026

  New board welcomed; WeltRisikoBericht 2026 published with a focus on storms.

• 2025

  WeltRisikoBericht 2025 published, warning that billions of people are threatened by floods; new supervisory board welcomed.

• 2022

  Ilona Auer-Frege becomes managing director, succeeding Peter Mucke who led for 17 years.

• 2018

  Ruhr University Bochum's Institute for International Law of Peace and Armed Conflict (IFHV) becomes academic partner for the WeltRisikoBericht.

• 2016

  Joint donation appeal after Hurricane Matthew struck Haiti on 4 October 2016.

• 2015

  Joint donation appeal for the Nepal earthquake.

• 2011

  First WeltRisikoBericht (World Risk Report) published; general agreement reached with Aktion Deutschland Hilft and Aktionsbündnis Katastrophenhilfe on cooperation with public broadcasters, giving Bündnis Entwicklung Hilft a 60 percent share of ARD appeal donations.

• 2005

  Founded in early 2005 after the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami; registered association with seat in Aachen.

A cooperative umbrella alliance of German humanitarian aid organisations that pools resources for fast, effective and sustainable disaster relief, and advocates for development-oriented prevention.

• WeltRisikoBericht (World Risk Report)

  Annual report since 2011 presenting the World Risk Index for 181 countries, produced with academic partners.

• Joint donation appeals

  Coordinated fundraising campaigns for major disasters, often in cooperation with ARD.

• Humanitarian and development project funding

  Donations passed to member organisations for projects in crisis regions worldwide.

1. 1Bündnis Entwicklung Hilft - Gemeinsam Menschen in Not unterstützenentwicklung-hilft.de
2. 2Über uns - Bündnis Entwicklung Hilftentwicklung-hilft.de
3. 3Satzung und Kodex - Bündnis Entwicklung Hilftentwicklung-hilft.de
4. 4Unsere Mitglieder - Bündnis Entwicklung Hilftentwicklung-hilft.de
5. 5Bündnis Entwicklung Hilftde.wikipedia.org
6. 6Wikidata Q1020860wikidata.org