Aid to the Church in Need

What Aid to the Church in Need does

Aid to the Church in Need (Aide à l'Église en Détresse, AED) is a Pontifical Foundation erected by the Holy See in 1947, headquartered in Mareil-Marly, France, that operates the world's largest Catholic charity network dedicated to persecuted and materially deprived Christians. AED funds emergency humanitarian aid, reconstruction of homes and churches, formation of priests and seminarians (supporting an estimated 40,096 priests, roughly 1 in 10 globally, and 16,200+ seminarians, 1 in 7 globally), and the work of 13,000+ religious women in conflict and inaccessible zones. In 2025 the foundation financed 5,368 projects across 141 countries, with over €25 million allocated to the Catholic Church in Ukraine since 2022 and active emergency responses in Venezuela, Lebanon, Iraq, Syria, Nigeria, Burkina Faso and the DRC.

Operations are delivered through 23 national offices (France, Germany, USA, UK, Italy, Spain, Brazil, etc.) acting as wholly-owned regional entities of the international foundation, supported by a Vatican-aligned partnership network spanning local bishops' conferences, Patriarch Louis Raphaël Sako of the Chaldean Church, Œuvre d'Orient, Open Doors and Chredo. Programs are executed in partnership with in-country clergy, who identify beneficiaries and distribute aid; national offices raise funds locally and coordinate project disbursement.

The business model is donation-funded and non-commercial. Revenue streams are individual donations, parish contributions, legacies and life insurance, recurring direct debits, PayPal, credit card, IFI (French solidarity tax) donations, and major-donor gifts, with AED France fiscally assimilated to a recognized association of public utility. Go-to-market is multi-channel: direct mail and phone outreach, the aed-france.org donation platform, monthly newsletter, social media, and recurring awareness events such as the Nuit des Témoins and Red Week monument illuminations. Content products include the L'Église dans le monde magazine, the Témoins d'Espérance podcast with Vatican News, radio chronicles, the biennial Rapport sur la Liberté Religieuse, and the AED Mission youth program with the Siloë adventure festival (launched 2026). The disclosed international donation total was €106 million in 2019 (of which €75.9 million deployed to projects), with AED France separately raising €25.7 million in 2018; more than 330,000 benefactors support the organization worldwide.

Name

Aid to the Church in Need

Legal name

Association Aide à l'Église en Détresse

Website

https://aed-france.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1947

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Aid to the Church in Need (AED) is a Pontifical Foundation founded in 1947 that finances emergency aid, priest formation, and reconstruction projects for persecuted Christians across 141 countries through 23 national offices and a 330,000+ donor base.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Religious Humanitarian Aid Services

NAICS

Religious Organizations (8131), Religious, Grantmaking, Civic, Professional, and Similar Organizations (813), Grantmaking and Giving Services (81321)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Faith-Based Humanitarian Aid & Relief Ministries (BPAGAJAF)

akta.pro secondary industries

Refugee, IDP & Migration Humanitarian Assistance (BPAGAAAH), International Development & Donor-Funded Education Programs (EDADALAB)

Keywords

• Humanitarian aid services
• Religious freedom advocacy
• Persecuted Christians support
• Donation-based charity
• Faith-based nonprofit

Headquarters

HQ city

Mareil-marly

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain, Others

Revenue model

1. Donations and Charitable Contributions: AED generates revenue primarily through donations from individuals, parishes, and organizations worldwide. The foundation collects funds to support Christians facing persecution and provides material aid, reconstruction, education support, and emergency assistance. Revenue is used to fund projects in over 140 countries.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Aid to the Church in Need is a Pontifical Foundation of the Catholic Church that finances humanitarian aid projects supporting persecuted, oppressed, and suffering Christians worldwide. Its core offerings include emergency humanitarian relief, reconstruction of churches and homes, material support for priests and seminarians, religious freedom advocacy at the UN and EU, and awareness-raising publications. In 2025, AED financed 5,368 projects across 141 countries, supported over 40,000 priests and 16,000+ seminarians globally, and allocated €25+ million to Ukraine aid since 2022.

Product overview

Aid to the Church in Need (Aide à l'Église en Détresse - AED) is a Pontifical Foundation established in 1947 that supports persecuted and suffering Christians worldwide through material aid, information, and prayer. The organization operates a portfolio of products and services centered on three core missions: informing the public about Christian persecution (via the magazine 'L'Église dans le monde', podcasts including 'Témoins d'Espérance', radio chronicles, and religious freedom reports), prayer support (through dedicated prayer spaces and the annual 'Nuit des Témoins' vigil), and direct action (funding over 5,000 projects annually across 140+ countries). Additional offerings include youth engagement through AED Mission and the Siloë adventure festival, an e-commerce boutique, and the annual Carême Shop Lenten campaign. The organization also publishes books and research reports on religious freedom. AED France is one of 23 national offices within the international network.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• L'Église dans le monde: The organization's magazine covering international news of Christians worldwide, written by professional journalists and religious figures.
• Nuit des Témoins
• AED Mission
• Siloë
• Témoins d'Espérance
• Rapport sur la Liberté Religieuse

Products and services

• Magazine L'Église dans le monde Information magazine covering international Christian current affairs worldwide, written by professional journalists and religious figures. Serves as the voice for persecuted Christians who cannot speak for themselves, offering testimonies and analysis on the Church worldwide.
• Témoins d'Espérance podcast Podcast series produced in partnership with Vatican News featuring testimonies from persecuted Christians. Launched October 2024, providing multimedia content about persecuted Christians worldwide.
• Siloë adventure festival Adventure weekend festival launched in 2026 by AED Mission, promoting youth engagement and Christian values through outdoor adventure experiences. Targets young people aged roughly 18-35.
• La boutique AED (AED Online Shop)

Quantifiable outcome

• Supported 40,096 priests (1 in 10 globally) and 16,200+ seminarians (1 in 7 globally)
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and major.

• ACN InternationalcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAED France is part of the international ACN (Aid to the Church in Need) network with 23 national offices worldwide including USA, Germany, UK, Italy, Spain, Brazil, and others. The international coordination enables global reach and unified mission support.
• Œuvre d'OrientmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerJoint nomination for Sakharov Prize 2014 alongside Open Doors International, coordinated by Chredo (Coordination des Chrétiens d'Orient en Danger). Both organizations advocate for Christian minorities in the Middle East.
• Open Doors InternationalmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership in joint Sakharov Prize nomination 2014 coordinated by Chredo. Both organizations support persecuted Christians globally.
• Chredo (Coordination des Chrétiens d'Orient en Danger)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerFrench coordination organization bringing together AED, Œuvre d'Orient, and Open Doors for joint advocacy initiatives including Sakharov Prize nomination.
• Local Catholic Churches and BishopscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAED works directly with bishops and local churches worldwide to identify needs and distribute support. Key partnerships include Patriarch Louis Raphaël Sako of the Chaldean Church, Archbishop of Erbil Mgr Warda, and bishops in Nigeria, Burkina Faso, Iraq, Syria, and other persecution zones.
• Vatican NewsmajorGTM or Marketing PartnerJoint podcast series 'Témoins d'Espérance' launched in October 2024, providing multimedia content about persecuted Christians.
• National Bishops' ConferencesmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAED is an associate member of the French Bishops' Conference (CNAS). Partnerships with bishops' conferences worldwide enable local implementation of aid projects.

Scale indicators11 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Caritas Internationalis: The Vatican's umbrella Catholic humanitarian confederation (165+ member organisations). Overlaps with AED on Catholic charitable giving and emergency response, but is broader in mandate (poverty, migration, health) and not specialised in persecuted-Christians advocacy.
• Catholic Relief Services: US-based official Catholic overseas development agency, comparable in operating model (donor-funded Catholic humanitarian NGO with international footprint), but serves a broader beneficiary base and is a much larger institutional player.

Emerging players

• Jesuit Refugee Service: Catholic NGO serving displaced and persecuted populations worldwide with accompaniment, education, and advocacy. Comparable target population (forcibly displaced, persecuted) and partial funding source overlap with AED, though ecumenical in scope.
• Pontifical Mission Societies: Vatican-organised network for mission and pastoral funding, overlapping with AED's seminary and formation support work internationally and drawing on a similar Catholic donor base.
• Missio Aachen / Missio Munich: German Catholic pontifical mission societies funding priests, religious, and pastoral work in mission territories. Overlaps directly with AED's priest-formation and seminarian-support programmes, though less focused on persecution specifically.

Regional players

• Laicat Catholique / Kerk in Nood (AED-affiliated): Refers to AED's own national-office network (e.g., Kerk in Nood Belgium/Netherlands). Comparable because AED affiliates in non-French markets essentially operate as AED franchises competing against Open Doors locally with the same brand-narrative assets.

Others

• Solidarités International: Major French humanitarian NGO operating emergency and post-conflict programmes worldwide. Comparable as a French-headquartered international humanitarian organisation with donation-supported funding model and emergency-response track record, but secular mandate.

Direct peers

• Barnabas Fund: UK-based charity specifically supporting persecuted Christians worldwide. Almost identical mission and donor positioning to AED's English-speaking markets; competes head-to-head for persecuted-Christian donations.
• Œuvre d'Orient: French Catholic pontifical association dedicated to supporting Eastern Christians, operating in the same Middle East and field geographies and competing for the same French Catholic donor base. Co-nominated with AED for the Sakharov Prize in 2014.
• Open Doors International: Largest evangelical counterpart in persecuted-Christian support and advocacy; explicitly partnered with AED on the 2014 Sakharov Prize nomination. Directly competes for the same donor narrative and overlaps substantially on field operations and advocacy positioning.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/aedenfrance

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Subsidiaries26 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Aid to the Church in Need