International Psycho-Social Organization

What International Psycho-Social Organization does

IPSO (International Psychosocial Organisation), legally registered as Ipso gGmbH – International Psychosocial Organisation, is a charitable non-profit organization founded in 2008 and headquartered in Konstanz, Germany, with regional offices in Berlin, Hamburg, Erfurt, and Rostock, and operational presence in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Ukraine. The organization specializes in mental health and psychosocial support (MHPSS) for refugees, migrants, and populations in crisis and conflict areas, built around its proprietary Value Based Counseling (VBC®) methodology — a psychodynamic short-term intervention method focused on self-efficacy, agency, and culturally sensitive, mother-tongue delivery. Services are delivered through a multi-channel architecture: physical IPSO Care Centers, partner care points inside Malteser and LAF refugee shelters, the IPSO Care online platform (ipso-care.com), the IPSO Care mobile app, and the saba app (piloted 2024-2026) which guides users through the VBC® counseling process with human counselor accompaniment.

IPSO does not generate revenue from service recipients; all counseling is provided free of charge to beneficiaries. The organization's funding model relies on three streams: donations and charitable contributions, government and institutional grants (German Federal Foreign Office, BMG, BMFSFJ, Thuringia Ministry, EU AMIF, GIZ), and private foundation and NGO funding (Michael Otto Stiftung, SKala Initiative, Caritas Germany, Schmitz-Stiftungen, Porticus Foundation, Aktion Deutschland Hilft). The organization has trained over 150 professionals in VBC® and delivered 50,000+ online counseling sessions in Germany between May 2017 and May 2023. Its go-to-market operates through three reinforcing motions: community-led local capacity building (training psychologists, educators, and social workers as licensed VBC® counselors), event-driven sociocultural dialogue and peacebuilding, and direct-to-consumer digital counseling via the IPSO Care platform and saba app.

Name

International Psycho-Social Organization

Legal name

Ipso gGmbH – International Psychosocial Organisation

Website

https://ipsocontext.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2008

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

IPSO is a German non-profit providing free, culturally sensitive psychosocial counseling and mental health support to refugees, migrants, and conflict-affected populations across Germany, Afghanistan, Iraq, and Ukraine, using its proprietary Value Based Counseling (VBC®) method delivered through care centers, partner shelters, and digital platforms.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Psychosocial Support Services

NAICS

Other Individual and Family Services (624190), Outpatient Mental Health and Substance Abuse Centers (621420), Educational Support Services (611710)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Protection, Child Protection & Gender-Based Violence (GBV) Response (BPAGAAAG)

Keywords

• Psychosocial support services
• Mental health counseling
• Refugee mental health
• Trauma counseling services
• Humanitarian mental health

Headquarters

HQ city

Konstanz

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices8 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Donations and Charitable Contributions: As a non-profit humanitarian organization, IPSO operates primarily through donations from individuals, corporations, and charitable foundations. The organization maintains a donation account and conducts online donation campaigns.
2. Government and Institutional Grants: IPSO receives funding from government agencies including German Federal Foreign Office, BMG, BMFSFJ, Thuringia Ministry, as well as international organizations and EU funds (AMIF). Project-based funding supports specific initiatives in Afghanistan, Germany, Iraq, and other operational areas.
3. Foundation and NGO Funding: Funding from foundations including Michael Otto Stiftung, SKala Initiative, Caritas Germany, Schmitz-Stiftungen, Porticus Foundation, and various other humanitarian organizations.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels8 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

IPSO provides low-threshold, culturally sensitive psychosocial counseling and mental health support using its proprietary Value Based Counseling (VBC®) methodology. Services are delivered to refugees, migrants, and crisis-affected populations in their mother tongues through physical care centers, an online video counseling platform (ipso-care.com), and a mobile application. The organization also trains professionals to become licensed VBC® counselors through its IPSO Academy program, and extends its work to community-level psychosocial peacebuilding through sociocultural dialogues.

Product overview

IPSO operates a multi-component psychosocial support system centered on Value Based Counseling (VBC®), their proprietary psychodynamic short-term intervention methodology. The core offering includes IPSO Care — a counseling system delivering low-threshold, culturally sensitive psychosocial support through in-person centers, partner care points, the IPSO Care Online Platform, and the IPSO Care mobile App. IPSO Academy provides training to develop licensed VBC® counselors. The saba app (2024-2026 pilot) is a digital application based on VBC® that guides users through the counseling process with counselor accompaniment. Psychosocial Peacebuilding extends the approach to community-level work combining psychosocial well-being with sociocultural dialogues for peace and reconciliation.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• IPSO Care A psychosocial counseling system based on the Value Based Counseling (VBC®) method, providing low-threshold access to professional counseling in relevant mother tongues through licensed counselors, delivered in-person at psychosocial centers, at partner care points, and through the online platform and mobile app. Free of charge to beneficiaries.
• IPSO Care Online Platform Secure video platform (ipso-care.com) providing discreet, location-independent psychosocial counseling sessions, enabling access to counseling services from any location with internet connection. Used for individual counseling and support groups.
• IPSO Care App Mobile application that expands the reach of IPSO's psychosocial counseling services, providing discreet access to support and counteracting stigmatization through tool discretion.
• IPSO Academy AZAV-certified training program that trains psychologists, educators, and social workers with appropriate professional backgrounds to become licensed psychosocial VBC® counselors, offered both offline and online with advanced training for MHPSS sector professionals and self-care/prevention programs.
• saba app Digital application based on VBC® methodology that guides users through the entire counseling process, helping them understand their feelings, gain clarity, and regain influence over their own lives. Available in Arabic, Dari, English, Farsi, Russian, and Ukrainian. Accompanied by VBC® counselors available for personal sessions.
• Psychosocial Peacebuilding Holistic approach working on a chain of impact from individual inner peace and self-efficacy through family and community to civil society expansion, combining psychosocial well-being with sociocultural dialogues to reflect cultural and social identities and promote peace and reconciliation.

Quantifiable outcome

• 50,000+ counseling sessions conducted from May 2017 to May 2023
• +5 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments7 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration3 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• Malteser WerkecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOngoing cooperation including joint care center in Rostock, nationwide rollout of online counseling in shelters, and VBC training programs. Collaboration with Malteser includes training psychologists from Ukraine and Russia.
• ProjectTogethermajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNon-profit organization collaborating on Helfende Wände initiative connecting housing providers with refugees, and jointly awarded Bewährt vor Ort seal.
• WunderflatsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerInitiator of Helfende Wände project connecting housing providers with people seeking protection.
• Syspons GmbHminorOthersConducts external evaluations of IPSO projects including psychosocial counseling in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and Malteser shelter programs.
• betterplace.org (gut.org gAG)minorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorOnline donation platform provider enabling IPSO's donation forms through integrated iframes.
• Charité BerlinminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerScientific/medical institute partnership for mental health and psychosocial support research and training.
• UKE (University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerScientific/medical institute partnership for mental health and psychosocial support collaboration.
• AshokaminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSocial entrepreneurship organization supporting innovative solutions to social problems.
• RotaryminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerGlobal service organization supporting humanitarian initiatives.

Scale indicators28 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• International Rescue Committee (IRC): Large international humanitarian organization providing emergency relief, refugee resettlement, and mental health/psychosocial support across conflict-affected countries—overlapping with IPSO's MHPSS programming for refugees.
• Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF): Large international medical humanitarian organization operating in conflict zones including Afghanistan and Iraq. Overlaps with IPSO in delivering frontline psychosocial and mental health services in crisis contexts.
• Malteser International: Larger German humanitarian organization delivering refugee support, disaster relief, and health services globally. IPSO's existing partner, operating in overlapping MHPSS/refugee space but with a much broader service portfolio.
• Caritas International: Major international humanitarian confederation providing refugee support, social services, and psychosocial programming—overlapping with IPSO's refugee MHPSS work as a current funding partner with significantly broader scope.
• Médecins du Monde (Doctors of the World): International humanitarian organization providing medical and mental health care to vulnerable populations including refugees and migrants in Europe and conflict zones—broadly comparable MHPSS delivery model.

Direct peers

• HIAS (Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society): International refugee resettlement and protection organization providing mental health, legal, and integration services to refugees—directly comparable to IPSO's refugee psychosocial support mission in Western contexts.
• STARTTS (NSW Service for Treatment and Rehabilitation of Torture and Trauma Survivors): Specialized provider of psychosocial and trauma rehabilitation services for refugees and survivors of torture, using culturally sensitive, community-based approaches with multilingual counselors—directly comparable in mission and methodology.
• War Child: International NGO specializing in psychosocial support and mental health for children and families affected by conflict, including mother-tongue counseling and community-based approaches—directly comparable to IPSO's refugee-focused psychosocial model.

Emerging players

• StrongMinds: Non-profit providing low-cost group talk therapy for depression in low-income African communities—comparable mission of culturally appropriate, scalable mental health support for underserved populations.

Regional players

• Johanniter Unfall-Hilfe: Major German humanitarian organization providing refugee assistance, psychosocial support, and integration services within Germany—directly comparable domestic competitor in German refugee MHPSS space.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/ipsocontext
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/ipso-international-psychosocial-organisation

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about International Psycho-Social Organization