Bidesari

What Bidesari does

Bidesari (legal name: Asociación Bidesari de Pastoral Penitenciaria) is a non-profit association founded in 1994 by the Pastoral Penitenciaria of the Diocese of Bilbao to support persons deprived of liberty in the Basque Country (CAPV). It operates a continuum of social reintegration and restorative justice programs spanning intrapenitentiary services inside prisons in Bizkaia and Araba (Eraikiz, Mugituz, Ekin, programmed weekend outings), extrapenitentiary residential resources (Eusten for terminally ill prisoners, Ibiltzen medium-intensity housing, Hazten high-intensity housing for social exclusion with addiction), and prevention/awareness programs including the Esan Ez school-based addiction prevention initiative using testimony from former prisoners. The organization also runs the Hedatu program for immigrant prisoners and engages in network work with coalitions such as Bestebi, EAPN Euskadi, ESEN, GIZARDATZ, and UNAD.

The business model is a hybrid nonprofit funding stack: institutional grants and convenios from the Basque Government (Gobierno Vasco), the Provincial Council of Bizkaia (Diputación Foral de Bizkaia), and Bilbao City Council (Ayuntamiento de Bilbao); foundation grants from Cáritas Bizkaia, Fundación Carmen Gandarias, Fundación Antonio Menchaca, Itaka Escolapios, and Fundación Victor Tapia; individual donations (tax-deductible in Spain); recurring membership fees (socios/socias); and corporate partnerships via the "empresa amiga" program including in-kind contributions (furniture, IT, volunteering). Services are delivered free of charge to beneficiaries. Annual reach is approximately 200 prisoners served in a regional prison population of roughly 1,600, supported by 14 employees and a volunteer network, with three operated residential facilities. The organization is not publicly traded, has no parent company, and has not raised venture or private equity funding.

Geographically, operations are concentrated in the Basque Country (Bilbao headquarters, Basauri and Vitoria-Gasteiz prisons). Revenue is not publicly disclosed, and the technology stack is limited to a WordPress website with standard third-party analytics (Google Analytics, Matomo) and video embeds (Vimeo, YouTube); there is no proprietary technology, no AI/ML component, and no software product. The entity is governed by its own junta directiva and is led by Director Arantza Sáenz de Ugarte (since September 2023).

Name

Bidesari

Legal name

ASOCIACION BIDESARI DE PASTORAL PENITENCIARIA

Website

https://bidesari.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1994

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Bidesari is a Basque Country (Spain) non-profit association founded in 1994 that delivers social reintegration and restorative justice programs for persons deprived of liberty and those at risk of social exclusion. It operates prison-based programs, three residential facilities, and school prevention services, funded by public institutions, foundations, and donations.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Social Reintegration and Restorative Justice Services

NAICS

Other Individual and Family Services (624190), Community Housing Services (62422), Individual and Family Services (6241)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Financial Assistance & Benefits Navigation Services (BPAGAEAK)

Keywords

• Prison social reintegration
• Restorative justice programs
• Addiction prevention services
• Residential reintegration housing
• Community reintegration support

Headquarters

HQ city

Bilbao

HQ country

Spain

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Others, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Institutional Funding/Grants: Bidesari receives funding from public institutions including Eusko Jaurlaritza (Basque Government), Bizkaia Provincial Council, Bilbao City Council, as well as foundations such as Cáritas Bizkaia, Fundación Carmen Gandarias, Fundación Antonio Menchaca, Itaka Escolapios, and Fundación Victor Tapia.
2. Donations: Individual donations from the public. Financial contributions are tax-deductible in Spain.
3. Membership Fees: Monthly or periodic membership fees from individuals (socios/socias) who support the organization's mission.
4. Corporate Partnerships: Companies can become 'empresa amiga' (friendly company) through economic donations, material donations (furniture, IT equipment), volunteering, or sponsoring awareness activities.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Bidesari is a nonprofit social entity that delivers comprehensive social reintegration and restorative justice services to persons deprived of liberty and those at risk of social exclusion in the Basque Country (CAPV). Its core offering comprises intrapenitentiary programs delivered inside prisons (workshops, sports, motivational/psychoeducational accompaniment), graduated extrapenitentiary residential resources for housing and post-release support, and school-based addiction prevention programs. All services are provided free of charge to beneficiaries and are not commercial products.

Product overview

Bidesari operates as a comprehensive social reintegration organization offering a portfolio of interconnected programs for persons deprived of liberty and those at risk of social exclusion in the Basque Country. The organization structures its services across four main areas: Intrapenitentiary Programs (Eraikiz, Mugituz, Ekin, and weekend outings conducted inside prisons), Extrapenitentiary Programs (Eusten, Ibiltzen, Hazten, and Hedato residential resources providing graduated support outside prison), Awareness and Prevention Programs (Esan Ez and health promotion for schools and community), and Network Collaboration (working with organizations like Bestebi, EAPN, ESEN, GIZARDATZ, UNAD). The programs are designed as a continuum from inside prison through community reentry, with residential resources providing different intensity levels of support.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Eraikiz Motivational and psychoeducational accompaniment program for persons in Araba and Bizkaia prisons with severe social exclusion, addiction issues, and mental illness; promotes social inclusion and autonomy through individual and group follow-up, including specific intervention for vulnerable women in Araba.
• Mugituz Program promoting workshops, activities, and sports in Bizkaia prison to use time in an educational and responsible manner, fostering autonomy, healthy habits, and recovery/social integration processes, in partnership with the Basque Government and Fundación Athletic Club.
• Ekin Socio-educational project in Bizkaia and Araba prisons using sports to promote personal change in persons in the pre-contemplative phase, developing personal and social skills for autonomy, well-being, and behavioral change.
• Asteburuetako irteera programatuak (Programmed Weekend Outings) Monthly educational weekend outings for persons deprived of liberty promoting social inclusion and relationships based on dialogue, respect, and empathy as preparation for life in freedom.
• Eusten High-intensity temporary residential resource for persons deprived of liberty with serious or incurable diseases, offering comprehensive care, support for autonomy, and community participation with stays adapted to sentence and health situation.
• Ibiltzen Medium-intensity residential resource with two apartments for persons deprived of liberty, offering accommodation and support for social inclusion, skill development, and autonomy in a warm environment with accompaniment.
• Hazten High-intensity residential resource for persons in social exclusion and with addiction problems, offering physical, psychological, and social support, containment, and security as a prior step to community inclusion.
• Esan Ez Addiction and risk behavior prevention program for adolescents in schools through classroom sessions where persons deprived of liberty provide their testimony, in partnership with the Basque Government's Department of Health.
• Osasuna sustatzeko ekintzak (Health Promotion Actions) Program providing health promotion support for persons deprived of liberty in open regime through group community participation activities, both during imprisonment and after release, in partnership with Bilbao City Council.
• Hedatu Program accompanying immigrant persons deprived of liberty to facilitate progressive exit from prison, addressing difficulties in obtaining prison permits and regularizing administrative status.
• Sareko lana (Network Work) Network collaboration with various organizations (Bestebi, EAPN Euskadi, ESEN, GIZARDATZ, UNAD) to strengthen programs promoting coexistence, inclusion, and social awareness of prison reality.

Quantifiable outcome

• Approximately 200 prisoners served annually, operating 3 residential facilities for post-release support

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

Integration8 records

Partnerships

Twelve partnerships are on record, tiered core, minor and moderate.

• Fundación Athletic ClubcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2023Collaboration between Fundación Athletic Club and Bidesari began in the 2023-2024 season. The partnership supports the Mugituz project at the Centro Penitenciario Bizkaia in Basauri, organizing sports activities and football matches with veteran Athletic Club Bilbao players to promote personal recovery and social integration of prisoners.
• CebekminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerBidesari collaborated with volunteers from different companies in Bizkaia through the Cebek-organized multi-company Probono program to receive advice on communication and visibility.
• Eusko Jaurlaritza (Gobierno Vasco)coreOthersPrimary institutional partner providing funding and formal agreements (convenios) for multiple programs including extrapenitentiary resources (Eusten, Ibiltzen), intrapenitentiary programs (Eraikiz, Mugituz, Ekin), and sensitization programs (Esan Ez, health promotion). Operates through the Department of Equality, Justice and Social Policies.
• Diputación Foral de BizkaiacoreOthersProvincial institution providing funding and agreements, primarily for the Hazten residential resource (high-intensity support for persons in social exclusion with addiction issues).
• Ayuntamiento de BilbaocoreOthersMunicipal government providing support for health promotion programs for persons deprived of liberty in open regime, through agreements with Bilbao City Council.
• Cáritas BizkaiamoderateOthersCatholic charitable organization providing institutional and financial support to Bidesari's social reintegration programs.
• Pastoral Penitenciaria de la Diótesis de BilbaocoreOthersThe founding organization of Bidesari in 1994. Catholic prison pastoral care organization of the Diocese of Bilbao that created Bidesari to support persons deprived of liberty and their families.
• Bestebi (Plataforma por la Inclusión Residencial)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPlatform for residential inclusion that Bidesari works with as part of network collaboration to strengthen programs promoting coexistence, inclusion, and social awareness about prison reality.
• EAPN Euskadi (Red Europea de Lucha contra la Pobreza)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerEuropean Anti-Poverty Network in the Basque Country that Bidesari collaborates with in network work for social inclusion.
• ESEN (Red de Entidades del Ámbito Penitenciario)moderateStrategic or Co-development PartnerNetwork of prison-related entities in the Basque Country and Navarre that Bidesari participates in for shared learning and advocacy.
• GIZARDATZ (Asociación de Entidades de Intervención Social de Bizkaia)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAssociation of social intervention entities in Bizkaia that Bidesari collaborates with in network initiatives.
• UNAD (Unión de Asociaciones de Atención al Drogodependiente)moderateStrategic or Co-development PartnerNetwork for care of people with drug dependencies that Bidesari works with, as many of the populations served have addiction issues.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Asociación Nuevo Futuro: Spanish nonprofit managing residential homes and reintegration programs for youth and adults released from prison or at risk of social exclusion. Comparable in service mix (residential + accompaniment) and in operating residential facilities across multiple intensity levels.
• CEPAIM (Fundación CeiMigra): Spanish nonprofit specializing in migrant and refugee inclusion, including prison support and post-release accommodation. Directly comparable to Bidesari's Hedatu program for migrant prisoners and operates similar public-funded residential resources.
• Fundación Secretariado Gitano: Spanish nonprofit providing social inclusion programs for Roma communities, including prison reintegration and post-release support. Comparable in operating model (intrapenitentiary + extrapenitentiary), institutional funding approach, and focus on marginalized populations.
• Fundación Diagrama: Spanish nonprofit providing social reintegration, juvenile justice, and prison program services across multiple autonomous communities. Directly comparable in offering (intrapenitentiary and extrapenitentiary programs), target population (juveniles and adults in conflict with the law), and funding model (public institutional agreements).
• Cáritas Bizkaia: Diocesan Catholic charity in Bizkaia that is simultaneously a Bidesari funder and a comparator organization. Provides social services, housing support, and reintegration programs for vulnerable populations in the same Basque region, with similar operational scale and volunteer-driven model.

Broad incumbents

• Cruz Roja Española: Spain's largest humanitarian organization, with significant prison reintegration and social inclusion programs nationally. Comparable in target population (vulnerable groups, ex-prisoners) and institutional funding model, but operates at vastly larger scale across all social assistance categories.
• Pastoral Penitenciaria (Conferencia Episcopal Española): National Catholic prison pastoral organization in Spain, of which Bidesari's founding entity is a diocesan branch. Directly comparable in mission (prisoner accompaniment and reintegration) and operating model (volunteer-driven, restorative justice), but operating at a national scope across all Spanish dioceses.

Emerging players

• EAPN Euskadi: Basque Country branch of the European Anti-Poverty Network that Bidesari collaborates with. Comparable in operating in the same Basque social services ecosystem, with partial overlap in target population (people at risk of social exclusion) and shared funding channels.
• ESEN (Red de Entidades del Ámbito Penitenciario): Network of prison-focused entities in the Basque Country and Navarre where Bidesari is a member. Comprised of comparable small-to-mid-sized nonprofits doing prison reintegration work, serving as both peer consortium and potential collaboration partner.
• UNAD (Unión de Asociaciones de Atención al Drogodependiente): Spanish network of addiction service organizations of which Bidesari is a member. Comparable in addressing addiction as a co-morbidity in reintegration (Bidesari's Hazten resource for high-intensity addiction support) and in relying on public institutional funding.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/Bidesari-100064440919727
• Instagraminstagram.com/bidesari.asociacion
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/bidesari

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Bidesari