Diakonie Deutschland

What Diakonie Deutschland does

Diakonie Deutschland is the federal welfare association of the Protestant churches in Germany, founded in 1848 by Johann Hinrich Wichern and headquartered in Berlin. The organization operates as part of the Evangelisches Werk für Diakonie und Entwicklung e.V. (EWDE), which also encompasses Brot für die Welt and Diakonie Katastrophenhilfe. It coordinates a national network comprising approximately 28 state-level associations, 7 regional associations, and 64 professional associations, with services delivered through roughly 34,000 facilities serving 10 million clients annually across elderly care (6,281 facilities), child and youth welfare (13,692 facilities), healthcare (447 hospitals with 53,330 beds), disability integration assistance (4,130 facilities), family services (1,648 facilities), migration counseling, debt counseling, and crisis intervention.

The organization's technology infrastructure centers on three digital platforms: the Online-Beratungsportal (beratung.diakonie.de), which aggregates approximately 240 counseling providers with 3,500 counselors and supports chat, email, video, and audio channels; the central Standortdatenbank (location database) covering ~34,000 service offerings nationwide; and the Stellenbörse (karriere.diakonie.de) job portal posting ~10,000 jobs daily across 30+ websites with automated integration to 20+ HR systems. KI-Leitlinien (AI Guidelines) govern responsible AI deployment across diaconal services. Diakonie also operates Telefonseelsorge (24/7 telephone crisis line), Bahnhofsmission (train-station-based outreach), Freiwilligendienste (voluntary service programs), and a Diakonie Shop for publications and campaign materials.

The business model is non-profit and funded through a diversified revenue base: statutory health insurance and long-term care insurance reimbursements, government subsidies and contracts, church contributions from EKD member churches, donations and bequests from individuals/organizations, and membership contributions from member institutions. Services are primarily free of charge or subsidized, with specific fees determined by individual member institutions under regulatory frameworks. The organization is supported by approximately 687,000 full-time employees and 700,000 volunteers, operates under a registered charitable association (e.V.) structure, and serves diverse customer segments including families, children, youth, refugees, migrants, elderly, disabled persons, those affected by poverty, and citizens seeking engagement opportunities.

Name

Diakonie Deutschland

Legal name

Diakonie Deutschland - Evangelisches Werk für Diakonie und Entwicklung e.V.

Website

https://diakonie.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

1848

Operating status

Operating

Short description

Diakonie Deutschland is Germany's federal Protestant welfare association, coordinating a network of ~34,000 facilities serving 10 million clients annually through healthcare, elderly care, child welfare, disability, and migration services. It operates with ~687,000 employees and 700,000 volunteers, funded by social insurance, government contracts, church contributions, and donations.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Social Welfare Services

NAICS

Community Food and Housing, and Emergency and Other Relief Services (6242), Religious Organizations (8131), Community Housing Services (62422)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300), Services-General Medical & Surgical Hospitals, Nec (8062), Services-Nursing & Personal Care Facilities (8050)

akta.pro primary industry

Faith-Based Social Services & Community Outreach (Food Pantries, Shelters, Counseling) (BPAGAJAG)

akta.pro secondary industries

Faith-Based & Nonprofit Hospital Systems (HLAFAAAE), Faith-Based Healthcare Ministries (Hospitals, Clinics, Medical Missions) (BPAGAJAH), Disability Services & Independent Living Support (BPAGACAG)

Keywords

• Social welfare services
• Elderly care services
• Child youth welfare
• Humanitarian aid
• Nonprofit healthcare

Headquarters

HQ city

Berlin

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Government Subsidies and Social Insurance Funding: Primary funding through public subsidies, social insurance payments, and government contracts. Services in areas such as elderly care, healthcare, child and youth welfare, and disability services are funded through statutory health insurance, long-term care insurance, and other social security systems.
2. Donations and Contributions: Donations from private individuals and organizations. Offers donation options (Spenden), endowment/stiftung programs, and legacy bequests (Vererben) as contribution mechanisms.
3. Church Funding: Funding from Protestant churches as the founding and supporting institutions of the Diakonie welfare organization.
4. Membership Contributions: Contributions from member organizations including 28 state-level associations, 7 regional associations, 64 professional associations, and thousands of member institutions.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

Diakonie Deutschland is the federal association of Protestant churches' social welfare service in Germany, operating approximately 34,000 facilities nationwide. It delivers a comprehensive portfolio of social services including healthcare (447 hospitals), elderly care (6,281 facilities), child and youth welfare (13,692 facilities), disability services, migration counseling, debt counseling, and crisis intervention, supported by 687,000 employees and 700,000 volunteers. The organization combines physical service locations with digital channels such as an online counseling portal, location database, and career portal.

Product overview

Diakonie Deutschland operates as a federal association (Bundesverband) of the Protestant churches' social welfare service, managing approximately 34,000 facilities and services nationwide. The organization offers a multi-channel service portfolio combining physical locations with digital platforms: the Online-Beratungsportal provides anonymous digital counseling across multiple formats (chat, email, video, audio); the Stellenbörse aggregates job listings across 30+ Diakonie and church websites; the centralized location search database enables finding services nationwide. Core service areas include elderly care (6,281 facilities), child and youth services (13,692 facilities), healthcare (447 hospitals), disability integration (4,130 facilities), and family assistance (1,648 services), supported by approximately 687,000 employees and 700,000 volunteers.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Brot für die Welt: Development cooperation organization of the German Protestant churches, part of the Evangelisches Werk für Diakonie und Entwicklung.
• Diakonie Katastrophenhilfe

Products and services

• Online-Beratungsportal Digital counseling portal offering anonymous, secure support via chat, email, video, and audio across topics including family counseling, debt counseling, migration counseling, elder support, and crisis intervention. Aggregates offerings from approximately 240 providers with about 3,500 counselors.
• Stellenbörse (Job Board) Centralized job exchange for positions in Protestant churches and Diakonie organizations, posting approximately 10,000 job listings daily across more than 30 websites. Supports manual posting and automated integration via interface to over 20 HR systems.
• Hilfe & Beratungssuche (Location Search) Centralized database enabling nationwide search for approximately 34,000 Diakonie offerings, facilities, and service locations by postal code or city.
• Migrationsberatung (Migration Counseling) Migration counseling service supporting immigrants with integration, residency matters, and adaptation to their new living situation in Germany.
• Telefonseelsorge (Telephone Counseling) 24/7 crisis hotline providing immediate support for people in acute crisis situations, available around the clock.
• Altenhilfe (Elderly Care) Nationwide network with 6,281 facilities and services for the care and support of elderly people, including 47% fully stationary facilities with 176,109 places.
• Kinder- und Jugendhilfe (Child and Youth Services) With 13,692 facilities and 662,460 places, this is Diakonie's largest operational area, encompassing daycare facilities for children (10,304 facilities with over 600,294 places).
• Krankenhilfe (Healthcare) 447 hospitals and specialized departments with 53,330 beds and 124,333 employees, complemented by 441 outpatient services.
• Eingliederungshilfe (Integration Assistance for People with Disabilities) 4,130 facilities and services for people with disabilities or mental illness, with a bed capacity of 179,041 places and 117,354 employees.
• Familienhilfe (Family Assistance) 1,648 facilities and services of Diakonie with 1,564 full-time and 7,494 part-time workers for family support.

Quantifiable outcome

• Serves 10 million clients annually through 34,000 facilities
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered major and core.

• Bundesentwicklungsministerium (BMZ) and Deutscher CaritasverbandmajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2020Joint declaration signed in 2020 for the promotion of sustainable textile procurement. Diakonie and Caritas committed to significantly increase the share of sustainable textiles in their facilities through a collaborative project.
• NABU (Naturschutzbund Deutschland)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDiakonie Deutschland cooperates with NABU for nature and climate protection. Together they form a platform where interested Diakonie facilities and NABU groups can meet and initiate joint projects. Diakonie facilities often have outdoor areas that can be designed naturally and insect-friendly with native plants, contributing to species protection while improving quality of life for residents.
• Brot für die WeltcoreOthersPart of the Evangelisches Werk für Diakonie und Entwicklung (EWDE) along with Diakonie Deutschland and Diakonie Katastrophenhilfe. EWDE unites these three brands for development cooperation and humanitarian aid.
• Diakonie KatastrophenhilfecoreOthersPart of the Evangelisches Werk für Diakonie und Entwicklung (EWDE) along with Diakonie Deutschland and Brot für die Welt. EWDE unites these three brands for development cooperation and humanitarian aid.
• Bundesarbeitsgemeinschaft der Freien Wohlfahrtspflege (BAGFW)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDiakonie participates in BAGFW alongside other major welfare associations. Under this umbrella, Diakonie jointly advocates for digital participation for all and promotes responsible, inclusive, and practice-oriented digitalization.
• Evangelische Kirche in Deutschland (EKD)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDiakonie as the social service of Protestant churches works closely with EKD. The Conference of Protestant Churches for Diakonie and Development serves as the liaison body between EWDE and free and old-confessional churches.
• DEVAP (Deutscher Evangelischer Verband für Altenpflege und Behindertenhilfe)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerDiakonie and DEVAP jointly criticize social cuts in care and advocate for reform policies. They work together on nursing care issues and campaigns such as the nursing campaign (#StarkFürPflege).

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Deutscher Caritasverband: Catholic counterpart to Diakonie Deutschland and fellow BAGFW member. Operates comparable nationwide networks of hospitals, elderly care, child welfare, and counseling services, with similar funding model (social insurance, donations, church funding).
• Arbeiterwohlfahrt (AWO): German welfare association that is a direct BAGFW peer of Diakonie. Provides comparable social services including elderly care, child welfare, and counseling under a parallel subsidiarity framework, though it is secular rather than faith-based.
• Deutsches Rotes Kreuz (DRK): German Red Cross society and BAGFW member. Operates comparable nationwide social welfare infrastructure including elderly care, ambulatory services, and disaster response, overlapping with Diakonie across multiple service categories.
• Paritätischer Wohlfahrtsverband: Umbrella association of non-confessional social organizations and a BAGFW member. Provides comparable welfare services across disability, family, and refugee support and competes with Diakonie for social insurance and government funding.
• Malteser Deutschland: Catholic humanitarian aid organization operating alongside Diakonie in elderly care, ambulatory services, and disaster relief. Comparable as a faith-rooted welfare provider competing for similar contracts and volunteers.
• Johanniter-Unfall-Hilfe: Protestant aid organization comparable to Diakonie in faith affiliation and service scope, including ambulatory care, elderly services, and disaster response. Shares volunteer base and member institution relationships within the Protestant ecosystem.

Regional players

• Zentralwohlfahrtstelle der Juden in Deutschland (ZWST): Umbrella of Jewish welfare organizations in Germany and BAGFW member. Comparable as a faith-based welfare umbrella offering social services, though smaller in scale and focused on a specific community.

Broad incumbents

• Brot für die Welt: Development cooperation organization co-located under the Evangelisches Werk für Diakonie und Entwicklung (EWDE) alongside Diakonie Deutschland. Comparable as a sibling brand under the same legal umbrella with overlapping fundraising and advocacy infrastructure.
• Diakonie Katastrophenhilfe: Humanitarian aid organization of the German Protestant churches co-located under EWDE with Diakonie Deutschland. Directly related entity providing emergency and disaster relief services that complement Diakonie's domestic welfare work.

Emerging players

• Aktion Mensch: German social welfare lottery organization funding disability inclusion, child and youth welfare, and participation projects. Comparable in beneficiary focus (particularly disability services) and donor/funding model, though structured differently from Diakonie's direct service delivery.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/diakonie
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/diakonie-deutschland

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles11 records

Subsidiaries2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Diakonie Deutschland