Fidesco

What Fidesco does

Fidesco is a French Catholic international solidarity nonprofit (ONG) founded in 1980 by the Emmanuel Community (Communauté de l'Emmanuel) and headquartered in Paris. It operates as a Volontariat de Solidarité Internationale (VSI) sending organization, deploying 1–2 year volunteer missions to support development projects run by Catholic Church partners (dioceses, parishes, religious congregations) across 28 countries in Africa, Asia, Latin America, the Maghreb & Middle East, and Europe. As of 2025 the organization has approximately 177 active field volunteers, a cumulative alumni base of more than 2,300 volunteers since 1980, 90+ local partners, and a lean Paris HQ of 16 permanent staff supported by more than 80 volunteers. Fidesco runs six international offices (Belgium, Germany, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, USA) to recruit international volunteers and raise funds.

The organization's core "products" are two complementary service lines: (1) the VSI volunteer program, including specialized tracks for students, young professionals, singles, couples, families, and retirees, plus a reverse "Sud-Nord" track and a separate 6-month Service Civique pathway added in 2020; and (2) Soutien à Projets de Développement, financial, strategic, and fraternal support to 22 new local development projects in 2024 in areas where volunteers cannot be placed. Mission types span education, social work, healthcare, environmental sustainability (e.g., 194,000 trees planted in Madagascar), construction, and local development support. The organization also publishes owned media (Coeur de Mission podcast on Spotify, video reportages on YouTube, and the documentary film 'À nos enfants') as a recruitment and donor pipeline.

Fidesco's revenue model is donation-based and not commercially priced: it receives private donations, godparent/sponsorship (parrainage) contributions from individuals, corporate mécénat (patronage), and legacy gifts, channeling these into volunteer allowances, training, social coverage, and project disbursements. Volunteers themselves do not pay — costs are covered by the organization and its donors. Distribution occurs directly via the website, online discovery sessions (visio découverte), a regional correspondent network (16 across France), annual sending ceremonies, and the international office network. Fidesco holds two key regulatory accreditations from the French state: VSI sending-organization status since 2006 and Service Civique approval since 2020, both of which are foundational to its operating model.

Name

Fidesco

Legal name

Fidesco

Website

https://fidesco.fr

Company type

Private

Founded year

1980

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Fidesco is a French Catholic international solidarity nonprofit that sends 1–2 year volunteers and provides project funding to 90+ Church partners across 28 countries, financed by individual donations, sponsorship, and corporate patronage.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

International Humanitarian Volunteering Services

NAICS

Religious Organizations (8131), Religious, Grantmaking, Civic, Professional, and Similar Organizations (813), Civic and Social Organizations (8134)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Faith-Based Missions & Evangelism Organizations (Domestic & International) (BPAGAJAE)

akta.pro secondary industries

Faith-Based & Mission Service Programs (EDAIAGAI), Faith-Based Healthcare Ministries (Hospitals, Clinics, Medical Missions) (BPAGAJAH)

Keywords

• International solidarity volunteering
• Humanitarian mission deployment
• Volunteer formation programs
• Development project funding
• Nonprofit NGO services

Headquarters

HQ city

Paris, Île-de-France

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Offices7 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Others, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Donations and Private Sponsorship: Fidesco generates revenue through donations from private individuals, godparents (parrains) who support volunteers, corporate patronage (mécénat d'entreprise), and legacy donations (legs and donations). Individuals can become sponsors of volunteers or support specific projects.
2. Project Support Funding: Fidesco supports local development projects financially, programmatically, and fraternally. In 2024, Fidesco supported 22 new projects through financial contributions, strategic support, and brotherly assistance.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

Fidesco recruits, trains, and deploys long-term (1-2 year) international solidarity volunteers (VSI) to support Catholic Church development partners in health, education, social action, agroecology, and construction projects across 28 countries. The organization supplements this with financial, strategic, and fraternal support for local development projects where volunteer deployment is not feasible. Comprehensive volunteer preparation, accompaniment, and full social coverage (allowance, housing, insurance) are provided.

Product overview

Fidesco is a Catholic international solidarity NGO founded in 1980, offering a unified volunteering platform centered on the Volontariat de Solidarité Internationale (VSI) program. The organization operates two core service lines: sending long-term volunteers (1-2 years) to support development projects with church partners, and providing financial/strategic support to local development initiatives. The product portfolio includes specialized volunteer tracks for students, singles, couples, families, and retirees; content/media offerings such as the 'Coeur de Mission' podcast, video reportages, and the documentary film 'À nos enfants'; and diverse mission types spanning education, social work, healthcare, environmental sustainability, construction, and local development. The offering is unified under a comprehensive formation and support framework that prepares volunteers before departure and accompanies them throughout their service.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Coeur de Mission: Podcast series featuring former volunteers sharing their mission experiences
• À Nos Enfants

Products and services

• Volontariat de Solidarité Internationale (VSI) Program Long-term international solidarity volunteering program (1-2 year missions) sending qualified, faith-motivated volunteers to support Catholic Church development partners across Africa, Asia, Latin America, and Europe. Volunteers receive full social coverage and monthly allowance.
• Project Support (Soutien à Projets de Développement) Financial, strategic, and fraternal support for local development projects initiated by Catholic Church partners, extending Fidesco's action to areas where volunteer deployment is not always feasible. 22 new projects were supported in 2024.
• Volunteer Sponsorship (Parrainage de Volontaires) Sponsorship program allowing individual supporters and corporate patrons to financially and spiritually accompany VSI volunteers during their missions. Forms part of Fidesco's broader donation and patronage funding model.
• Volunteer Formation (Formation des Volontaires) Comprehensive preparation and accompaniment program for volunteers, including 6-8 months of pre-departure formation, discernment sessions, departure preparation weekends, ongoing in-mission support, and post-return reintegration.
• Retirees Pathway (Parcours Retraités) Specialized VSI track for retirees offering opportunities to serve in international solidarity missions later in life, expanding Fidesco's volunteer demographic beyond students, young professionals, and families.
• South-North Volunteering (Volontariat Sud-Nord) Reverse volunteering program where volunteers from the Global South serve in European communities, promoting bidirectional solidarity and exchange between developing and developed regions.
• Coeur de Mission Podcast Monthly podcast featuring former Fidesco volunteers sharing their international solidarity mission experiences, distributed via Spotify and other podcast platforms to promote the VSI program and former-volunteer testimonials.
• Video Reportages (Reportages Vidéo) Video documentaries and on-the-ground reportages showcasing Fidesco volunteer missions and their impact, published on YouTube (FidescoHQ) and other platforms for promotion and storytelling.
• Documentary Film "À nos enfants" Fidesco's first feature documentary film, "À nos enfants," following three children in Brazil, Madagascar, and Zambia to explore hope and childhood in vulnerable communities. Shown in cinemas and parishes as an awareness and fundraising tool.

Quantifiable outcome

• 177 volunteers active in 2025, 2,300+ total since 1980
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers11 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports (France)minorOthers · 1 January 2020Fidesco obtained Service Civique (National Service) accreditation in 2020, allowing the organization to welcome service civique volunteers.
• Ministry of Europe and Foreign Affairs (France)coreOthers · 1 January 2006Fidesco is agréée (officially recognized) by the French Ministry of Europe and Foreign Affairs as a VSI (Volontariat de Solidarité Internationale) sending organization since 2006. This authorization enables Fidesco to send volunteers under the VSI statute.
• France VolontairesminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner organization in the French volunteering ecosystem, mentioned as part of the network of solidarity organizations.
• Coordination SUDminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerFrench coordination of humanitarian and development NGOs, network partner for solidarity organizations.
• CONG Volontariat (Comité Catholique contre la Faim et pour le Développement)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCatholic committee against hunger and for development, part of the network of Church-related development organizations.
• Secours CatholiqueminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCatholic Relief Services organization in France, mentioned as part of the Church network.
• Emmanuel CommunitycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFidesco was created in 1980 by the Emmanuel Community. This remains a foundational relationship as Fidesco's mission is rooted in the Church community's call to serve.
• HOPEN (Music Group)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerFidesco collaborated with HOPEN music group to release 'Des Milliers de Rêves' (Thousands of Dreams), a single celebrating hope and mission. Released June 2025.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves13 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Coordination SUD: French national coordination body for humanitarian and development NGOs, of which Fidesco is a member — comparable as an institutional peer and platform for French international solidarity organizations.
• Jesuit Refugee Service (JRS): International Catholic organization accompanying, serving, and advocating for refugees and forcibly displaced people, comparable to Fidesco as a faith-based international volunteer/mission NGO.
• Misean Cara: Irish Catholic faith-based NGO that funds and supports missionary development projects in developing countries, directly comparable to Fidesco in mission-sending and faith-based project funding model.
• Secours Catholique: French Catholic charitable organization addressing poverty and social exclusion in France and internationally; directly named by Fidesco as a network partner and operates in the same faith-based social services space.
• France Volontaires: French public-interest group promoting international volunteering and serving as a national platform for VSI organizations, explicitly named as a Fidesco network partner with overlapping volunteer-sending scope.
• Emmaüs International: French-founded international solidarity movement combating exclusion and poverty through community-based actions, sharing Fidesco's volunteer mobilization and faith-inspired solidarity model.
• Maryknoll Lay Missioners: US-based Catholic mission-sending organization that places lay volunteers in long-term (2+ years) international development and social justice missions, mirroring Fidesco's VSI model with a faith-based framework.

Broad incumbents

• Volunteer Service Overseas (VSO): One of the world's largest secular international volunteer-sending NGOs, placing skilled professionals in long-term development assignments across Africa and Asia — comparable in volunteer deployment model but secular.
• Caritas Internationalis: Global confederation of 160+ Catholic relief, development, and social service organizations operating in over 200 countries — a broader incumbent in the same Catholic international development space as Fidesco.

Emerging players

• L'Arche International: International federation of faith-inspired communities where volunteers and people with intellectual disabilities share life together — comparable to Fidesco as a Catholic-inspired international volunteer-community organization with long-term commitments.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/FidescoHQ
• Facebookfacebook.com/fidesco.ong
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/fidesco
• Instagraminstagram.com/fidesco.ong

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Subsidiaries6 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 Fidesco