Annual Report 2023: AVSI presents “Our promise”

The profile that emerges from our 2023 Annual Report is of a civil society organization that continues to grow, operating in the field and providing advocacy. This is possible thanks to a fertile dynamism that begins with having faith in our origins and an intent to respond quickly and flexibly to major world events.

In 2023 AVSI supported more than 8 million people with 355 projects. In the 42 countries in which we operate, Education is still our principal development sector and is always integrated into our other sectors of activity: Agriculture and food security; Child protection; Energy; Environment; Vocational training and job creation; Economic strengthening and livelihoods; Nutrition; Sustainable cities; Human rights, democracy and peace; Health; Water and sanitation.

We managed EUR 124,919,924 of private and institutional funds in 2023, including extraordinary income, 19 million more than in 2022. For every euro we receive, 91.75 cents are allocated to projects, while our operating costs make up less than 7 cents.

Ongoing conflicts, migration, climate change, technological evolution, and worsening crises are only some of the
factors that impact our daily work and influence many of the major projects we carried out in 2023.

In Côte d'Ivoire, Mozambique, and the Republic of Congo, new initiatives have been launched to promote more sustainable cooking methods (clean cooking). In Kenya and Burundi, interventions to improve the position of local producers in the value chain have continued, while in Uganda, support from major private donors for projects using the graduation approach has grown, helping both host communities and refugees on their path to resilience.

In the Mediterranean, stronger synergies have been formed between the regional areas of Italy and the Middle East and North Africa, encouraging vocational training to fight irregular migration.

In Haiti, in a situation of extreme violence and instability, AVSI has renewed its commitment both in the field, particularly with cash-for-work interventions to support the population, and in advocacy, organizing an event in November at the European Parliament and disseminating a series of recommendations to the international community.

In Syria, hit by a strong earthquake in February 2023, AVSI, thanks to its long-standing experience in the country, managed to mobilize the joint contribution of public donors, foundations, and companies to provide emergency relief, medical care, psycho-social support, and essential goods.

In Palestine, starting in October 2023, AVSI - operating in the West Bank - has increased services to care for the most vulnerable, particularly children and young people within the Distance Support Program and their families.

The organization has continued to grow, expanding and improving services in the field of international adoptions as well. With the acquisition of the authorized agency Amici di Don Bosco, AVSI has been able to extend its reach to two new countries, India and the Philippines, and ensure even more thorough care at every stage of the adoption process.

In 2023, the preparation of the new Strategic Guidelines 2024-2028 became an opportunity for us to begin an
in-depth reflection on the specifics of our identity and the direction of our work in the coming years.

We began a long, bottom-up participative process, structured over several stages, to promote and foster the kind of shared leadership we strive for. Any set of guidelines so important for the life of an organization should begin with
staff discussions, listening to external observers, and engaging in conversations with stakeholders of reference.

The Annual Report includes the global and specific objectives for the next five years.

Building the world of tomorrow through the actions of today. Migration, peace, education, work, climate: five reports from AVSI projects that show how we contribute to Sustainable Development Goals and reflect our desire for a future that inspires us.