Annual report

The National Society Investment Alliance
The National Society Investment Alliance (NSIA) 
is a joint initiative of the IFRC and the ICRC to 
support the long term, sustainable development 
of National Societies in fragile contexts: environ-
ments where communities are vulnerable to 
armed conflicts and other situations of violence, 
natural disasters, protracted crises, health out-
breaks and the effects of climate change. 
Such National Societies often have access to 
funds supporting direct humanitarian action 
but struggle to access sufficient resources 
and support for their own development. The 
NSIA therefore provides a major contribution 
to their sustainable development through two 
funding streams: Accelerator funds to support 
long-term organizational development and sus-
tainability (up to 1 million Swiss francs and three 
to five years’ duration), and Bridge awards to 
build National Society readiness for future larger 
investment. 
In 2022, the NSIA expanded its operations signif-
icantly, disbursing more money to more National 
Societies than ever before. The fund supported 
20 initiatives by 20 National Societies for a total 
of 5.4 million Swiss francs. This brought the total 
number of NSIA-funded projects (2019–2022) 
to 46, 15 of which are Accelerators. In seven 
cases to date, National Societies have first 
obtained short-term Bridge funding and used it 
to build organizational capacity, then leveraged 
their new-found capacities to secure the more 
long-term Accelerator funding. 
In the 2022 funding round, three National 
Societies followed this path. The Malawi Red 
Cross Society, the Syrian Arab Red Crescent and 
the Zambia Red Cross Society all developed 
72
Annual Report 
2022

---

using their initial Bridge funding, enabling them 
to move onto the more extensive Accelerator 
programme.
The 2022 initiatives had a wide geographical 
spread. The largest numbers funded were 
in the Africa and Middle East North Africa 
regions, reflecting the high proportion of 
National Societies working in fragile contexts in 
those regions. 
The initiatives funded in 2022 span six the-
matic categories. By far the most common was 
resource mobilization: 13 of the 20 initiatives 
included elements of this, followed by branch 
development and governance.
For example, the Zambia Red Cross Society was 
awarded three years of Accelerator funding to 
enhance its capacity for income generation. 
They plan to establish dedicated first aid teams 
in multiple branches, who can provide workplace 
first aid services. Similarly, the Liberian Red Cross 
Society received Bridge funding to renovate its 
guesthouse. This building has 20 rooms and 
is close to the borders with Guinea and Côte 
d’Ivoire, presenting a viable business opportunity. 
In 2022, the IFRC and ICRC decided to allocate 
NSIA a total of 12 million Swiss francs over the 
coming years. This financial support, combined 
with continuous and increased support from 
donors, will enable NSIA to continue sustaining 
the long-term development of National Societies 
in fragile contexts at scale.