International Rescue Committee
The International Rescue Committee (IRC) is a global humanitarian aid, relief, and development nongovernmental organization.[3] Founded in 1933 as the International Relief Association, at the request of Albert Einstein, and changing its name in 1942 after amalgamating with the similar Emergency Rescue Committee, the IRC provides emergency aid and long-term assistance to refugees and those displaced by war, persecution, or natural disaster. The IRC is currently working in about 40 countries and 26 U.S. cities where it resettles refugees and helps them become self-sufficient.[4] It focuses mainly on health, education, economic wellbeing, power, and safety.
Not to be confused with International Committee of the Red Cross.Abbreviation
IRC
Emergency Rescue Committee & International Relief Association
July 24, 1933
To assist people whose lives have been affected by conflict and disaster[1]
New York City, New York, U.S.
Worldwide
$825.6 million[2]
$808.3 million[2]
International Relief and Rescue Committee
Consisting of first responders, humanitarian relief workers, international development experts, health care providers, and educators, the IRC has assisted millions of people around the world since its founding in 1933. In 2016, 26 million people in about 40 countries and 26 U.S. cities benefited from IRC programs.[5]
The current President and CEO of the International Rescue Committee (IRC) is David Miliband (2013–present), who previously served as the British foreign secretary.[6]
Organization[edit]
The current president and CEO of the IRC is David Miliband, formerly British Foreign Secretary.
Miliband's predecessor as president was George Erik Rupp, a former president of Columbia University and of Rice University. It was announced on 27 March 2013 that Miliband would succeed Rupp in September 2013.[46]
The organization is governed by an unpaid board of directors, and lists, under the heading of "Overseers", individuals described as providing counsel to the board on matters of policy, fundraising and advocacy;[47] the several score listed in early 2017 include Madeleine Albright, Kofi Annan, Tom Brokaw, Henry Kissinger, Colin Powell, and Liv Ullmann.[48]
In addition to its New York headquarters, the IRC also has offices in approximately 40 countries and 27 U.S. cities, as well as European offices in London, Berlin, Bonn, Geneva, Stockholm and Brussels.
As of June 2018, the IRC had over 11,000 staff members.[49]
The IRC has generally been awarded high marks by charity watchdog groups and major publications for the efficient use of its financial support and the effectiveness of its work. The American Institute of Philanthropy gives the IRC an A rating;[50] the Forbes Investment Guide named the IRC one of 10 gold star charities,[51] and in its 2009 review of American charities, Forbes magazine gave the IRC high ratings for program and fundraising efficiency,[52] however, in 2020 Forbes dropped IRC to 48th in its top 100 list;[53] Charity Navigator gave the IRC its top rating of four stars every year from 2006 to 2018 (but has downgraded them to three stars for 2019, likely due to a new, less transparent, donor privacy policy);[54] and the Better Business Bureau Wise Giving Alliance reports that the IRC meets all of its 20 Standards for Charity Accountability.[55]
In March 2021, the U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia fined the International Rescue Committee $6.9 million pursuant to the False Claims Act. The government alleged the IRC failed to maintain adequate oversight over procurement in Turkey for humanitarian assistance to refugees in Syria. Bid-rigging, kickbacks, and other procurement fraud resulted in overcharging the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).[56]
Finances[edit]
As of 2019, the IRC reportedly held $224,275,287 in net assets, with funding coming from private and institutional donors. U.S. government funding of the IRC's programs originates from the Office of Foreign Disaster Assistance (OFDA), the Bureau of Population, Refugees and Migration (BPRM), the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). A breakdown of the IRC's financial report for the year 2016 shows that the largest program service investment was in health services, which absorbed 38% of the IRC's funds for the year.[57] According to Charity Navigator, in 2019, more than 87 cents of every $1 received by IRC went to programs and services that directly affected their clientele.[58]
° Interview with Eric Chester on the IRC and the CIA-Contrarian Humanitarian Podcast Episode #4 https://contrarianhumanitarian.org