Frequently asked questions

Any of the 191 National Societies can request. There is no minimum size and no minimum maturity. The Centre prioritises on vulnerability and NSIF status, the IFRC National Society Investment Fund priority countries. IFRC and ICRC offices, and Partner National Societies, can request on a Society's behalf with that Society's consent.

Most National Societies pay nothing for standard service delivery. Prioritised and lower-income Societies are fully subsidised; middle-income Societies contribute approximately 40% and high-income approximately 80%. The full table is on what it costs you.

Triage assesses eligibility, risk and priority against demand, within the response time published on the request page. If the request cannot be scheduled this cycle it is held rather than closed, and you are told which cycle it is held for.

It does not implement on your behalf, contract your software vendors, or sign for systems. Advisers coach and your staff shadow every adviser. Implementation stays with the Society, which is what makes the change survive the adviser leaving.

You do. The Society sets the objectives, co-designs the plan and approves recommendations through its own leadership and board, in line with the Seville Agreement 2.0, the Movement's rule that the National Society in a country leads the work in that country. Support proceeds only where you have requested it or formally endorsed it.

Requests are processed by the Centre's triage team and the specialist covering your region. Nothing is shared with an IFRC regional office unless you consent to it in the request. Engagement material carrying your Society's name is restricted in the library and never published openly. The privacy policy names the Norwegian Red Cross as controller.

Yes. The Centre works in English, French, Spanish and Arabic, and each region page states its team's working languages. Write in whichever of them suits you.

It is an IFRC Reference Centre hosted by the Norwegian Red Cross, with shared Norwegian Red Cross and IFRC governance, operationally separate from the host's domestic programmes while running on the host's corporate systems. The governance bodies take up their mandates when the Centre opens at the IFRC General Assembly in late 2026. See governance.

The Centre puts the Global Service Delivery Model into practice: specialist support organised once for the whole network rather than built country by country. It coordinates with IFRC regional structures before scheduling delivery, and where IFRC, ICRC or another partner is already engaged in a country the Centre coordinates rather than duplicates.

Ownership sits at country level. Support proceeds only on a National Society's request or formal endorsement, in line with the Seville Agreement 2.0. The Society sets the objectives, co-designs the plan, approves every recommendation before anything is implemented, and at country level leads or chairs its own finance development committee. Globally the Centre is co-led by the Norwegian Red Cross and the IFRC, with National Societies holding seats on the Steering Committee, the Advisory Committee and the Regional Oversight Committees, on rotating terms with regional balance.

Specialist capacity across five regions, peer review of every output, the full service catalogue, shared tooling published openly, the results dashboard, and regional presence. See what core funding buys.

Core funding from the Norwegian Red Cross and strategic members, plus invoicing for services delivered on the published contribution bands. The host share is capped and steps down toward 2030. See the financing model.

Project agreements are made directly between the National Society and the sponsor. The Centre is copied in and assures the design. The Norwegian Red Cross is not a contracting party.

The partner pack carries the detailed financing model, including the core cost base and cost recovery. Ask the partnerships team and it is sent by email.