German Red Cross expects nearly 20% drop in donations this year

People in Germany are less willing to donate, figures from the German Red Cross (DRK) showed, with donations down by about €10 million ($11.8 million) so far this year, the Rheinische Post reported in a story to be published on Saturday.

This year, donations for German Red Cross are expected to be just under €40 million, compared to around €49 million in 2024. This corresponds to a decline of around 18%.

At the end of November, the German Donations Council reported a decline in donations in the first nine months of the year, the story, made available to dpa, showed.

The drop in German Red Cross donations makes for a difficult situation “as it has direct consequences for people in need,” the Rheinische Post quoted DRK President Hermann Gröhe as saying.

The Donations Council for German Red Cross sees one reason for the decline in the total amount as being that the budgets of many households are constrained by inflation, high living costs or high care costs. In addition, many global crises have led to a certain degree of exhaustion.

Figures for the whole year will be more meaningful as many organizations receive a large part of their donations during the Christmas season.

According to the German Donations Council, people donated just under €2.8 billion in the first nine months of the year – around 14% less than in the same period last year, which saw around €3.2 billion in donations.

There were fewer donors, but the average donation rose to a record level of €41 per donation, three euros more than in 2024.

“Those who donate are doing so more consciously and generously – that is a strong signal in difficult times,” said Pastor Ulrich Pohl, chairman of the German Donations Council.