History

Relief packages after World War II

CARE was founded shortly after World War II by a number of American organizations. They jointly decided to distribute relief packages to victims of the war in Europe. Millions of packages were distributed in the postwar years. The first 20,000 were brought ashore on May 11, 1946 in Le Havre.

As the economies of the former war countries began to recover, CARE’s focus shifted from Europe to the problems of the developing countries. From 1960 onwards CARE was mainly concerned with health programs, the following decade, the focus was mainly on famine in Africa.

CARE has now become one of the largest organizations in the world that focuses on the global struggle against poverty and its causes.

DRA becomes CARE Nederland

CARE Netherlands was established in 2001, when the former DRA (Disaster Relief Agency) joined CARE International. The main reasons were the need for international cooperation and expansion. Under its new name the organization continued to focus on disaster prevention and reconstruction, but could now make use of the existing worldwide network of the federation.

In 2010 CARE Netherlands supports people in emergencies, in particular due to natural disasters and armed conflicts. In addition, the Dutch public is informed about the activities to help the victims. The organization is supported by approximately 50,000 donors, who contribute to the implementation of between 30 and 40 projects per year.