An honest, grounded conversation about the financial responsibilities we share as a worldwide Fellowship. Building directly on the Invest in Our Vision project from this past cycle.
Jack H.· WB Vice-Chair · World Service Conference 2026
Explore
"Every NA group ought to be fully self-supporting, declining outside contributions."
— Seventh Tradition
NA World Services operates in a fundamentally different funding model than other fellowships. With literature sales declining and free digital content growing — especially in our fastest-growing regions — our ability to sustain world services depends increasingly on direct contributions from groups and members.
30–35%
Purchasing Power Lost Since 2016
Flat income equals gradual real decline in service capacity
Contributions now represent only ~20% of total NAWS income
Goal: build a fellowship not financially dependent on literature sales
The fastest-growing regions receive free literature — further reducing revenue
$1M Loss
WCNA 38 Financial Result
18,000 registered — well below the 24,000 break-even point
Result: a $1 million loss for the fellowship
Events and conventions cannot serve as our financial backstop
Literature sales are declining as free digital content grows worldwide
Funding Comparison
How we fund world services compared to AA
The contrast is stark. AA World Services receives 70% of its income through direct member contributions. NA World Services receives only 20%. This gap represents both our greatest challenge — and our most significant opportunity.
AA World Services
Direct Contributions70%
Literature Sales30%
NA World Services
Direct Contributions20%
Literature Sales80%
FY 2025 · Numbers at a Glance
The numbers tell a story of hope and urgency.
$2.09M
FY 2025 Direct Contributions
$15.4M
10-Year Contribution Total
968
Recurring Contributors
2,377
Groups Contributed
78,945
Weekly Meetings Worldwide
$161
Cost Per Meeting / Year
78,945 weekly meetings. Only 2,377 groups contributed.
Less than 3% of the meetings that benefit from world services actively contribute to them. Each meeting costs just $161 per year — roughly three dollars a week. Imagine what's possible when more groups participate.
FY 2025 · Contribution Sources
Where our contributions come from
$2,093,503
Total FY 2025 Direct Contributions to NA World Services
Source
Amount
Groups & Individuals (Direct)
Primary source
Zonal Forums
$58,447
WCNA / Events
$43,267
Global — Dozens of Countries
Growing
Recommended Allocation Model
How groups divide their basket contributions
After covering group expenses and maintaining a prudent reserve, groups send contributions directly to each level of service. The Second Concept reminds us that NA groups have "final responsibility and authority for NA services" — which means the responsibility for funding those services rests with us.
50%
Area
Local service bodies coordinating meetings, H&I, public relations, and area-wide service in your community. This is where most members experience NA service firsthand.
25%
Region
Regional service committees supporting areas, hosting regional events, and funding delegate participation in the World Service Conference on behalf of the fellowship.
25%
World · NAWS
NA World Services — literature translation, H&I supplies, fellowship development worldwide, and sustaining the World Service Conference itself.
Home Group Resource
A reading for your home group format
The 7 AM AOA Group reads this statement at every meeting before passing the basket. Consider adding it to your home group's format — it only takes thirty seconds and makes a meaningful difference.
Suggested Home Group Format Reading
"Every NA group ought to be fully self-supporting, declining outside contributions."
— Seventh Tradition
In Narcotics Anonymous, we pay our own way to maintain our freedom. By giving freely, we ensure that we have meetings to attend, and we support the services that keep NA alive and growing all around the world.
We encourage members to keep in mind that our financial contributions to NA are one of the fundamental ways we can demonstrate our gratitude for the program that showed us a new way to live.
Where Your Money Goes
World Services funding touches every addict we reach
When groups contribute to world services, those funds sustain a global mission. From literature translations that cross cultural boundaries to H&I panels behind prison walls — your basket money travels farther than you might imagine.
📚
Literature Translations
Making NA's message available across many cultural and geographic boundaries so every addict can encounter recovery in their own language.
🏥
H&I Supplies
Literature and other supplies for Hospitals & Institutions efforts — helping reach addicts "on the inside" who cannot yet come to us.
📞
Phonelines
Helping addicts find meetings and support when they need it most — a lifeline available wherever someone is ready to ask for help.
🌍
Fellowship Development
Supporting new NA communities worldwide — free or subsidized literature, fellowship development workshops, and delegate travel to the WSC.
📢
Public Relations
Helping communities and professionals understand what NA is and what we do — so that addicts can be referred to us when they need help.
🏢
World Service Office
Rent, staff, and operational costs that sustain NAWS — the infrastructure that makes everything else possible for our worldwide fellowship.
Our Worldwide Fellowship
72,215+ weekly meetings in 143 countries
NA has grown from a handful of meetings to a worldwide fellowship in just a few decades. When any group anywhere passes the basket, they participate in sustaining something extraordinary — a global network of recovery available to every addict, regardless of language or culture.
23,511
USA
24,577
South & SE Asia
7,719
South America
4,769
East Asia & Pacific
4,487
Europe
3,084
Central America
2,382
Oceania
1,346
Canada
340
Middle East & Africa
Ways to Contribute
Many ways to answer the Seventh Tradition's call
Our Seventh Tradition calls us to be fully self-supporting. Whether it's time, energy, or money — every form of contribution strengthens the fellowship. Here are practical ways to put that principle into action.
🙌
Show Up & Welcome
Show up and welcome a newcomer. Your presence — your story — is a contribution that no amount of money can replace.
💵
Give at Every Meeting
Give money at meetings you attend. Whether dollars, pounds, euros, or any other currency — it probably can't buy as much today as it used to.
🔄
Set Up Recurring Giving
Set up automatic recurring contributions to NA World Services at www.na.org. Clean date contributions are a meaningful and memorable way to give.
🌐
Contribute to Every Level
Use the 50/25/25 model to distribute your group's basket contributions to Area, Region, and NAWS — so all levels of service are funded.
📜
Legacy & Estate Gifts
Some members arrange to leave a specified amount to NA in their will or estate, or contribute in memory or honor of a deceased member.
🛠
Be of Service
Sweep the floor, stack chairs, give your time and energy. When we leave the meeting room, it should be at least as clean as when we arrived.
For Personal Reflection
Questions we can ask ourselves
From IP No. 24 — Money Matters: Self-Support in NA
"
How much did we put in the basket in our first thirty days clean? First year? Now?
"
How have our financial circumstances changed since we got clean?
"
Does the way we spend our money reflect what is truly valuable to us?
"
Do our NA groups have the money they need to operate smoothly? Can our group contribute to other levels of service?
"
What more could be done to further our primary purpose at each level of service, if we had the money?
"
What more can we be doing to help others, the way we were helped by NA?
Member Voices
Heard from the fellowship itself
What members are saying after this session — and what's already working in groups around the world.
"NA saved my life and I can't wait to relay the urgency of contributions to my homegroup!"
"I'm making a recurring $20/month contribution… newer members have very little information on the purpose of contributions."
$19K+
Contributed in 2025
7 AM AOA Group
This group contributed over $19,000 to NAWS in 2025. Their practice: read a Seventh Tradition statement at every meeting and contribute all funds above expenses directly to NA World Services. A powerful example of what's possible when a group takes self-support seriously.
"Together we can help ensure recovery is available to every addict seeking relief from the nightmare of addiction."
— IP No. 24, Money Matters: Self-Support in NA
Ready to take action? Every contribution keeps the doors open.