 Education Education allows people to develop the technical and leadership skills they need to empower their communities and break the cycle of poverty. We do not accept that people should be excluded from education due to poverty, gender or ethnic background. We deliver education through building schools, providing educational materials and developing programmes of study. Our programmes range from pre-school initiatives to scholarship opportunities and adult education programmes. Through education we aim to give people the skills they need to create a sustainable, brighter future for themselves and their communities. Healthcare Access to high quality free healthcare should not be viewed as a luxury. In many parts of the world easily preventable and treatable diseases are causing death and long term suffering to millions. We believe that good health is essential for the survival and economic self sufficiency of individuals and their communities. We provide emergency relief in conflict situations as well as developing longer-term wellbeing initiatives. We train doctors, provide field and hospital medical equipment and develop health awareness programmes. Our long term approach to health care provision aims to give communities a real chance of future success. Emergency relief Conflict, civil breakdown and natural disaster can quickly change a person’s ability to survive. We believe that intervention in emergency situations must be rapid and well structured in order to be successful. Moreover, we recognise that once the immediate danger is over people need the opportunity to rebuild their lives and to support themselves. Our dedicated teams provide emergency relief in crisis situations across the world. They talk to people to give reassurance, hand out blankets and food and provide healthcare. Through our rehabilitation programmes we aim to empower people in the longer-term to rebuild their lives and gradually move away from emergency care. A number of Disaster Readiness Programmes have also been carried out in a number of our field offices. Empowerment Creating successful communities is at the core of all of our work. When responding to an immediate need we are already formulating a longer-term strategy that will enable people to look towards the future. We believe that economic empowerment is at the root of this. We seek to achieve empowerment by improving people’s skills and creating opportunities for income generation. Our well established scheme of interest-free microfinance plays an important part in income generation. We see microfinance as a significant innovation in sustainable development and continue to refine our model to achieve the best possible outcome for communities. Housing & Shelter People who are displaced by conflict or disaster need shelter to survive and a home to rebuild their lives. We believe that a home is the key to a person’s sense of security, dignity and their ability to aspire to a better future. Our field teams provide temporary shelters to hundreds of desperate people in crisis situations. In the longer-term we work together with our partners to build permanent housing in accordance with the individual needs and preferences of the people we are helping. Water & Sanitation Access to clean water is a right that is denied to many of the poorest people in the world. We believe that everyone should be able to access clean water and that this access underpins all other aspects of development. Without clean water the chances of building a sustainable future for any community are limited. Our work incorporates building infrastructure, improving sanitation and developing hygiene awareness programmes. We put clean water at the heart of every community we work with. We seek to minimise environmental impact through new innovations. Child support Half of the world’s children live in poverty and many live without adequate shelter, access to clean water or healthcare. Many of these children will die before the age of five simply because they have been born into poverty. We see children as a society’s greatest asset and believe that they should be supported to reach their full potential whatever their background, ethnicity or religion. Through the generous contributions of our individual donors we are able to support children in their own families to access education, healthcare, adequate food and clothing, mentoring services, social development and careers advice. We are also able to offer education sponsorship and scholarships. Our newly launched orphan care scheme offers children who can not be brought up with their parents the opportunity of a safe and supported upbringing within a suitable host family. We are also working to eradicate child blindness through our sight restoration programmes for children with cataracts. Where we work We have ten field offices worldwide which focus on sustainable programmes and we provide relief and development programmes in over 60 countries. Our focus is on sustainability and innovation. We also provide emergency relief in crisis situations. Our ten field offices are based in Bangladesh, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Somalia, Iraq, Indonesia, Bosnia and Cambodia. We are committed to alleviating poverty regardless of religion, ethnicity, nationality, disability, sexual orientation, gender or age.
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