To alleviate the effects of malnutrition, Islamic Relief (IR) has joined up with partner ANERA on this nutrition project to provide pre-school children with nutritious flavoured milkshakes, using milk bought from local dairies. The children also receive high energy biscuits as an additional nutritional supplement.

The project also provides educational support for teachers and families, combined with health monitoring of the children.

Malnutrition is a growing problem for Palestinian families in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. Anaemia and chronic and  acute malnutrition rates are increasing, especially amongst children under five. Growing children are particularly sensitive to a lack of essential protein, vitamins and minerals in their diet, leaving them extremely vulnerable to malnutrition.

Studies have found that four out of five Palestinian children have inadequate iron and zinc intake. Deficiencies of these minerals can cause anaemia and immune deficiency respectively. Over half of Palestinian children do not have enough to eat in terms of calories.

These statistics are not surprising when approximately 50% of all Palestinians require food aid to help meet their minimal daily needs. Without this support malnutrition rates would be even higher. Almost half of Palestinians live below the poverty line, surviving on US $2 a day.

Malnourishment in children results in a failure to grow and develop normally, leaving some children mentally and physically impaired. In extreme cases, it can result in blindness and death.  Malnourished children are also more vulnerable to diseases and take longer to recover from illness.

Children in preschools under this programme receive a carton of flavoured milk and a packet of high energy biscuits each day. The biscuits are fortified with vitamins and minerals, while the milk is naturally rich in micronutrients as well as a good source of protein.

This programme has been helping children combat malnutrition since September 2003.

Project Objectives

• reduce malnutrition amongst Palestinian children;
• help guarantee healthy mental and physical development;
• support the efforts of local dairy farmers to continue operating under difficult condition;

Project Activities

• Regular purchase of large quantities of flavoured milk and high-energy biscuits and distribute them in Gaza Strip to pre-school children;
• Monitoring the health of children in the programme;
• Providing educational lessons for teachers and families in nutritional awareness;

"Islamic Relief is striving for a fairer world. Our mission is to help the poor and needy to live sustainable, self-reliant lives within safe and caring communities. Our work is guided and shaped by the core values of accountability, humanitarianism, neutrality and impartiality, inclusiveness, integrity and co-operation, all of which are also integral to the Islamic faith."
Dr Hany El Banna - Founder of Islamic Relief

Islamic Relief was established in 1984 and our unique approach is the result of these many years of hands-on experience.

1. Where possible we adopt a community partnership-based approach; encouraging community involvement, understanding and ownership of projects.
2. We run the majority of our field projects ourselves, giving us direct insight into the problems faced and how best to solve them.
3. We aim to empower those we help in order to achieve sustainable results.
4. Though our emergency response teams are quick to respond to emergencies around the world, we continue to support communities long after the initial media interest has died down.
5. We recruit staff locally to benefit from their local knowledge. This ensures that we are culturally sensitive and allows us to reach communities and areas other organisations cannot.
6. Where necessary we coordinate our work with other reputable aid agencies, local organisations and governments.

Millennium Development Goals

Islamic Relief is committed to the UN Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) which have been agreed by the world’s leading development institutions in an effort to meet the needs of the world’s poorest by the year 2015. 

The goals:

1. Eradicate extreme poverty and hunger
2. Achieve universal primary education
3. Promote gender equality and empower women
4. Reduce child mortality
5. Improve maternal health
6. Combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases
7. Ensure environmental sustainability
8. Develop a global partnership for development

For more information about the MDGs, please visit: http://www.un.org/millenniumgoals/