In 1997 Islamic Relief began the Orphans Sponsorship programme in Mali. Sponsorship provides orphans and their families with enough money to cover their basic needs including food, shelter, healthcare and education. Social activities are also organised for orphans and welfare officers visit them regularly.

As an extension of the sponsorship programme, Islamic Relief opened the Centre of Hope health centre, which provides orphans and their families with essential medical care.

Mali is one of Africa’s poorest countries, with over two-thirds of the population living on less than $1 a day.

Poor access to healthcare has led to the spread of HIV/AIDS and other fatal diseases. This has created a huge number of widows in Mali, who struggle to provide for their families after their husband’s death.

Orphans are often not able to attend school because it is too expensive, leaving them with very few employment prospects.

Project Objectives

The sponsorship programme will ensure that orphans’ social, financial and educational needs are met.

Project Activities

• Distributing monthly sponsorship;
• Orphans are regularly visited by welfare officers;
• Medical check-ups for malaria, cowpox and diarrhoea. Orphans are also seen by an ophthalmologist and paediatrician;
• Compiling progress reports for each sponsored orphan;

"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/