muslim aid magazine issue 11

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VOLUME 3 | ISSUE 2 | OCTOBER 2015

An overview of what we’ve been doing together

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Gratitude

Jannah Made Easy

Eid With The Met Police

MA US News

Prisoners Programme

Iftar For Muslim Prisoners

Rainbow Family Khasmir

Sweden Funds Projects

Spotlight On Sara Morad

From Street To School

Smiles For Gaza

Mushroom Cultivation

Development For Beginners

Russell Brand Visits

You Give We Serve Ramadan 2015

MA US Supports Syria

Voices From The Field Life As A Volunteer

MA Sweden Network Event

[ Sara and Dina from Muslim Aid’s Beity Orphange ]

The Prophet (PBUH) said, “The one who cares for an orphan and myself will be

together in Paradise like this,” and he held his two fingers

together to illustrate.

Bukhari

An overview of what we’ve been doing together

It’s only been four months since Ramadan passed. The long hours were challenging, but when the glorious

month dashed by, we felt a sudden sense of sadness that it was all over too soon. Along the beautiful

spiritual side of Ramadan, the month always brings about a great sense of charity, unity and compassion.

We are honoured to be part of such a caring and giving community. Our donors helped us to raise over

£6 million for our causes; from emergency relief, child sponsorship, water and sanitation to livelihood

programmes. We are so grateful to our generous donors. You can read about our activities during Ramadan

on page 6.

Our foothold in Sweden is growing thanks to the generous Swedish public. Since September 2014, we’ve

raised over £120,000 for our development and emergency campaigns through the support of Mosques and

events. A kind donation from a local NGO was given to our food security project in Myanmar and we

received institutional funding to support poverty reduction projects in Somalia. You can read about what

MA Sweden has been up to on page 11.

We had a surprise visit from our neighbour, the delightful activist, Russell Brand, who popped in to one of

our Iftar dinners at the Booth House homeless shelter, London. It was great to see him share iftar with us

and chat with everyone. This truly is a reflection of what makes London a great city to live in; an eclectic

mix of cultures, religions and opinions all coming together to share food, company, community and of

course the spirit of Ramadan.

For everyone that donated to the Eid Gift project, we’d like to say a big thank you

for putting smiles on the faces of children all over the world. In particular, the

children of Gaza who share their story on Eid day on page 28 And on the issue of

child poverty and development, our Fundraising Officer, Thabrez Khan, who has

suddenly become somewhat of a Muslim Aid’s poster boy (you can’t miss him, he

was our billboards, videos and posters!) visited Pakistan to report on our Street

to School project. This wonderful project takes kids off the street and rehabilitates

them into school. Sometimes it’s the most simple project that makes the biggest

impact. You can read about this on page 27.

With a generous and loving donor base, dedicated staff and volunteers in the UK

and in our field offices, and great progress with our programmes, we’ve got a lot

to be grateful for.

Amina Rafique, [email protected]

Gratitude

A Syrian child from MA’s Beity Orphanage plants a seedling

Muslim Aid News: UK Update

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Another year, another Ramadan at Muslim

Aid. A month gone by and in just four weeks

all the hard work paid off. While the long

hours tested our patience, we still worked

just as hard to ensure that the people that

count - those in dire need, were given their

basic rights to live healthy and happier lives.

Our simple campaign message, You Give,

We Serve, resonated with our donors as they

collectively gave £6 million for our emergency

and development programmes worldwide.

Our Dig A Well project was popular as

donors gave money to build a further 2,700

wells during Ramadan alone. We managed to

sponsor a further 866 children through our

child sponsorship programme. Our Beity

Orphanage, built to look after Syrian refugee

orphans in Turkey gained so much support.

We raised over £100,000 to help build a

further orphanage within Syria.

No story on the campaign would be complete

without a special mention to the dedicated

volunteers that soldiered through the long

hours standing outside Mosques with

collection buckets, selling cakes and dates

outside the offices, to helping the team with

its fundraising efforts. Just as we are thankful

to our supporters, we are grateful to our

wonderful volunteers.

[ Children of the Beity Orphanage ]


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PrisonersProgrammeDoubles Its

ReachLife as a

Muslim AidVolunteerOur prisoners programme has been a resounding success

since it was started in 2012. As part of Muslim Aid’s UK

development programme, the scheme supports Muslim

prisoners with the tools to help them practice their faith

without hardship. Gift packs, which include essentials

such as religious books, prayer mats, the Qur’an and

other items are given to prisoners during Ramadan.

There’s also a support service that trains prisoners in

certain skills so that they can find jobs when they leave

prison. UK Development Officer, Nosheena Javaid, who

is heading the programme noted: “Prisoners are always

overwhelmed by community support. They benefit a

lot from the packs. The books help them to renew their

spirituality. The donor probably has no clue the extent

prisoners benefit from the packs. They are so grateful

to the donors.”

As Muslims all over the world fast during Ramadan

and enjoy the heightened sense of spirituality the holy

month brings, it is important to remember not all

Muslims enjoy the same freedoms. Last year, with the

help of our donors, we reached 5,018 prisoners across

London and the West Midlands. This Ramadan, we

reached almost 10,000 prisons with gift packs in 90

prisons across the UK.

The campaign holds a strong sentiment among our

donors, as Nosheena remarked: “The programme is

popular because prisoners have shown to display less

aggression and develop self-discipline around prayer

and Qur’an recitation. It helps prisoners with the daily

isolation and stigma associated to being a Muslim in

and out of prison.”

Volunteering during Ramadan is a hard, tiring and testing

experience. But each year it’s something that I look forward to.

It is also one of the most enjoyable and exciting experiences

I have taken part in.

This year I got involved in many different ways, from packing

goody bags and prisoner packs to leaving for Brighton after

college to help at one of the ‘Jannah Made Easy’ events. I even

had the opportunity to plan and hold a volunteers car wash

with a group of friends with full support from Muslim Aid.

What I enjoy the most about volunteering with Muslim Aid

is the way that everyone gets along like family; everyone is

welcoming and accepting regardless of who you are. They take

into account your personal needs, so whether you’re coming

in to pack bags for an event, you’re always comfortable.

Volunteering with a charity is also a major aspect in boosting

my confidence as I am constantly meeting new people and

being pushed to my limits to be the best I can be. So although

I may have been tired from the fast, I pushed myself to get

the most out of it and feel the barakah (blessings) that comes

with doing charity work.

Finally, volunteering with Muslim Aid makes each Ramadan

memorable for me. It sets an atmosphere and vibe that allows

me to appreciate Ramadan more than I would have had I of

been at home all day. It’s a truly moving opportunity.

[ Tania volunteers for Muslim Aid ]

By Tania Haque


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Muslim Aid Sweden organised an event on 20th May 2015 in Sweden, to network with local and international NGO’s

and also community heads to introduce the recently established Muslim Aid Sweden office and discuss ways to

work together. The event was attended by representatives from Forum Syd, Ikea Foundation, Oxfam Sweden, Nepal

Association of Sweden, Médecins Sans Frontières, Al Maghrib Institute and Mosque community leaders amongst

other guests. Muslim Aid’s CEO, Hamid Azad, also attended the event and gave a presentation of the organisations

success since establishing itself as an international charity in 1985 along with details on expansion into the nordic

countries starting with Sweden.

This year, Muslim Aid took its Ramadan campaign to

new heights and travelled around the UK with our very

own speaker tour titled ‘Jannah Made Easy’. The 20

city tour, headlined international speaker Shaykh Riad

Ourzazzi (Al Maghrib Institute) followed by spoken

word artist Faisal Salah and Qari Shaykh Muhammad

Ayyub, aimed to inspire audiences around the UK to

make the most of Ramadan. The tour helped to raise

vital funds to build a much needed orphanage Syria

and help support vulnerable orphans around the world

through our Rainbow Family programme.

In the most blessed time of the Islamic Calendar, the

Shaykh spoke about simple steps we can all take to

attain Jannah in our daily lives; from remembering

Allah often (dhikr), curing diseases of the heart through

charity (sadaqa) and reviving the sunnah of supporting

an orphan. He narrated that the Prophet Muhammad

(PBUH) said: “I will be like this in Jannah with the

person who takes care of an orphan” and then raised

his forefinger and middle finger by way of illustration

[Bukhari].

From this, audiences were inspired to give in charity

to help support two of Muslim Aid’s overseas projects.

The first was to help build an orphanage inside Syria for

those who have lost their parents due to the ongoing

conflict. This is following the outstanding success of

the first Beity Orphanage built on the Turkish border,

which now houses 75 orphans providing them with

education, healthcare and helping to integrate back

into society. The second was Muslim Aid’s child

sponsorship programme ‘Rainbow Family’, which helps

to tackle child poverty by helping children, realise their

aspirations and providing them with an education and

the basic necessities to live and succeed. This particular

speaker tour has also allowed our own young volunteers

to develop themselves as they got involved in organising

their own events around the country.

The Muslim Aid volunteer committee, a dedicated

group of volunteers, worked for months on end to pull

off the highest grossing event of the tour raising almost

£190,000 in donations and pledges in just one night!

Altogether the tour raised over £870,000 in donations

and pledges, enough to support hundreds of orphans in

some of the world’s most vulnerable communities. Over

the next year we will be helping our supporters to fulfil

their pledges through their own community, events and

challenges.

Get involved and get in touch on

[email protected]

MA Sweden

EventMade Easy Holds Networking

[ From left to right; Sophie Anderson, Head of Programmes, Forum SYD with Hamid Azad CEO, Muslim Aid and Salman Mujtabah, MA Manager - Corporate and Emerging Markets ]

[ Guests enjoying the tour ]


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Stockholm’s second largest development funding institution, Forum Syd, has approved Muslim Aid Sweden a grant of

£8,000 to evaluate and develop a concise development program in Somalia. This will be used to support educational

projects for children or livelihood programmes for single mothers depending on completing a needs assessment

report. Another local organisation, the Solidarity Centre, which is an inter-faith NGO, has given Muslim Aid £8,000

to carry out food distribution in conflict affected Myanmar. Since the office established in 2014, Muslim Aid Sweden

has raised in excess of £120,000 for various development programmes, including Ramadan projects.

Sweden Funds

& MyanmarProjects In Somalia

[ Muslim Aid Sweden funds a Soup Kitchen, Stockholm ]

In this issue, we talk to Information and Public

Affairs Officer, Sara Morad, about her love for writing

and plans to become a best selling novelist.

Tell us a bit about yourself?

I studied International Relations at university. I started

off wanting to be a doctor or pharmacist but I decided

to stick to my passion for writing. I went on to intern

at other NGOs and ended up at Muslim Aid, initially

in the fundraising department, then on to the child

sponsorship department and now the information and

public affairs department, in which I have been for three

years. I couldn’t think of a better fit for me and I really

love my job. I was always so confused about what I

wanted to do in life but everything just fell into place.

What has been your most memorable moment at

Muslim Aid?

I vividly remember being part of the team that created

the annual review each year since working here. It is

a painstaking task which requires a lot of skill and

patience, but once you finally have all the information

you require and you begin writing about all the amazing

work Muslim Aid has done around the world over the

year, it really is a pleasure.

What do you like about working at Muslim Aid?

Everything I do has to have a purpose and I could not

work knowing that what I was doing was of no real

benefit to people who needed it. The world is already

plagued with injustice and I think its our duty to try and

tackle it through every facet of our lives. I don’t feel like

I’m in a workplace, I feel like I’m at home with family. A

big, eccentric, fun and caring family that come together

to go great things.

Tell us something we don’t know about you already?

I am planning to write my own novel! Since I was a

child I have loved to read anything I can get my hands

on and write short stories. Hopefully I want to get my

novel published and have started writing it.

What do you enjoy doing outside of work?

Wherever I can I get involved with campaigning on

issues such as human rights and social justice. From a

very young age I was very aware of injustice and took

a keen interest in what’s happening around the world.

This, coupled with my religious beliefs, spurred my

interest in campaigning.

Spotlight OnSara Morad

[ Sara loves working for Muslim Aid ]


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Muslim Aid were honoured guests at the annual London Metropolitan Eid dinner held at the prestigious Guild Hall ,

London last August. Community Liaison Officer, MBE, Mohammed Walayat Khokhar attended the event and said: “It

was a great privilege to be a guest. It’s wonderful to see London’s community get together as part of inter-faith building

to celebrate the Muslim festival of Eid. This shows the great diversity of London as a multi-cultural and multi-faith city

coming together in unity and peace.”

Eid With The City

Of London Muslim

Association

As many of us shared Ramadan with our friends and

families, there are many who spend the month of

observance in isolation and away from family. Amongst

those are the UK’s Muslim prisoners, who currently

account for roughly 14% of the entire prison population.

As part of Muslim Aid’s UK Prisoner Rehabilitation

Project, your donations provided fresh, warm iftar

meals for some of those who are currently serving time.

Visiting HMP Wormwood Scrubs in West London,

Muslim Aid staff joined the inmates in cooking chicken

and lamb biryani for over a thousand prisoners, using

ingredients that were purchased with your generous

donations.

Muslim Aid’s Prisoner Rehabilitation Project also

reached out to inmates across the country by providing

Ramadan packs containing essentials like prayer mats,

dates, miswaks, prayer books, clothing and other items.

Iftar ForMuslim Prisoners

[ Mohammad Walayat Khokhar MBE with VIPs from the Metropolitan Police and the MoD ]

This Ramadan, comedian and activist Russell Brand

joined Muslim Aid’s staff and volunteers in sharing

an iftar meal with the residents of Booth House,

Whitechapel. As a safe house for rough sleepers, Booth

House is a place where many find shelter and support to

help get back on their feet.

Coinciding with the celebrations of the Salvation

Army’s 150th anniversary, the iftar was part of Muslim

Aid’s annual Feed the Fasting Programme. As a joyous

gathering of people from different backgrounds and

walks of life, the sharing of food during the holy month

of Ramadan marked a re-kindling of community spirit

and togetherness that is often forgotten.

“This event is a great example of communities coming

together to help each other, and it shows the generosity

of the Muslim community and charities like Muslim

Aid”, said Russell Brand.

Muslim Aid’s Feed the Fasting campaign takes place

every Ramadan, which is the month of fasting. During

this time, Muslim Aid provides parcels containing a

month’s supply of food for people in over 40 countries

around the world. Last year, 227,000 people received

parcels containing vital food supplies such as rice, pasta,

tins and biscuits.

Russell BrandJoins Muslim Aid

Iftar For Homeless

[ Russel Brand joins Muslim Aid at Booth House, London ]


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The Holy Qur’an, 2:215

“They ask you (O Muhammad) what they should spend in

charity. Say: ‘Whatever you spend with a good heart, give it to parents, relatives, orphans, the helpless, and travellers in need. Whatever good you do,

God is aware of it.’”

Muslim Aid delivers iftar for fasters at Al-Aqsa Mosque, Jerusalem

Since 2008 Muslim Aid has built 6,135 wells in Asia and Africa providing communities with clean safe water.

Muslim Aid News: Overseas Update

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Muslim AidAmerica To Raise

Reflections On Child Sponsorship

Funds For

Kashmir, India

Dig A WellThe Muslim student association of the University of

Central Florida (UCF) will raise funds for Muslim Aid’s

Dig A well programme at its annual fastathon. The

Dig A Well programme builds wells for communities

that do not have access to clean safe water. The annual

fastathon which will take place in October this year,

will bring students of all faiths, who have made a pledge

The Rainbow Family Child Sponsorship Programme

supports over 5,000 orphans and children from

destitute families from three continents and is one

of Muslim Aid’s most successful programmes. Our

Rainbow Family Programme Assistant, Minara

Wahid, recently visited Kashmir, India and shares her

experience.

What was the purpose of your visit?

To see how the programme is implemented, how well

the project is run in this area and assess whether there

are any further needs.

How is the programme implemented in India ?

We have two partners in India – there is one in Srinagar,

Kashmir, that has 96 children supported by Muslim

Aid. The other partner is in Kerala.

to fast. For every pledge, sponsors will donate towards

the Dig A Well Programme. More than 500 students

will participate by fasting, while donating their lunch

money. Muslim Aid America is planning to work

with other universities across the USA to host similar

fundraising activities.

[ Minara with a child and her mother from Rainbow Family ]

Muslim Aid was invited to a special workshop in August to deliberate on projects to assist young Syrian refugees who

are unable to attend school. It is estimated that more than five million Syrian refugees are unable to attend school for

a host of reasons. This special group of more than 20 NGOs met in Washington D.C. for an entire day to discuss a

strategy and projects than can be implemented in the short-term.

Tell us about the programme in Kashmir?

The majority of the children are based around Srinagar,

where the partner’s office is. I managed to speak to

many of the children on a one to one basis. Education is

key for them; many of them prefer school over food! In

the UK, primary and secondary education is free and it

is often something we take for granted knowing that we

do not have to struggle for it. The Rainbow Family helps

children pay for school fees, books, stationary, uniform,

bus fare and any remaining expenses go towards

household groceries. The parents of sponsored children

no longer feel as if they have a bleak future, they have

hope in the support they receive. The programme not

only supports a child, but the entire family too.

Many children have no father and if their mother

remarries, the children go to live with relatives. In some

cases the stepfather does support them; however the

Rainbow Family programme is always there to provide

overall support. The programme is a huge stepping

stone for many children towards further and higher

education. Children from this area want to help their

community and aspire to be model citizens.

Do you have any concerns regarding the programme

in Kashmir?

Kashmir is prone to conflict and protests, it does not

affect beneficiaries directly but can be disruptive in

their daily activities. Srinagar is a very accessible area,

everything is close to each other. Any curfews that are

placed every 4-5 months do not prevent children from

attending school. As the programme is small, it helps

local children and they can all be visited over 2-3 days.

What can donors do to help?

Basic needs such as water and sanitation, healthcare and

medicine are not very accessible in this area. As donors,

we should do more research about Kashmir to see what

is lacking, and try to sponsor more children there.

Muslim Aid America Supports

Syria’s Youth


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This year, our Rainbow Family Programme Officer,

Akik Noor, went to Sri lanka to see how the child

sponsorship programme is doing and to meet some

of the children who are supported by Muslim Aid. He

shares his thoughts about his visit.

What was the purpose of your visit?

The purpose of my visit was to monitor the Rainbow

Family Sponsorship on the ground. It was an excellent

opportunity to meet the team especially my colleagues

and the kids. We have many tools to remotely monitor

the project but field visits are very effective.

Tell us a little about the RF programme in Sri Lanka.

How many children are sponsored here?

We have over 300 children directly sponsored, many of

the family members also benefit from the support. The

project has been ongoing since 2007 and we are steadily

expanding. Sri Lanka is a country in recovery following

the civil war from 1983-2009. Also the Indian Ocean

earthquake and Tsunami had a devastating effect on the

country. Many families are poor and there have been

many children left orphaned from constant natural

disasters and civil conflict.

What were your immediate thoughts about their needs

and concerns?

Poverty levels are very high, especially in rural areas

where most of our beneficiaries are located. A majority

live in basic houses made of tin or in some cases mud,

I was pleased to see that the team incorporate the

beneficiaries in other projects such as livelihood and

income generation.

Any memorable moments you would

like to share about some of the kids?

There was a moment when I met Azhar. This child

has been sponsored for 2-3 years. His donor is very

committed and often corresponds with him. I was

amazed to see how much Azhar cherishes the letters; he

keeps all the letters in a small suit case. His face beamed

with happiness when I asked about his donor. Azhar

is a gifted student, he achieved the best exam grades

in his age group within the whole district. Prior to the

sponsorship the family were unable to send Azhar to

additional tuition classes.

Do you have a message for our donors who are

considering sponsoring a child in Sri lanka?

You must do it! I’ve visited other countries but Sri

Lanka stands out in terms of how much the children

value education. This complements the Rainbow Family

ethos of educating beneficiaries out of the poverty cycle.

[ Akik with a Rainbow Family child, Sri Lanka ]


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Gender Equality

In this issue we talk about the role of women in development. Throughout the world, women represent a substantial, underutilised force for sustainable development. In Asia, for example, women are responsible for 50% of agricultural output, while nearly 80% of agricultural labour in the Africa market is female. Unfortunately, many of these women lack access to the necessary financial and agricultural resources which, according to the World Bank Studies, if freely accessible, could decrease global hunger by 12-17%

Why is gender equality important for development? Women are an integral part of the peace process and economic development in post conflict and developing nations. When women work, economies grow. Increasing women and girl’s education contributes to higher economic growth. Statistics from UN Women show that when girls and women are educated, 50 per cent of economic growth can be accredited to this.

What are the concerning issues? Women and girls in the developing world have less access to education, healthcare, and formal financial institutions and saving mechanism. While 55 per cent of men report having an account at a formal financial institution, only 47 per cent of women do worldwide. This gap is largest among lower middle-income economies as well as in South Asia and the Middle East and North Africa (www.unwomen.org).

Gender inequalities is still persistent in all countries. When paid and unpaid work are combined, women in developing countries work more than men, with less time for education, leisure, political participation and self-care.Women comprise an average of 43 per

“The experience of the Grameen Bank is a microcosm of what can happen globally if we put women at the centre of

our economic and social activity.”

Muhammed Yunus, Founder of the Grameen Bank & Nobel Prize Peace Laureate.

cent of the agricultural labour force in developing countries, varying considerably across regions from 20 per cent or less in Latin America to 50 per cent or more in parts of Asia and Africa. Despite the regional and sub-regional variation, women make an essential contribution to agriculture across the developing world. Yet Women farmers control less land than do men, and also have limited access to inputs, seeds, credits, and extension services. Less than 20 per cent of landholders are women.

What are Muslim Aid doing to ensure gender equality is part of its programmes?Nearly 98% of all microfinance loans are given to women in Bangladesh and in other countries. This ensures women are economically empowered to earn an income. There have been thousands of Muslim Aid success stories where woman have been given loans and have started a business. They are then able to earn an income to feed the family and send their kids to school.

Muslim Aid also provides programmes for women in skills training in areas such as tailoring and sewing, agricultural production, business management and accountancy and even bee keeping to name a few. Muslim’s Aid formal and informal education ensures that girls get the chance to go to school and its maternal health care programmes delivers pre-natal and ante-natal healthcare to women in rural areas with no access to clinics and hospitals. This ensures that women have access to basic healthcare which in many cases, can be life saving.

[ Rahima, a widow, learns to sew through MA’s Livelihood Programme, Bangladesh. ]


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[ Thabrez with Kainat and her sisters who are attending school ]

Muslim Aid’s Street to School project in Pakistan began in 2013. Since then, hundreds of street kids have had the opppotunity to get back into the classroom. Sadly over one million children in Paksitan live and/or work on the streets. Some are forced into prostitution and many are used for child labour. Families are too poor to send their child to school and quite often children have to work on the streets to help support the family. On average, a child can expect to make 100 rupees a day. That’s the equivalent of 60 pence. The abysmal reality of their poverty trap means they are denied a childhood and the right to an education. Many are subjected to unimaginable hardships and encounter violence and substance abuse as a daily way of life. The Street to School project allows children to go to school and gives them the opportunity to make a head start in life.

In June this year our fundraising officer, Thabrez Khan, went to Pakistan to make a short film about the project. He vividly remembers the story of nine year old Kainat and her siblings who all work as maids. She grew up too fast and in miserable circumstances; her father is a drug addict and used to beat her mother.

Kainat used to work as a rubbish collector first and then as a maid to supplement the families income: “It’s really hard, I don’t like working as a maid, I get pushed around by the families I work for.” Said a despondent Kainat. Having been on the Street to School project for over a year, she smiled with glee when she talked about school. “It’s the only time her face lit up with joy when she spoke about her life. She loves school as it gives her hope and a promise of a better future. She wants to be a doctor,” Thabrez explained. He added further: “The week before I arrived, they had been kicked out of their home as they could not afford the rent. They literally went from door to door in neighbouring villages asking for a room for the five of them to be housed in.”

Thankfully Kainat and her sisters now go to school after work. The project supports kids with meals, school uniforms, books, stationary and bags. They even have monthly health checks done by a local health practitioner. Kainat’s story is tragic but not isolated. Over a million children are in the same predicament.

There have been many success stories from this project. One child who used to work on the streets, went to school and later became a pharmacist. He can now support his entire family. “The biggest lesson I learnt from these kids is that opportunity and choice is something we take for granted here in the UK. The kids aren’t asking for much but to be given a chance to a better life. Basic education, and someone to show them a helpful hand to get them out of their misery”.

You can watch the video on our YouTube channel:https://goo.gl/bmjgoz

Hope For Pakistan’s Street Kids


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Our Draw a Smile project in Gaza left a lasting

impression for over 1,620 people affected by the recent

war. The project provided Eid gift vouchers for children

from 270 homes in Gaza. The vouchers allowed

parents to buy clothes and toys for their children for

the Eid festivites. Last Ramadan Muslim Aid raised

over £38,000 for the Eid Gift project and gave gifts to

children all over the world.

You can watch a short video on our distribution:

https://goo.gl/aR9fnG

[ Kids from Gaza receive Eid gifts ]

Muslim Aid’s mushroom cultivation in Indonesia

is helping up to 1,000 individuals and their families

improve their lives through economic empowerment.

Around three thousand families are living below the

poverty line in West Sumatera and West Tenggara and

come from agricultural backgrounds. Sadly, the effects

of constant flooding, landslides and drought in the

area has had a negative impact effect on agricultural

production and land. Muslim Aid delivered mushroom

cultivation training and business skills and management

for participants of the programme. The mushrooms

will be sold in the local market and manufacturers of

mushroom products enabling families to earn a living

on in order to become economically self-relient.

[ Indonesian women cultivate mushrooms for an incom ]

MushroomCultivation

In Indonesia

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Muslim Aid firmly believes that education is a crucial tool in fighting poverty and endeavours to provide formal and non-formal education to women and children in some of the world’s poorest countries, preparing them for a better future. Our education programmes range from pre-school initiatives to adult and vocational training.

FREEDOMTO A FUTURE

020 7377 4200muslimaid.org

Donate Now

Mission

Volunteer

Comments

Muslim Aid’s mission, guided by the teachings of Islam, endeavours to tackle poverty and its causes by developing innovative and sustainable solutions that enable individuals and their communities to live with dignity and by supporting initiatives that promote economic and social justice. Vision: The alleviation of poverty, education for all, and the provision of basic amenities for those in need to create a world where charity and compassion produce justice, self reliance and human development.

We are always looking for dedicated volunteers. If you would like to contribute and help out at Muslim Aid please contact the Volunteer Department at [email protected]

We would love to hear your feedback. Please send any comments about our magazine to [email protected]

[ Cover Photo: Abdul Razak arrived at Beity, after fleeing Syria with his mother and three siblings. At Beity, he now has a place he calls home. ]

32Charity Reg No: 295224

HQ Office

Tel: 020 7377 4200 - Web: muslimaid.orgPO Box 3, London, E1 1WP

Birmingham Office

Tel: 0121 771 3372 541 Coventry Road, Small Heath, Birmingham, B10 0LL

Manchester Office

Tel: 0161 861 0782 557A Barlow Moor Road, Chorlton, Manchester, M21 8AN

muslim aid magazine issue 11

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