Relief International

Relief International is an international non-governmental organization (NGO) that partners with communities impacted by conflict, climate change, and disaster to save lives, build greater resilience, and promote long-term health and wellbeing. Relief International is a global alliance of four organizations: Relief International Inc, Relief International UK, Relief International France and Relief International Europe.

The organization has more than 5,000 professionals assisting people affected by humanitarian crises in 15 countries.

Approach
''Relief International holds the conviction that true resilience is achieved when various individuals unite—like threads—to strengthen the community's social fabric. By collaborating with local partners on humanitarian responses, Relief International initially concentrates on vital health needs. As communities recuperate, an integrated emphasis on health and well-being aids in restoring the social fabric, an indispensable network for preparedness and, ultimately, enhanced resilience.''

Relief International’s ‘health’ function is in the broadest possible sense and includes the provision of primary healthcare, as well as nutrition and Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) work. It believes sustainable primary healthcare with integrated WASH and nutrition are an essential precondition to resilience.

The second of Relief International's golden threads is 'wellbeing', which weaves together livelihoods and education. Relief International thinks of education in the broadest possible sense. Increasingly, Relief International facilitates ‘learning to earning’ pathways, life skills, and preparation for livelihoods, as well as community awareness work. Wellbeing arises from the agency that comes from having the skills and opportunities to imagine and fulfill a productive future for communities.

Health and Nutrition
The communities Relief International serves are often surrounded by life-threatening events that result in physical and emotional wounds, while security measures make it challenging to seek treatment. These populations are additionally burdened by shortages of necessities such as food, clean water, and safe sanitation – leaving them with little resilience to withstand poor health.

Relief International’s work ranges from providing life-saving care to rebuilding health systems so communities can sustainably care for themselves. In conflict-ravaged countries, mobile medical units provide care to communities completely cut off from services, and Relief International hospitals in besieged cities treat mass injuries and offer trauma counseling and rehabilitation. In areas facing disaster, our healthcare facilities screen children for malnutrition and treat waterborne diseases spread by lack of access to clean water sources.

Education
Education is critical for securing brighter futures for individuals whose lives have been disrupted by conflict or disaster. Education is also protecting boys and girls against further violence and exploitation, as well as contributing to their resilience. Education is often the first service to disappear in emergencies and the last to be resumed.

Children who live in countries affected by conflict are more than twice as likely to be out of school compared with those living in countries not affected by conflict. Similarly, adolescents in these settings are two-thirds more likely to be out of school. Girls, children with disabilities, and refugees have even greater barriers to accessing education.

Relief International’s education programs include a wide range of activities: teacher training programs, building libraries, and providing books and classroom furniture to under-resourced schools while promoting equal access to education. These programs equip children and young people to be the architects and guardians of their own and their communities’ futures.

Livelihoods
Relief International’s livelihood programs are based on the belief that creating employment is the most critical pathway to building resilience for communities in vulnerable situations. These programs are based on sustainable solutions. Relief International helps small producers and other entrepreneurs build businesses that transform their communities, create quality jobs, and increase productivity, market opportunities, and incomes.

They do this by expanding access to small-scale technologies as well as providing technical assistance, knowledge, and financial support. These programs are aimed at long-term, reliable growth, and Relief International often engages private sector partners to leverage additional resources and guarantee sustainability.

Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH)
Clean water, clean sanitation, and basic hygiene practices are essential building blocks for healthy lives and disease prevention. Over 1.5 billion people still do not have basic sanitation services, such as private toilets or latrines, and at least 1.7 billion people rely on contaminated drinking water sources. These communities struggle to obtain enough water to grow food, raise livestock, and protect their environments – all of which are essential to their families’ survival and livelihoods.

Relief International works with communities to improve access to safe water as well as manage the sustainability of existing water sources. The organization works with local partners to build new water and sanitation systems that connect communities to practical solutions. Local leaders are trained to manage and repair these systems, ensuring their operation outlasts our presence. Relief International also partners with community leaders to create relevant messages that encourage healthy hygiene practices to promote health and prevent the spread of disease.

Protection and human rights
All of Relief International’s programs are underpinned by protection measures. This means we ensure that groups with high vulnerability or additional needs have access and dignity in attaining the opportunities they need to thrive.

Countries
In Africa, the organization works in Ghana, Sudan and South Sudan.

In Asia, the organization works in Afghanistan, Myanmar, Pakistan, Iran, and Philippines.

In the Middle East, the organization works in Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Yemen, Syria, Türkiye.