Islamic Relief Worldwide

Founded in 1985 by a group of young volunteers in Birmingham, UK, Islamic Relief’s first programmes provided food aid and food security support in Sudan and Mauritania. Expanding quickly, within a few years we were delivering emergency aid in countries including Mozambique, Iran, Pakistan, Malawi, Iraq, and Afghanistan. We also launched our long-term One-to-One Orphan Sponsorship programme, which today supports tens of thousands of vulnerable children worldwide.

In 1994, we became the first Muslim NGO to receive UK government funding, and by the end of the decade, we had established an office in Gaza to support vulnerable communities. Across the decades, we have been at the forefront of the response to humanitarian crises: on the ground throughout the Bosnian War in the 90s, a lifeline in the aftermath of the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, and a source of support to millions in 26 countries amid the Covid-19 pandemic. In 2017, we became the tenth organisation in the world to achieve Core Humanitarian Standard certification.

Today, Islamic Relief is a global organisation working in more than 40 countries, providing emergency aid and long-term development, and campaigning for change. Our international headquarters are in Digbeth, in Birmingham, UK, and we have offices in countries including Bangladesh, Canada, Germany, Iraq, Lebanon, Sweden, Australia, Malaysia, South Africa, and Mali.

We are signatories of the Red Cross Code of Conduct, an international standard on working with people affected by emergencies in a non-biased manner, and we have NGO status with the UN’s Economic and Social Council. We have signed a Framework Partnership with the European Commission Humanitarian Aid department, and a partnership agreement with UNHCR that reaffirmed both organisations’ principles of giving aid without discrimination.