Although in recent years there has been increasing interest in microfinance programmes based on Islamic principles, to date there has been little research conducted on their impact. This investigation analyses one such programme implemented by Islamic Relief in Kosovo. Specifically, it examines the influence of faith on the performance of the programme. While from the outset it was obvious that the performance of any microfinance programme is largely determined by organisational traits and the context in which it is implemented, the research highlighted a number of areas in which faith impacts upon the behaviour of programme staff and borrowers in Kosovo. While the resultant behaviour appears to contribute to the success of the programme, the extent of this influence is difficult to determine amid a number of other influencing factors.

Translating faith into development The fight against corruption has centred around international conventions, conferences and institutions, while the code of ethics promoted by different faiths have the potential to contribute to curbing corruption. This is largely because, there has not been a clear position on the role of faith in the fight against corruption; this paper reflects on the impact of corruption, and presents Islamic imperatives on curbing its spread.

This document presents the holistic concept of charity in Islam within which any interaction between living things can be considered charity. It then explores the mechanisms of charitable giving in Islam; zakat, waqf and sadaqa.

This document presents a brief historical overview of humanitarianism in the Muslim world since the time of the Prophet (pbuh). In particular it focuses on the development and role of zakat and sadaqah and details some of the humanitarian activity of Muslim rulers. In doing so it demonstrates the centrality of humanitarian principles in Islam.

While there has been much interest in the growth of Muslim faith based development organisations, there has been little analysis of how Islam informs their operational strategy. This document looks at how Islamic teachings that encourage self reliance and call on Muslims to be the voice of the poor can be incorporated into the work of these organisations and provide long term solutions to the alleviation of poverty.

This paper focuses on the significance of education in Islam, and will shed some light on Islamic perspectives on education and its implications on the work of Muslim faith based organisations (MFBO) working in international development.Islam has been advocating education as a social necessity for over 1400 years. The Qur’an and the Hadiths (sayings of the Prophet Mohammed peace be upon him) explicitly emphasise the importance of education; in Islam seeking education is obligatory for every Muslim, male and female. Indeed the acquisition of knowledge and the use of this knowledge for the betterment of humanity is seen as a sacred duty for Muslims.

The growth of international trade has brought about significant economic benefits and prosperity to many. However, small-scale producers in many poor countries, particularly those whose livelihoods depend upon the farming of a single crop, are unable to compete in a world market controlled by large multinational companies and distorted by the subsidies provided by rich countries to their producers.As a consequence, farmers in poor countries have few options for generating an income and many live in poverty often unable to meet even their most basic needs. Fair trade is a response to these conditions. This paper presents an Islamic perspective on fair trade. It does this by outlining the key principles upon which fair trade is based, such as sustainability, fairness, equity, and workers rights, and examines relevant Islamic teachings. It concludes that the principles of fair trade and the teachings of Islam are entirely congruent.

This paper analyses the experience of Islamic Relief in working with and for refugees and Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs). Although much relief work is carried out by faith-based organisations worldwide, and although religious identity is often an important factor in understanding communities,little work has been done to examine the work of faith-based organisations in the field of refugee assistance. This paper attempts to fill part of that gap by examining the work of Islamic Relief as a faith-based organisation providing assistance to refugees and IDPs in multiple and diverse contexts. The investigation concludes that in many cases Islamic Relief has an advantage over secular, Western and non-Muslim faith-based organisations in working with Muslim communities. However, in certain contexts, being identified as a ‘Muslim organisation’ may also complicate the experience of gaining entry into communities, especially with regard to local authorities and other international NGOs.

The ‘debt’ of the world’s poorest countries is currently estimated to stand at $2.7 trillion. Since 1996, the world’s 66 poorest countries have paid a total of over $230 billion to service their foreign debt - this amount far exceeds any aid they have received.Indeed, indebted countries are paying around $118 million every day in interest and principal payments - although payments far greater than the original loan amount have already been made. Debt is one of the principal causes of poverty; it has hampered the economic development of indebted countries and prevented them from investing in essential services such as healthcare and education. Are there any additional insights that can be gained through analysing the debt crisis from an Islamic perspective? Are there any specific Islamic teachings and guidance that Muslims can refer to when considering solutions? This paper examines Islamic teachings on debt and, with references from the Qur’an and ahadith, argues that for Muslims there are indeed strong and clear faith-based reasons for advocating debt cancellation.

The purpose of this document is to show how microfinance programmes based on Islamic financing principles can be established. It is hoped that this may encourage the provision of microfinance services that conform to Islamic financing principles and eventually, of course, the use of these services by microentrepreneurs.As well as providing a theoretical framework outlining the tenets upon which Islamic financing is based, this document provides practical advice on how such a programme may be structured: guidelines that can be followed when implementing a microfinance programme; as well as advice upon programme monitoring and evaluation. The target audience is organisations that wish to provide microfinance services that conform to Islamic financing principles. This document is, primarily, a practical manual written from a practitioner’s perspective. The document is available to download in both English and French

We understand poverty as a being a multidimensional phenomenon, with a special focus on capability deprivation. Poverty encompasses not only material deprivation (that can be measured by income or consumption), but also forms of deprivation such as unemployment, ill health, lack of education, vulnerability, powerlessness, and social exclusion. Islamic Relief aims to alleviate the suffering of the world’s poorest people. But what is poverty and how do we define poverty? Poverty, whether it is at the global, national or community level, is widely considered to be a multidimensional problem.

We believe that poverty and environmental degradation are closely linked. The causes of environmental degradation disproportionately affect the poor, while poverty also accelerates environmental destruction.In Islam, Muslims are encouraged to reflect on the relationship between living organisms and their environment and to maintain the balance created by God. Mankind is the guardian of the earth and as such has a duty to protect it and also to ensure its posterity for future generations in the spirit of inter-generational equity. Islamic Relief believes that we all have a responsibility to maintain the balance of the earth, especially as disruption of this balance is causing widespread suffering amongst the world’s poorest people. Protection of the environment is therefore crucial to Islamic Relief both as one of the Islamic principles on which we are founded, and also because of its importance for poverty reduction.

We believe that HIV–AIDS and poverty are intrinsically linked. People living in poverty are more vulnerable to the disease and those living with the disease more vulnerable to ever deepening poverty.The disease can affect every aspect of a person’s life from their ability to access education to their ability to earn a living. As well as developing and implementing programmes that aim to reduce people’s exposure to HIV and to halt the spread of the disease, Islamic Relief aims to use our position to influence other parties and, where relevant, to educate people about the reality of the pandemic.

International debt is crippling developing countries and trapping them in a cycle of poverty. The world’s poorest countries are currently paying back millions of dollars in debt repayments to banks, lending agencies and the governments in developed countries while simultaneously struggling to provide basic services, such as health and education, for their people.To enable developing countries to escape from poverty and in the interests of justice, Islamic Relief advocates that bankruptcy procedures are created for countries that are unable to repay their loans; that all un-payable debt is cancelled by fair and transparent means, and the resources that are freed are monitored to ensure they are used for social welfare purposes; that all ‘odious’ debt is cancelled; and that creditor countries and institutions should re-evaluate their past and present lending practices to avoid future undue indebtedness.

More than half a million women a year die during pregnancy or child birth, and many more women suffer serious injuries which if untreated can cause life-long pain and humiliation. Poor reproductive health, therefore, puts the lives and health of millions of women at risk, and without serious improvements in the provision of reproductive healthcare there will be little progress towards reducing maternal or infant mortality rates. The majority of Islamic Relief’s reproductive health work will, therefore, concentrate on meeting and advocating for the needs of women and girls. Our focus is on providing comprehensive information on reproductive health, supporting the provision of health care facilities and advocating against unsafe beliefs and practices.

Trade has the potential to lift both individuals and countries out of poverty, as well as contributing to the problems and inequalities they face.At present the international trading system is an un-level playing field that unfairly disadvantages the poorest countries and is pushing many of them deeper into poverty. Islamic Relief will work towards a more just world trade system, implement an internal fair trade policy and utilise its successful livelihood projects to produce items that are marketable and ethically produced and traded.

This manual sets out to introduce, explain and advise staff on how Islamic Relief delivers practical accountability to its beneficiaries in the field. It sets in place an Accountability Framework in which we strive to improve the quality of our work in the eyes of our beneficiaries and the rest of the world. The IR Accountability Framework is built on five key principles; embodiment and compliance with ethics and standards, transparency, participation, performance management and providing

The Islamic Relief Ethical Code of Conduct has been developed in order to: 1. Provide clarity on the beliefs and conceptual framework of Islamic Relief. 2. Provide moral, ethical and professional guidance to all our employees and partners we work with. 3. Set standards for the organisation against which we can measure and evaluate our performance 4. Inform our beneficiaries and donors of the standards they should expect from the services we provide.

UNDP estimates that of the 1.3billion people classed as living in poverty 70% are women. There is growing international recognition that the ‘face’ of poverty is increasingly female. This practical manual provides some well used tools for staff to use in the design of relief and development programmes in the field. It will help in ensuring that projects take into account the multi-faceted role that gender relations play in dictating a range of social, economical and political conditions that make up and affect both positively and negatively the lives of poor people.

This practical manual, explains how Islamic Relief approaches the evaluation of emergencies and practically develops systems and monitoring and evaluation techniques to help our staff measure progress and impact in real-time, thus ensuring work is responsive to needs of disaster victims and changes in the environmental context. Islamic Relief has a strongly held vision and mission – based on Islamic values and the humanitarian imperative – that guides our work and approach.

Recently aid agencies attention have become focussed on reducing the devastating effects of natural disasters by preparing communities to mitigate and respond to disasters in ways that can save lives, suffering and damage to their homes. This manual sets out the ways and means by which this may be achieved. During the past four decades, disasters such as earthquakes, volcanic activity, landslides, tropical cyclones, floods, drought, and other hazards have increased significantly and caused major loss of human lives and livelihoods.