Helping at home: South Africa

The socio-economic issues in South Africa, such as unemployment, crime, corruption, and poverty are steadily rising. IRSA (Islamic Relief South Africa) has highlighted these concerns and is working towards educating, informing, and empowering the local communities to be better prepared in the face of contemporary challenges. 

According to the QLFS (Quarterly Labour Force Survey), the current national unemployment rate at 34.5%, intensifying the struggles of half of the population of South Africa living in poverty. Thirty years after the end of apartheid, race remains a key factor in South Africa, which remains the most unequal country in the world, as witnessed through our education system and labour market.

IRSA cooperates with local communities to confront the issues plaguing the South African communities. We aim to strengthen the resilience to calamities and provide communities with vital emergency aid when disasters occur. We focus on assisting the poor, marginalized, vulnerable, and anyone in need, irrespective of race, colour, political affiliation, gender, or belief.  Our purpose is to improve the access to basic services, such as education, shelter, water & sanitation, food as well as healthcare. We confront the causes of poverty and provide lasting routes out of this scourge through our sustainable development schemes.

The sectors we work in, to achieve our purpose and aims are, Sustainable Livelihood, Protection, Health & Nutrition, Education, Water & Sanitation, Youth Development, Emergency, and Seasonal. These sectors have many sub-sectors, which will highlight the work we do to transform the condition of our most vulnerable people and communities in South Africa.

We believe that everyone has the right to shelter, food and a source of income. That’s why we’re working across the South Africa to support vulnerable individuals and communities in need and to transform lives.

Here at Islamic Relief, we’re partnered with a range of local community-based and larger national organisations to help support and empower disadvantaged individuals and communities across the country.

The Story of Mpho Lengabe

Mpho Lengabe is 58 years old,  Mpho is now able to feed her family with the vegetables she is growing in her Alternative Livelihoods growing system.
Mpho lives in KwaZulu Natal and shares her home with her husband, daughter and grandson. The family lives off a government grant and struggles to make ends meet.
Mpho’s grandson is part of the Islamic Relief orphan sponsorship programme and the family receives a monthly food hamper to help ease their plight.
She was trained to grow her own vegetables through the Alternative Livelihoods for Women programme funded by Islamic Relief South Africa.
“I now have a small business, selling the spinach allows me to buy bread for my family, without this project, my family would be going through hunger and shortage of food.”

Thank you

Thank you for giving hope and helping us on this journey. May Allah (SWT) continue to shower his mercy and blessings upon us all so that we can continue to assist more people in the coming years and ease the plight of the vulnerable. You can help by donating towards our Local Emergencies Fund which allows us to respond quickly and effectively to local disasters.