Islamic Relief launches the Graduation “Falah” Model Guidelines

Islamic Relief Worldwide is pleased to announce the launch of our new Graduation Model Falah Guidelines. These new Guidelines aim to establish a transparent and adaptable framework for using the Graduation approach for consistent long-term development programming. Global Programme Impact and MEAL Manager, Claire Bedwell-Thomas, explains the importance of the Graduation approach to Islamic Relief.

We are excited to share with you Islamic Relief’s Graduation Model Falah Guidelines.

The development of these Guidelines has been the culmination of a learning study carried out globally within Islamic Relief over the past 18 months with the support of external consultant Anton Simanowitz as well as several stakeholders.

While acknowledging the diversity of contexts, our goal is not to enforce a uniform approach, but rather to provide a set of principles to guide adaptation and ensure minimum standards for effective design and execution.

Ultimately, these Guidelines outline the steps to implementing projects that consistently benefit the wellbeing of people supported by Islamic Relief. They enable informed decision making regarding the suitability of implementing such projects by Islamic Relief, helping to determine when and where they should or shouldn’t proceed.

The Graduation approach was developed by BRAC Bangladesh in the early 2000s as a strategy to tackle the complex factors that contribute to extreme poverty. The approach involves a series of interventions implemented in a logical and precise sequence to meet immediate needs while also looking at long-term solutions to help families achieve and sustain real progress over time.

Whilst the model has evolved since then and has been adopted and refined in more than 75 countries, the core principles remain true. Graduation builds the capacity of individuals and their households, strengthening their resilience and supporting productive activities. Graduation projects are based on a holistic approach to poverty reduction, with a built-in recognition that poverty is not solely defined by a lack of material resources.

The Graduation approach isn’t new for Islamic Relief – our groundbreaking Health, Education and Livelihoods for the Ultra Poor project (HELP-UP) project and our award-winning Alternative Livelihoods for Orphan Families (ALO) project in Bangladesh are great examples, acting as the catalyst and inspiration for subsequent Graduation projects.

The mature Graduation model of today recognises that poverty is multi-dimensional and seeks to tackle it in a multi-dimensional way. The early successes of innovative projects like HELP-UP and ALO have inspired us to establish Graduation programmes in a dozen other countries. Our goal is to transform lives and livelihoods, and to bring an end to extreme poverty for thousands of people.

With this goal in mind, we conducted an extensive global learning study in 2023 to examine our Graduation approach and learn lessons for the future. As a result, our Graduation programme now has a new set of guidelines for its implementation and a new name: The Falah Graduation Model – Pathways to Prosperity. Falah is an Arabic word that expresses profound multi-dimensional well-being that goes beyond material advancement.

We want to thank every one of the dozens of people who contributed to these Guidelines, both within and outside of Islamic Relief. Our heartfelt gratitude goes out to each and every one of you.

We would also like to thank World Vision and Concern Worldwide for permission to utilise their materials in these Guidelines. Special thanks also go out to Johanna Ryan for her time and efforts in reviewing these Guidelines and providing feedback.

We hope you enjoy reading both the complete, operationally focused Falah Graduation Model (Pathways to Prosperity) Guidelines, or the Falah Graduation Model (Pathways to prosperity) Guidelines – summary document.