Over 8 years of training local humanitarians in 26 countries to help vulnerable people

Since it was established in 2013, Islamic Relief’s Humanitarian Academy for Development (HAD) has provided training to humanitarians in over 26 countries including Syria, Palestine, Iraq and Yemen, so they can better assist vulnerable people in the communities  they work. HAD’s Marketing Officer Kawkaba Samadzada explains that many local humanitarians who are at the frontline for responding to emergencies lack funding for necessary training, leaving them highly vulnerable when disaster strikes.

Core Humanitarian Standard workshop participants from non-governmental organisations in Gaza gathered for remote training.

Training the next generation of humanitarians in Gaza

Collaborating with Islamic Relief Palestine, our recent training project provided training and mentoring for report and proposal writing to 17 non-governmental organisations (NGOs) in Gaza.

Together, we worked with NGOs who are serving some of the most vulnerable communities who are living in highly complex situations. These organisations often lack knowledge and skills to secure long-term donor funding. This project aimed to fill that gap through expert training and mentoring with an incredible 120 days of coaching and mentoring led by 6 sector experts. This boosted the skills of 116 staff, who received one on one regular mentoring sessions.

Feedback from the participants showed confidence that they will implement real changes in their organisations as a result of the training.

One participant, Haneen Al-Jarousha from the Society of Women Graduates, said, “The training and the mentoring sessions helped to improve my proposal writing unit knowledge and we are working on writing new proposals now.”

Life–changing training for humanitarians in Yemen, Syria and Iraq

When the Covid-19 pandemic started, we knew this would have a huge impact on countries with limited access. For this reason, we led a project to build the capacity of local organisations in Yemen, Syria and Iraq to adapt to the challenges of Covid-19.

This successful project built the skills of 27 organisations, with 335 staff engaging in the coaching and mentoring, 117 activities and a further 246 days of training.

Rather than traditional training, the project carried out an in-depth analysis of each organisation and from there we tailored the session plans to suit each one.

This training shifted the mindset of local staff to think about their work in a developmental context. They learned to understand the importance of the organisational structures required to ensure their sustainability through the pandemic, as one participant remarked:

“Because of Covid … the funding from other countries to help Syria is reduced now and that’s so difficult … Resource mobilisation [training/coaching] was very important, it’s a new concept for us, it helps us to think in a new way… Covid was also an important topic and we learnt new ways to add Covid-19 activities in the budget.” 

We are proud of the astounding level of positive feedback we receive. It helps motivate us and shows why we do what we do.

Local NGOs are often the first responders during humanitarian crisis, and may continue working with affected communities long after other organisations have moved on. Islamic Relief is determined to do all we can to develop their capacity, including through robust training projects that will leave a long-lasting impact for many years to come.

With your support, we can continue supporting local NGOs on the frontlines in some of the world’s most grave crises. Donate to our ‘Capacity Building for Humanitarians’ fund now.