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International aid

INTERNATIONAL AID CHARITIES are collectively the most popular in the country. Disasters like the Asian tsunami are capable of raking in millions for the big charitable players, but they also get a lot of regular support.


> How international charities work
> Long-term support
>> The big players
>> Something different...
>> Health
>> HIV/AIDS
>> Children
>> Human rights
>> Religious
>> Send-a-gimmick
> Short-term relief


How international charities work
Once upon a time, international aid charities jetted out European consultants to third-world countries where they enlightened presidents and prime ministers on the finer points of development strategy. But this approach had some big problems. Westerners often misunderstood the challenges these countries faced, they recommended the wrong solutions and sometimes even made the situation worse.

Nowadays, much has changed. Most charities have a global network of offices from which they train, fund and monitor local organizations which do most of the work. It's rare to see British people on the ground or even running the offices. Usually, Westerners only come out of the woodwork to do more specialist jobs - such as emergency relief, surgery and engineering.

There are two broad approaches you to take if you want to help. Either you can support long-term projects - helping farmers farm instead of giving them free food, for example – or you can support shorter-term disaster-relief efforts.

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LONG-TERM SUPPORT

The big players
Oxfam (see profile) started life as a famine relief organisation; today it is well known both in the UK and abroad. Oxfam is nowadays focused more on long-term development than short-term disaster relief.
Save the Children (see profile) works in 52 countries focusing on four fundamental rights for children - health, freedom from hunger, education and protection.
CARE International (see profile) This US-based giant helps 48 million people a year. It focuses on identifying and tackling the underlying causes of poverty as well as providing emergency relief when needed.
ActionAid (see profile) does similar work to the other giants but it is almost totally decentralised – meaning it doesn't have an expensive headquarters in the UK.
Help Age International (see profile) does similar work to the other aid charities but focuses on the needs of older people.
Christian Aid (see profile) aims to end poverty and injustice, providing long term and emergency relief regardless of faith.

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Do something a little different...
HALO Trust (see profile) is a small charity that shuns expensive campaigning and fundraising and instead focuses on its core mission – clearing mines. To date it has cleared over 5,000,000 of them from troublespots worldwide.
Shelterbox trust (see profile) sends boxes to disaster zones around the world that are crammed full of everything ten people need to keep warm and comfortable after disaster has struck. From a weatherproof tent, to thermal blankets, to a multi-fuel stove, it seems to have thought of everything.
International Rescue Committee UK (IRC) (see profile) aims to be "One of the first to respond, one of the last to leave." We have listed them here as well as under ‘Emergency relief’ because they stay long after the disaster has passed ensuring the communities are sustainable. After this, we assume they head back to Tracy Island.
Tree Aid (see profile) works in West Africa where 90% of villagers depend on trees for their livelihoods. Whilst in Europe trees are seen as something nice to sit under (or hug) in West Africa they help in slowing desert encroachment, providing fire wood and of course providing shade for people and animals.
Traidcraft (see profile) This Christian organization is dedicated to helping poor people work their way out of poverty. It helps them do this by running a fair-trade company. We like this concept and the best thing is that you can support them when you next feel the urge for some chocolate.

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Health
Preventable diseases, long-since eradicated from the Europe, still kill millions of people a year in poor countries. Malaria alone is thought to account for up to 25% of child deaths, whilst tuberculosis kills at least two million people every year. The real tragedy is that for only a few pence most of these deaths are preventable.

Sightsavers International (see profile) works to prevent curable diseases – such as river blindness – from destroying the livelihoods of at-risk people by damaging their sight. Last year they treated and protected 16 million people.
Vision Aid Overseas also restores sight to people in the developing world. However it focuses on those who need glasses. By reusing spectacles that people in Britain no longer want – the charity restores the sight of thousands of people (chiefly in Africa). If you want to donate your specs, read our how-to guide.
WaterAid (see profile) focuses on providing water, sanitation and sanitation education to poor people in poor countries. To date it has reached 7.5 million people.
Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) (see profile) This French-founded Nobel Peace Prize-winning organization finds fearless doctors and sends them to places which would scare normal people witless. By sending medical assistance to the world’s troublespots – war zones, failed states, disaster zones – it provides medical care to those that would otherwise receive none. One of our favourite charities as after the 2004 Tsunami it was the first to state publicly that it didn’t need any more money to complete its work.
Merlin (see profile) is similar to MSF (above) but is British and smaller. It also sends doctors to disaster areas and war zones, last year it worked with six million people. As well as providing emergency care it also focuses on beefing up local healthcare systems to leave a long-term benefit.
Médecins du Monde UK (see profile) split from MSF two decades ago yet focuses on providing a similar service worldwide. It is much smaller but unlike MSF also works in deprived areas in Britian.
Mercy Ships UK  (See profile) This group has built and equipped three massive ships that sail around the world packed full of Christian medics and volunteers who provide medical services where local healthcare is lacking. It treats people of all faiths. Their innovative approach also neatly gets around the problem of poor hygiene on the ground by turning up with a ready-equipped state-of-the-art floating hospital.
Health Unlimited (see profile) focuses on providing long-term healthcare to those who are affected by conflict, instability or discrimination. It particularly works with those in remote areas that have been forgotten or deliberately marginalized by their governments.

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HIV/AIDS
At least 42 million adults and 5 million children are living with HIV/AIDS, and 95 per cent of them live in poor countries. There is still no cure for the disease, but by supporting the charities listed below you can help to stop it spreading and improve the lives of those who live with it every day.

The International HIV/AIDS Alliance (see profile) supports organizations in poor countries that support AIDS patients in locally-sensitive ways. This approach has apparently been so successful it now has support from the World Health Organization, the UN, and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
The Elton John AIDS Foundation (see profile) Elton founded this grant-giving organization to improve the lives of those affected by AIDS, and it's given grants to organizations in 55 countries around the world.

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Children
Child sponsorship is one of the most popular ways of helping children in poor countries. But these schemes have changed in recent years. Originally, your cash would have gone straight towards promoting the welfare of a single child. But this created inequalities within communities. Nowadays, your money is more likely to be spread widely across a village. If this worries you, check exactly how your money will be spent. For more information on Children’s charities see our overview of children's charities.

SOS Children’s Villages (see profile) is the world’s largest orphans' and abandoned-children's charity. It works with any child that needs its help, including AIDS orphans, street children and child soldiers. Offering support as a parent would - including healthcare, education and emotional security – right up until the children are adults and have a stable job and house. The charity provides a child sponsorship program that keeps donors up to date on where their cash is spent.
World Vision UK (see profile) focuses on long-term development and employs 97% of its staff on the ground. This, we're told, allows it to respond rapidly in an emergency. A Christian outfit, it nonetheless works with people regardless of their faith. It also runs a child-sponsorship scheme.
Plan International UK (see profile) is another charity that offers sponsorship opportunities.  It is a child-focussed, non-denominational charity that works with families and communities to improve the quality of health, education, water and sanitation facilities for everyone but especially children.
EveryChild (see profile) works across 17 countries aiming to protect the world's most vulnerable and excluded children. It tries to empower and protect children using techniques that are viable in the long term.
Warchild (see profile) provides education, counseling and advice to children in war zones. It uses music in its work with children and also to raise funds (it produces world music CDs).
Children in Crisis (see profile) believes the best route out of poverty for children is to receive a decent education. It renovates and creates educational facilities in ten countries around the world.
Pestalozzi International Village Trust (see profile) also believes that the best route out of poverty is through education but provides scholarships for students from poor countries to come to the UK to study.

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Human Rights
Amnesty International (see profile) Thanks to some ancient British laws Amnesty is, strangely, both a charity and not a charity. This short article explains why. Amnesty aims to ‘protect individuals wherever justice, fairness, freedom and truth are denied'. It is the global human rights champion, working behind the scenes in repressive countries whilst also campaigning publicly on a global scale. But its campaigns are not limited to developing countries. It was one of the first organisations to campaign against Guantanamo Bay.
Anti-Slavery International (see profile) There are about 20 million slaves worldwide today, and according to this outfit some are even in the UK. The world’s oldest human rights charity, it works to abolish all forms of slavery, from bonded labourers and prostitutes to child camel jockeys. It works all over the world but mostly in poor countries.

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Religious
Even if you’re not religious, don’t write off these charities. Most are non-denominational, meaning they will help people regardless of faith. If you’re not sure look have a look at our profiles or why not look at their website. CAFOD (see profile) is the Catholic Church’s official international-development charity, and doesn’t hide its Christian faith. But it does help people in over 40 countries regardless of their religion.
Survive – MIVA (see profile) provides grants to organisations in poor countries to buy ambulances, motorbikes, motorcycles and boats to supply areas with poor transport. It awards its grants to people who advise locals, improve healthcare or spread the Word of God.
Tearfund (see profile) works all over the world to help reduce not only material but also 'spiritual' poverty. It aims to benefit people regardless of their faith. Note, however, that a lot of their work is carried out by local churches. Its website offers advice on how to direct your prayers for the developing world.
Human Appeal International (see profile) This Muslim charity works both on disaster relief and long-term development projects. It doesn't seem to evangelize and it states that it aims to “improve the quality of life of underprivileged communities through education, health and social development.”

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Send-a-Gimmick
A few years back some charities came up with a novel fundraising technique. Instead of just giving money you could choose what your money was spent on. This idea has caught on, and today you can buy a plethora of things from charities, from a cow to an emu, from a radio to an entire classroom. Check out our selection of the most common options.

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SHORT-TERM RELIEF

When a major disaster occurs if you want to help but don’t know how, your best bet is to donate to the DEC (see profile). This umbrella body coordinates appeals for 13 British charities when disasters such as the 2004 Asian tsunami or the 2005 Pakistan earthquake strike. The DEC collects and distributes your money to the charities – selected to cover a wide range of expertise - saving considerable money on fundraising and getting the charities the cash they need to help out rapidly. But be aware that you can only donate to them after they've launched an appeal. Also have a look at our description of health charities, above.

Ockenden International (see profile) This highly regarded international relief agency works with refugees, helping them to restart their lives and retrain for new jobs. It focuses on consulting with locals and adapts its techniques on the ground accordingly.
RedR - IHE (see profile) This impressive organization keeps a list of engineers and other professionals who are willing to be sent out to disaster-struck areas. Once on the ground they set about rebuilding vital infrastructure (bridges, roads, and so on) that are critical in getting the other relief organizations into the affected areas.
British Red Cross (see profile) Part of a truly international organisation, the Red Cross provides emergency relief in the UK and abroad as well as a plethora of other services. Perhaps its most famous work is providing relief and assistance in war zones.

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