Resources

This essay examines local and international Christian efforts on Mount Kilimanjaro to educate children. A prevailing idea among people who live on the mountain is that children engender trust and trade. This idea is illuminated through the adage 'Take the…

This paper addresses the operations of faith-based humanitarian organizations and their rationale for the measures taken for education provision for the non-camp Syrian children in Turkey. In unveiling the role of the Islamic humanitarian sector in exercising education facilities for…

Religion is a powerful force in southern Africa, affecting all aspects of daily life and health (Anderson 2001, Chitando 2007a), particularly among rural women (Agadjanian 2005). Rural churches are a center for informal social interaction, shaping attitudes and behaviors of…

There is a growing interest within academic and policy circles surrounding the roles played by local faith communities (LFCs) and faith based organisations (FBOs) in responding to displacement.i This trend contrasts with some of the significant negative and secular assumptions…

The Partnership Note sets out broad guidance for UNHCR staff to engage with, reach out to, and partner with faith actors in the context of forced displacement. It describes UNHCR’s understanding of the range of faith actors and the role they play in humanitarian responses. The Note also flags the challenges of partnership and highlights instances where we would not normally engage owing to humanitarian and human rights considerations. More importantly, it contains examples of good practice and lessons learned from existing partnerships in the field and highlights principles that are a point of departure for dialogue and cooperation with faith actors and communities, while setting out actions and activities to put these principles into practice. The Partnership Note may be used as point of departure for conversations on many issues between UNHCR and faith actors. It can also help guide you, as partners, to establish dialogue across faiths and with a range of humanitarian actors.

These Guidelines provide a critical framework for engagement with faith‐based organisations (FBOs). They are not a blue‐print. Like all similar guidelines, these are provided with the pragmatism that each UNFPA Country and Regional Office will consider them in light of the specific political, social, cultural and economic circumstances.

Accounts of humanitarianism regularly address the historical influence of religious traditions and commitments in shaping our understanding of this field. Whether focused on ancient writings regarding obligations to others, the religious views and backgrounds of key humanitarian figures of the…

The Code of Best Practices for Christian Refugee Ministry is designed as a benchmark document to guide the policies and practice of organisations regarding Christian humanitarian service and witness to refugees, internally displaced people and asylum seekers. It is not…

Report developed by the International NGO Council on Violence against Children on harmful practices. Includes information on harmful practices based on religion and concrete recommendations to religious leaders, faith based institutions, etc.

For more than 15 years “Fundacion Una Brisa de Esperanza” (Breeze of Hope Foundation) has been using an innovative approach for comprehensive management for children victims of sexual violence. This document of the case study does not use religious language…

Developing Effective Partnerships Between Faith and Secular Actors to Challenge Discriminatory Gender Norms and Secure Rural Women’s Rights Co-hosted by: Permanent Mission of Denmark to the UN in New York, the ACT Alliance, DanChuchAid and UNFPA in partnership with Christian Aid,…

Brief from Musawah: a global movement for equality and justice in the Muslim family, which advances human rights for women in Muslim contexts, in both their public and private lives. Also see more information on Musawah's course on Islam & Gender Equality…

Overview of Ethiopian Faith-Based Organizations’ response for the abandonment of Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) and Child Early Forced Marriage (CEFM) from 2010-2016. This report provides a baseline to engaging FBOs for future programming and provides evidence on how FBOs have…

HIV services provided in the country of Kenya and the percentage of those services provided by the faith-based sector.  This work was carried out as part of a Joint Initiative between the U.S President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) and the…

Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Palais des Nations CH-1211 Geneva 10 Switzerland Email: [email protected]  Internet: www.ohchr.org/EN/Issues/FreedomReligion/Pages/FaithForRights.aspx In March 2017, the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) launched its initiative on “Faith…

The first Inter-agency Consultation on FBO Engagement took place at UNFPA headquarters on Wednesday, 9 July 2008. The meeting comprised representatives from various United Nations agencies that have some experience and insight regarding programmatic engagement with faith-based organizations (FBOs). For…

This report provides an overview of the engagement with faith-based actors and faith-related activities by the members of the United Nations Inter-Agency Task Force on Engaging Faith-Based Actors for Sustainable Development (short: UN Task Force on Religion and Development or…

“Churches’ Commitments to Children” is an open invitation to the WCC member churches and partners to address the needs of children as an integral part of the ecumenical commitment to the pilgrimage of justice and peace. The present document has…

The Capacity for Interreligious Community Action program (CIRCA) was a three-year capacity-building program financed by GHR Foundation and supplemented by Catholic Relief Services (CRS). The overarching goal of the program was to contribute to human development and more peaceful coexistence…

In its seventh annual iteration, the United Nations Strategic Learning Exchange (SLE) to Develop Literacy Around Religion and Development expanded the collective literacy and understanding of UN system entities and some of their governmental counterparts, in their work with faith-based…

Salvation Army International Magazine Salvation Army Website [embed]https://issuu.com/salvationarmyihq/docs/atw-oct_2017-web[/embed]

Although faith based organizations (FBOs) have had a long presence teaching health personnel and delivering health services to many rural and remote populations in the developing world, their poor visibility for this work can be due to several factors. FBOs…

This case study will briefly examine MERATH’s localized approach, including a spotlight on child-focused programming in education in emergencies in Lebanon and child protection in Syria, providing quantitative and qualitative evidence of its community-level impact based on focus group discussions,…

This discussion guide and toolkit provides ideas and approaches to enable you to think through your research partnerships; to encourage you to critically engage with issues such as the roles different actors play in partnership; and what types of evidence…

LWR outlined its institutional Approach to Resilience in a technical document produced in 2015 (see below). Building on the foundations laid out in LWR’s approach, part II goes one step further: It provides the basis to apply resilience thinking in…

The changing nature of armed conflict over the past century has seen an increasing impact on civilians. It is estimated in most current conflicts that up to 80% of those affected by displacement, injury and death are women and children.…

The current crisis in CAR began in December 2012, when the northern-based Muslim Séléka forces overthrew the government, forcing then-president François Bozizé to flee the country. This led to the formation of Christian self-defense militia groups, the Anti-Balaka. Since then…

The harm suffered by refugee children is not limited only to traumatic experiences suffered while in South Sudan or in transit to Uganda but is also especially prevalent in the new settlements, where usual child protection systems and coping mechanisms…

Studies in Muslim-Christian Cooperation This publication presents case studies on interreligious action, highlighting specific approaches and tools that CRS staff members created and the networks they helped forge. They address shortcomings as well as successes and delineate lessons garnered from everyday experience. They…

In South Kivu in the Eastern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), various church actors have chosen to involve in advocacy and mobilization through a formalized civil society structure known as La Société Civile (LSC). In this article,…

The purpose of this study is to assess the barriers and enablers to community acceptance and implementation of safe burials in Sierra Leone. The Ebola virus continued to spread in Sierra Leone partly because communities were initially resistant to Burial…

102 UNICEF offices provided information about their extensive work with faith communities over recent years. Partnerships included sensitization activities, capacity development, and support for advocacy and social mobilization. The mapping report concludes: “With evidence of UNICEF’s extensive engagement with religious communities in plain view, UNICEF must now turn its attention to maximizing the benefits of its partnerships with these critical actors”

Presentation by Dr Jeff Haynes Centre for the Study of Religion, Conflict and Cooperation, London Metropolitan University, UK at the Third Annual Symposium: The Role of Religion and Faith-Based Organizations in International Affairs in NY. Focus: How do FBOs affect…

Channels of Hope research findings presentation- Building the evidence base on the role of local faith leaders to critical issues to enhance outcomes towards SDGs *Presentation for Dec 2016 Mobilization of Local Faith Communities Hub meeting Christo Greyling

The sharpening focus on global health and the growing recognition of the capacities and scope of faith-based groups for improving community health outcomes suggest an intentional and systematic approach to forging strong, sustained partnerships between public sector agencies and faith-based…

This publication is Catholic Relief Services (CRS) training guide on partnership and capacity strengthening. The organization has a rich history of working productively with local organizations, including both Church and non-Church partners. The CRS Partnership and Capacity Strengthening Unit seeks to support Country…

Road Map to Resilient Communities: Church Agencies Network, Disaster Operations.

“Sustained Relational Collaborations”. Rev Bob Mitchell's words on behalf of the Church Agencies Network.

Matthew Frost delivers opening remarks of the Religious & Faith-based Communities Perspectives Panel. To watch the video, please click the following link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iRaCrT3dnJY

Report on the role of religion and development. Download the resource from the download link

A strategic review of Oxfam's work in Haiti between 2011 and 2014. To download this and other Oxfam resources, click here: https://www.oxfamamerica.org/explore/research-publications/

Religious approaches have special significance for health issues facing Guatemala, and religious institutions play vital, but often piecemeal, roles in healthcare. Religious health missions fill important gaps, but can undermine local capacity. This brief seeks to assess healthcare in Guatemala…

The African Christian Health Association (ACHA) family planning programme sought to utilize faith communities to improve contraceptive uptake. The program was in part implemented by increasing information, education, and communication on family planning to religious leaders and by them. This program aimed to create a replicable model for strengthening family planning within Christian Health Association’s (CHA’s) in other sub-Saharan countries.

A simple monthly tool was developed to be used by religious leaders for reporting, and a guide for messaging was developed to be used by religious leaders. In each country, the Ministry of Health (MOH) community referral forms and the MOH family planning cards and registers were used to collect data on referral and uptake of family planning services.

Tags:Capacity Building

WACC facilitates a Development Initiative Programme under which project partners in countries of the global South carry out one-year-long initiatives that place communication (including traditional media and digital technologies) at the centre of strategies to bring about social change.

Tags: Capacity Building, Data Collection by Local Community

Faith leaders, as trusted and respected members of their community, have played a hugely significant, and often unsung, role in the Ebola crisis. In the midst of confusion, fear and panic, communities have often turned to them for guidance. They…

In December 2013, representatives from 12 faith-based organisations came together to explore and articulate a theory of change for faith group and community mobilisation. The process examined assumptions about what success looks like and how we contribute to change; and specifically analyzed the role of faith, drawing on any existing evidence base. A small working group then met together in July 2014 to draw together the theory of change. Throughout the process, the group was careful to surface both similarities and differences. The theory of change diagram captures the core underlying beliefs that the group hold in common, while the narrative explains the diagram, fills in more detail and highlights areas of debate and that need further learning and testing.

World Vision’s HIV and AIDS response strategy focuses on building the capacity of communities to prevent the spread of HIV and on providing care and advocacy for people living with HIV and for orphans and vulnerable children (OVC). The Channels of Hope (CoH) methodology, one of World Vision’s three core HIV and AIDS response models, is used to mobilise the infrastructure, organisational capacity, pool of current and potential volunteers, and unmatched moral authority of local churches and faith communities towards positive action on HIV and AIDS. Once they have been mobilised, World Vision works with churches and faith-based organisations to co-ordinate and equip sustainable, community-based HIV and AIDS programmes with an emphasis on reaching OVCs in need of care and support.

In the communities where WV works, many serious issues often limit improved child well-being (CWB). These might include violence against children, poor birth spacing, gender inequality, early marriage, wife inheritance, malnutrition, early marriage, gender-based violence, HIV infections, TB and malaria, trafficking, and more.

The central argument in the paper is that development is primarily about safeguarding and enhancing the dignity of human beings. Human dignity originates from God who has singled out humankind from other creations and favoured it in several ways. We are the only creatures that contain the Divine spirit which was placed in humankind by God during creation (Qur’an, 15:29). God has also distinguished humans from the rest of creation by endowing us with intellect (‘aql). Further, God has given humans the custodianship (khalifa) of the rest of creation on earth.

The success of integrated sustainable development (ISD) entirely rests upon a firm foundation of sound analysis of the following: Start-up assessment, Well-being and assets, Structural causes of poverty, Vulnerabilities to shocks and climate change, Opportunity analysis.

Global disparities in maternal and newborn health represent one of the starkest health inequities
of our times. Faith-based organizations (FBOs) have historically played an important role in providing
maternal/newborn health services in African countries. However, the contribution of FBOs in service delivery
is insufficiently recognized and mapped.

Description of the Featured Member, World Vision, and their program, Channels of Hope.

World Conference of Religions for Peace (WCRP) in collaboration with UNICEF carried out a study to survey what religious groups are doing to meet the needs of orphans and vulnerable children (OVC) and to develop an improved and detailed understanding…

These Guidelines provide a critical framework for engagement with faith‐based organisations (FBOs). They are not a blue‐print. Like all similar guidelines, these are provided with the pragmatism that each UNFPA Country and Regional Office will consider them in light of…