Charity shop

Christian Aid is a member of the ACT Alliance (Action by Churches Together), the worldwide ecumenical network for emergency relief.

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Belfast

96 Beechill Road, Belfast, BT8 7QN

Tel: 028 9064 8133

Email: belfast@christian-aid.org

Dublin

19-21 Denzille Lane, Dublin 2, D02 WT72

Tel: 01 496 7040

Email: dublin@christian-aid.org

Cork Hill View, Bandon, County Cork

Email: cork@christian-aid.org

NI Company no: NI059154

NI Charity Commission no: NIC101631

ROI Company no: 426928

ROI Charities Regulatory no: 20014162

Editor: Lisa Fagan

Contributors: Katie Cox, Ross Fitzpatrick and Dave Thomas

Cover image: Esther Saizi in Malawi.

Full story on pages 8-9.

Credit: Adam Haggerty/Christian Aid

None of us can forget

February’s devastating earthquakes in Turkey and Syria, and the truly heartbreaking scenes of misery and desperation. I was most affected by the image of the bereaved father, Mesut Hancer, who sat amid the rubble of a collapsed building, holding the hand of his deceased daughter, aged just 15.

But even in situations of unimaginable anguish, your love brings hope. In north-west Syria, where we have been working for 12 years, your donations enabled us to provide mattresses, blankets and heating materials to thousands of people made homeless amid freezing temperatures. You can read more about our earthquake response on page 5.

And as we marked the first anniversary of the Ukraine war, we want to thank you for the incredible generosity you have shown towards those whose lives have been torn apart by the conflict – the millions forced to flee and those left behind to face the onslaught and privations of life in a war zone. On page 7 we go into more detail.

The effects of the Ukraine war have been felt thousands of miles away in Africa where food and fuel prices have soared, bringing hunger and hardship especially in the Horn of Africa where severe drought has devastated harvests. On page 4, we share the story of a widowed mother of five in Kenya who received cash support from Christian Aid’s local partner to enable her to buy food for her family.

The situation in Afghanistan remains deeply troubling. Late last year, the Taliban edict preventing female aid workers from delivering humanitarian relief forced several agencies, including Christian Aid, to pause their programmes across the country. The ban added to the misery of a severe economic crisis, widespread food shortages and Kabul’s coldest winter in a decade, and is an especially cruel blow to women and girls because much of our relief is provided to pregnant women, new mums and their children. Thankfully our partner organisations have restarted their Christian Aidfunded life-saving aid response in areas where it was possible to get agreement from the local government that female NGO staff can take part in humanitarian work when accompanied by a male family member.

Almighty God, even as we struggle to understand, we trust that you are close to those in need.

Comfort those in pain, strengthen those who care for others, and show us how we can stand alongside them, as we seek to bring your love to a suffering world.

In Jesus’ name, Amen a Christian Aid-supported pigeon pea cooperative, Esther has been able to boost her income and is now supporting her daughters’ dreams. I was lucky enough to visit this project in 2014 and I’m delighted to see the impact it’s having on the lives of Esther and her family.

We have a struggle ahead to build a world in which everyone can thrive but we are buoyed up by the success we have achieved already. We are incredibly grateful to the congregations, communities and individuals who are bringing hope to the poor and working for justice. Your prayers, your activism and your generosity are truly transforming lives.

God bless.

There is better news on pages 8-9 where we tell the story of Esther, a widowed grandmother in Malawi. Since joining

Rosamond Bennett Chief Executive Christian Aid Ireland