The Orphan Sponsorship Program is a lifeline for families in Gaza. It supports them with a monthly stipend paid directly into their accounts. This enables families to buy the items they need most when they are available.  

In response to the ongoing crisis in Gaza, Islamic Relief have massively expanded the program. Prior to October 2023, our family supported 7,200 children in Gaza through orphan sponsorship.  

Now, thanks to our generous supporters, more than 21,000 are receiving desperately-needed support.  

But, with the still unpredicable situation in Gaza, many more children need help. Currently, over 7,300 children registered on our system are in urgent need of sponsorship.   

Gaza’s children face unimaginable hardship 

Gaza is one of the most dangerous places in the world to be a child, especially for an orphan. 

More than 67,000 people have been killed in Gaza and thousands more injured since October 2023. It’s a devastation that has left tens of thousands of children without one or both of their parents.  

Every day, for two years, orphaned children and their remaining family members in Gaza face starvation, water scarcity and displacement. Many now live in overcrowded shelters or makeshift tents, which do not protect them from the harsh weather.  

They are living through trauma that most people can barely imagine. The impact of the crisis on their long term physical and mental health is devastating and, in some cases, irreversible. 

Amid so much suffering, we ask, how will our donation make a difference? 

The answer is: a lot.  

Why Sponsor an Orphan 

Since 1998, Islamic Relief has been supporting orphaned children in Gaza. In turn, because of the unpredicable nature of Gaza’s situation, sponsorship is one of the few reliable and sustainable ways donors can help. 

The prices of basic goods have skyrocketed and livelihoods have been destroyed. Orphans and their families are increasingly reliant on support from humanitarian organisations to survive. 

This includes through initiatives such as Islamic Relief’s Orphan Sponsorship Program. In our program, donors are matched with orphaned children in need of support. The families looking after the orphan then receive a monthly stipend, where they have the flexibility to use funds to buy what they most need, when available. 

Orphan Sponsorship Program donors can support vulnerable children in Gaza in three ways. Through a one-to-one sponsorship, sponsor multiple children from the same family, or donating to the General Orphans Fund.  

What is a one-to-one-sponsorship?  

A one-to-one sponsorship is where a donor sponsors the needs of a single child. The orphan child receives the donation in the form of a monthly stipend entrusted to their guardian. 

We use electronic cash transfers to put money directly into the accounts of families, making funds available to allow them to circumvent the cash crisis.  

Prior to the current crisis, the stipends were limited to covering health and education expenses. But we now give the money on an unconditional basis, meaning families can use it to buy what they most need when it is available. 

Through the payment system, families are notified that payments have been made to their e-Wallets, which they are able to use to withdraw money from functioning supermarket.  

The system allows Islamic Relief to see which families have redeemed their codes, and has become a helpful tool in checking in on the welfare of families enrolled in the program. 

Donors will also receive updates on the child they’ve sponsored. It is our aim to provide annual updates, but the situation on the ground has meant that there can be delays in gathering this information and sharing it with donors. 

What is multiple child sponsorship?  

The ongoing bombardment of Gaza has tragically often orphaned multiple children within the same family. Many of our donors have expressed their kind wish to sponsor more than one child from the same family, which we have now made possible.  

 Multiple child sponsorship allows donors to do more to alleviate the suffering of one family by supporting up to 3 children.  

 Multiple child sponsorship fundamentally operates in the same way one-to-one sponsorship does.   

Donors are matched with orphaned children from the same family who are in need of support. The family then receives the donation in the form of a monthly stipend.  

We also provide donors with regular updates on the children and families they sponsor, but due to the situation on the ground we often experience delays in gathering this information and sharing it with donors. 

How many orphans in Gaza need sponsors? 

More than 7,300 orphaned children are in our system, waiting to be matched with sponsors. With a tentative ceasefire and blockade that could return at any moment, it’s very possible that the number of orphans in Gaza will continue to rise. 

Islamic Relief has been working tirelessly to upscale our Orphan Sponsorship Program to reach as many children as we possibly can. With your donations, we can reach even more orphans and their families with much needed support.