Origin from 1984
An international humanitarian and development charity founded in Birmingham, England in 1984 by students including Hany El-Banna, working across emergency relief, healthcare, water and sanitation, education and orphan sponsorship on an Islamic basis of charitable giving, including zakat and qurbani programmes. Islamic Relief Worldwide is the umbrella body over a federation of national Islamic Relief affiliates (including Islamic Relief USA, UK and Canada) and is registered as a charity in England and Wales, publishing independently audited annual accounts.
Facts
Finances
Institutional Wealth or FinancesThe Charity Commission for England and Wales' public register for Islamic Relief Worldwide (charity number 328158) records total gross income of about 275.6 million pounds sterling against total expenditure of about 303.8 million pounds sterling for the financial year ended 31 December 2024, a shortfall of roughly 28.2 million pounds. The organization's own published annual report for the prior year described 2023 as a record income year, at about 274.6 million pounds, a 17 percent increase on 2022. 2 Basis of the Wealth Figure Financial Disclosure RegimeIslamic Relief Worldwide is registered with the Charity Commission for England and Wales as charity number 328158 and, as a charity above the statutory reporting threshold, is required to file audited annual accounts and an annual return with the regulator every year, both made public through the Commission's online register. The organization also publishes its own annual report on its own website. 2 Wealth Figure As Of Year Status
Current StatusSourced to the subject's own accountInternational headquarters remain in Birmingham, with a network of national offices, affiliated partners and country offices spread across more than 40 countries. 1 Humanitarian Aid Operated
Welfare and Humanitarian Aid OperationsIslamic Relief Worldwide's audited Annual Report and Financial Statements 2024 states that the charity delivered lifesaving and life-changing aid to more than 14.5 million people across 38 countries during 2024, its biggest programmes by people supported being in Yemen, Syria, Pakistan, Somalia, Sudan, Bangladesh, Ethiopia, Afghanistan, the Occupied Palestinian Territory and Mali. Income for the year was 275.6 million pounds sterling and expenditure 303.8 million pounds sterling, both the charity's highest ever. 3 Humanitarian Aid Figure As Of Basis of the Humanitarian Aid Figure Origins
Origin PeriodSourced to the subject's own account FounderSourced to the subject's own accountFounded in Birmingham, England, in 1984 by medical student Hany El-Banna and fellow young Muslim volunteers, in response to famine in East Africa, after raising an initial 135,000 pounds through mosque collections. 1 FoundedSourced to the subject's own accountIts first year funded three projects, two chicken farms and a shipment of biscuits and vitamins in Sudan and a shipment of wheat flour to Mauritania; the founders hired their first office in a Birmingham community centre in 1985. 1 Organisation
Governing BodySourced to the subject's own accountRegistered with the Charity Commission of England and Wales since 1989; Hany El-Banna served as its first president, and the charity is led today by CEO Iftikhar Shaheen and Chair of Trustees Haroun Atallah. 1 Learn More
Hany El-Banna's Founding and Its First Projects
This article records tradition as it has been passed down and reported. Its sources are not yet part of the atlas's verified catalogue.
Islamic Relief Worldwide is an international humanitarian and development charity founded in Birmingham, England, in 1984 by medical student Hany El-Banna and fellow young Muslim volunteers, in response to famine in East Africa, after raising an initial 135,000 pounds through mosque collections held across the city. Its first year funded three projects, two chicken farms and a shipment of biscuits and vitamins in Sudan and a shipment of wheat flour to Mauritania, and the founders hired their first office in a Birmingham community centre in 1985, registering with the Charity Commission of England and Wales in 1989.
Islamic Relief Worldwide is the umbrella body over a federation of national affiliates, including Islamic Relief USA, UK and Canada, working across emergency relief, healthcare, water and sanitation, education and orphan sponsorship on an Islamic basis of charitable giving, including zakat and qurbani programmes. Hany El-Banna served as its first president; the charity is led today by CEO Iftikhar Shaheen and Chair of Trustees Haroun Atallah, decades after those first mosque collections funded three small projects.
14.5 Million People Reached in a Single Audited Year
This article records tradition as it has been passed down and reported. Its sources are not yet part of the atlas's verified catalogue.
Islamic Relief Worldwide's international headquarters remain in Birmingham, England, with a network of national offices, affiliated partners and country offices spread today across more than 40 countries worldwide. It is registered with the Charity Commission for England and Wales as charity number 328158 and, as a charity above the statutory reporting threshold, is required to file audited annual accounts and an annual return with the regulator every year, both made public through the Commission's online register, alongside its own separately published annual report.
The charity's audited Annual Report and Financial Statements 2024 states that it delivered lifesaving and life-changing aid to more than 14.5 million people across 38 countries during 2024, its biggest programmes by people supported being in Yemen, Syria, Pakistan, Somalia, Sudan, Bangladesh, Ethiopia, Afghanistan, the Occupied Palestinian Territory and Mali. Income for the year was 275.6 million pounds sterling and expenditure 303.8 million pounds sterling, both figures the charity's highest ever recorded in a single year of operation.
Cross-Tradition Connections
Associated With
This source names Canada directly: "(including Islamic Relief USA, UK and Canada) and is registered as a charity in England and Wales, publishing independently audited annual accounts."
This source names Islamic Relief Worldwide directly: "and Wales' public register entry for Islamic Relief Worldwide (charity number 328158), recording total gross income of about 275.6 million pounds sterling against total expenditure of about 303.8..."
Belongs to Tradition
An international humanitarian and development charity working on an Islamic basis of charitable giving, including zakat and qurbani programmes, per the charity's own description.
Sources
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