Christian Aid is the official relief and development agency of 41 British and Irish churches, and works to support sustainable development, stop poverty, support civil society and provide disaster relief in South America, the Caribbean, Africa and Asia (Including the Middle East).
Christian Aid uses the statement "We believe in life before death", often alongside the Christian Aid logo. One of its other messages is "Poverty Over", represented by the word "Over" highlighted within the word "Poverty". It works with 570 local partner organisations in 45 countries. It is a major member of the Stop Climate Chaos, The Fairtrade Foundation and Trade Justice Movement campaigns. Christian Aid's headquarters are in London and it has regional teams across the UK and Ireland. Christian Aid also organises the UK's largest door-to-door collection, Christian Aid Week, which takes place in May each year.
Its director is Loretta Minghella who was appointed in 2010. The 2012-2013 income of Christian Aid was £95.4 million.
Video Christian Aid
Development projects
Reconstruction after various wars in Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia were major projects, alongside the aid given after the overthrow of dictators Idi Amin in Uganda, Somoza family in Nicaragua, and Pol Pot in Cambodia. Yanomami Indians in Brazil were also supported, in a commitment to marginalized peoples.
Maps Christian Aid
Fundraising
Christian Aid raises income from a wide number of sources, such as institutional grants, regular gifts, Christian Aid Week campaign, general donations, legacies, and emergency appeals. In 2013, the institutional income, part of which comes from the Department for International Development and the European Commission, constituted 41% of the total income. A significant percentage of the remaining income comes from thousands of individuals in churches and communities. The main fundraising moments include Christmas, Lent, Easter, Harvest, and Christian Aid Week. In 2013, £12.6 million (or 13% of the total income) were raised during this week. Throughout the year supporters give regularly using direct debit, cash donations, and Will Aid. Churches and community groups also take part in the annual calendar of events (e.g., walks, soup lunches, and quizzes).
Criticism
Canadian professor Peter Hallward, in his book Damming the Flood, accused Christian Aid of supporting US led violent regime change in Haiti in 2004.
The development economist Paul Collier in his book The Bottom Billion suggests that Christian Aid "deeply misinformed" the UK electorate in 2004 and 2005 with a campaign against reducing trade barriers in Africa based on a "deeply misleading" study conducted by an economist without the requisite expertise and whose purported review "by a panel of academic experts" who were two people chosen by said economist who were also "not noted for their expertise on international trade". He quotes an unnamed official at the British Department of Trade and Industry as saying "they know it's crap, but it sells the T-shirts".
Several of the Britain's leading foreign aid charities, including Christian Aid, British Red Cross, Save the Children, and Oxfam, have been criticized for paying excessive salaries to some of their managers. In 2013, Christian Aid's CEO was paid £126,206 and four other staff members were paid between £80,000 and £90,000. Christian Aid's response to this is: "We want to reassure you that we make every effort to avoid paying higher salaries than are necessary. We pay our staff salaries the same as, or below, the median of other church-based and/or international development agencies."
The organization faced criticism from Israeli academic Gerald M. Steinberg in 2005. He wrote for The Jewish News that several of Christian Aid's campaigns, such as a Christmas appeal called 'Child of Bethlehem' focusing on an injured seven-year-old Palestinian child, unfairly presented the complex Israeli-Palestinian conflict through a religiously-charged, exclusionary Christian lens. He argued, "Victims of the bitter Arab-Israeli conflict are found on both sides... [y]et Christian Aid... chooses consistently to emphasize only one side".
See also
- Stop Climate Chaos
- 'Trade Justice' campaigns
References
External links
- Christian Aid official web site
- Surefish, Christian community and ethical living
- Present Aid, Ethical gifts
Source of article : Wikipedia
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