Kosovo is one of the poorest countries in Europe, as the World Bank places the population in Kosovo at poverty rates of about 80%. The Kosovo Agency of Statistics reported 29.7% (540,000 citizens, or 100,000 families) of its population of 1.8 million are considered poor. Most people depending on assistance (such as widows and orphans) live in rural areas.

Years of inter-ethnic violence have severely impeded the welfare of Kosovo’s people. Nearly 1 million people fled Kosovo when war broke out in 1996. When these refugees returned, they found their homes, schools, and livelihoods destroyed. Since then, significant progress has been made to repair the devastating damage caused by war, but the people of Kosovo continue to suffer from severe lingering poverty.

With all this considered, one thing remains clear: The people of Kosovo are resilient and, with the support of donors like you, families in need there can access opportunities to break the chains of poverty and move toward success.

As much as we’ve been able to accomplish, there is still so much more to do. If we work together—with YOU—we can make the vision of a better Kosovo a reality for so many more of our sisters and brothers in need.

$100 can provide food aid for a family 

$225 can provide vital relief to emergency survivors

$500 can implement livelihood programs to set up women-led households for success

$1,000 can help build innovative water and sanitation facilities

In recent years, Islamic Relief USA has provided winter aid and livelihood support to communities in need throughout Kosovo. Winter projects have been solely focused on providing much-needed aid to orphans and their families in the form of food, blankets, firewood, and wood stoves. IRUSA’s livelihood projects center on facilitating farming opportunities to ensure sustainable futures for many.

Here’s just a sampling of our recent work across Kosovo:

• Implementing livelihood programs for rural communities
• Delivering urgent aid to help those vulnerable to harsh weather
• Providing essential foods to help families suffering from hunger

When you make the decision to help fundraise for the effort, you go beyond just thoughts and prayers. This increased IMPACT is priceless, because it means we’re able to meet more needs of those who are waiting for us to lend a helping hand.

And if you're reading this message, it's because you want to go beyond the call the duty. For you, it's not enough to just keep those children in your thoughts and prayer.  You want to double your impact by helping to sponsor these emergency efforts and helping deliver aid to those affected by creating a fundraising page. Get started by creating your page today!

We’re so glad you came. Just scroll to the top of the page and click "become a fundraiser" to setup your page and start promoting to your network via e-mail, social media, and your preferred messaging app. Even with a goal as small as $50, you can provide urgent food aid for families.