Zambia: Angela Chiyala, 38, Vice Chairperson of a Farmer Field School in Namwala, Southern Province, Zambia stands near the solar-powered water tank that supplies water to the farmer field school garden. Photo: Loliwe Phiri/Oxfam
Long-term development
At Oxfam, we believe in a future without poverty. That’s why our programs work to create solutions to poverty that last, now and into the future.
Lao People's Democratic Republic: Long raises chickens and ducks, with help from Oxfam's livelihoods programme. The eggs she gets from her hens help her earn extra income and feed her children. Photo: Rachel Schaevitz/Oxfam.
OUR APPROACH
Ending poverty in the future starts in the present
To tackle the inequalities that keep people in poverty, we need to lay the groundwork for a better future today.
Poverty is about more than an individual’s financial situation. It exists because the world we live in doesn’t treat everyone equally.
Every day, people experience discrimination, exclusion and injustice that excludes them from earning a decent wage, having a voice in their communities, getting an education or meeting their basic needs for food, shelter and healthcare. This discrimination can be on the basis of gender, race, religion, sexuality and gender identity, to name a few.
The systems that our society is built on are designed to benefit a small few at the expense of the many. Whether it’s unfair tax systems, climate policy that favours polluters or corporations denying their workers a living wage, these systems amass wealth at the top and fuel poverty for everyone else.
HOW WE WORK
Our partners lead the way
By addressing poverty without tackling the systems that fuels it, we’d be setting ourselves up for that cycle to repeat as soon as our projects are done.
That’s why Oxfam is unique. We work alongside local partners to understand the challenges facing the communities we work with and to develop projects that will create lasting change and global development for generations to come.
We delve deep to understand why a person or community are experiencing poverty and the underlying inequality. This can look like helping communities adopt more climate-resilient farming practices, running LGBTQIA+ inclusion workshops, supporting women to lead or connecting First Peoples with politicians to create change.
Whatever the project, our aim is always to work with communities to tackle the root causes of poverty so that when we step back, communities continue to thrive.
WATCH THE VIDEO
The power of long-term development
Fresh water is scarce in the Sundarbans area of Bangladesh. Years of cyclones and other climate-induced disasters have increased the level of salinity in the water, making it unsafe and causing severe health issues.
In partnership with Breaking the Silence and Cord Aid, Oxfam's Blue Economy and Inclusive Development for Climate Justice program (BID4CJ) is supporting coastal communities in eco-system restoration, disaster readiness and adaptation, as well as pond excavation to bring fresh water to communities.
Oxfam acknowledges the support of the Australian Government through the Australian NGO Cooperation Program (ANCP).
How you can help
Join Oxfam today and help communities all over the world live free from poverty.
