Oxfam's work in Iraq in depth

In Iraq, Oxfam's focus is on helping widows to access welfare support and legal aid, protecting women from domestic violence and working with civil society organisations to build a fairer social service system for all.

The context

Years of armed conflict, chronic insecurity and the effects of sanctions have left Iraq and its people in a fragile state.  Al Anbar province, where Oxfam works in western Iraq, is one of the areas worst hit by lawlessness and violence. Due to the difficulty of working in such an insecure and uncertain environment, our work in Iraq is carried out through our partner organisations working in the country.

How Oxfam is helping

Oxfam and its partners began working in Iraq in 1990 to assist people affected by conflict, and later in response to the humanitarian crisis of the 2003 war.

After surviving decades of protracted conflict, Iraq is struggling to rebuild a prosperous society – ongoing violence, dwindling infrastructure, declining essential services and widespread corruption continue to hamper efforts to unite this fragmented country.  For many vulnerable groups, particularly women, the burden of war has left a generation of Iraqi widows and families torn apart by conflict, and without proper access to basic services. That’s why, Oxfam and its partners are working closely with female widows to access social welfare support and make their voices heard amidst the chaos of conflict.

Supporting Iraqi widows

Many women are struggling to make ends meet – according to UNDP records, 80% of women widowed by conflict are now acting as the head of their household, and have been driven deep into poverty.  However, many widows face barriers to accessing welfare support due to missing legal documents and the knowledge on how to replace them as well as the absence of free legal assistance. A study by Oxfam ‘In Her Own Words’ found that 76% of widows said they did not receive a pension from the government.

Since August 2010, with funding from the Swiss Agency for Development and Co-operation (SDC) and Arab Gulf Programme for Development (AGFUND), we have been working with vulnerable widows to ensure that they have access to welfare support.  Over the next three years, at least 2,500 widows in Iraq will receive access to financial assistance. At a local level we’re helping women to both apply for and provide legal documents, and raising awareness amongst 9,000 widows who are not aware of their rights or entitlement to welfare assistance.

We’re also supporting civil society organisations to amplify the voices of marginalised widows at government level, and ensure that a fair and efficient social welfare system becomes a right for all. Together with our partners we’re organising mass media campaigns to help raise awareness of widows’ rights to social protection. Alongside this, we’re supporting our partners to better deliver on advocacy, campaigning and monitoring work.

Working with men and boys to end violence against women

Our partners and alliances the Iraqi Society Organisation, the Iraqi Youth Model Organisation, Women of Peace and Iraq Heath Aid are working closely with Oxfam’s partners in Lebanon and neighbouring Arab countries to help change attitudes amongst men towards domestic violence. According to a report released in November 2010 by the International Association of Universities (IAU) on Violence Against Women in Iraq, 22% of Iraqi women aged 15-49 have been affected by domestic violence.

Legal protection

Our partner Asuda will be working with local organisations to ensure that the legal system protects the rights of vulnerable women. This project will help raise awareness about legal rights and providing legal aid.

 

Last updated: May 2011