Imam Sadr Foundation Lebanon

For nearly half a century, the Imam Sadr Foundation has worked to improve the lives of tens of thousands of men and women throughout Lebanon. Whether in providing easily accessible health services for families assailed by the fallout of war, empowering women and orphans through occupational training programs and educational facilities, or creating strategic partnerships with political and social development organizations, Imam Sadr Foundation remains dedicated to its original aspirations. As Imam Sadr once said, “Lebanon is our country. It is a country which considers Man to be the first and last asset, and that he should be adequately maintained.”

Inspired by the developmental and humanitarian vision of Imam As-Sadr, the Imam Sadr Foundation aspires to be a leader in the empowerment of Lebanese women and in guaranteeing the basic and social rights of the vulnerable by delivering services to those most in need, in innovative and advanced ways.

The Imam Sadr Foundation is a non-governmental, non-profit organization launched in the early 1960s. It strives in its interventions towards a just society, free from ignorance, poverty, and illness, where everyone enjoys equal access, where the contributions of the capable respond to the needs and aspirations of the disadvantaged in a climate of dialogue based on participation and confidence in oneself and in others. The foundation is characterized by its social, cultural, and health interventions in the underserved areas of southern Lebanon and its delivery of services to remote areas through a network of permanent health and social care centers and mobile clinics. The foundation’s response has proved to be highly effective in times of crisis.

The foundation strives through its local, regional, and international relations to share and deepen its knowledge and to foster discussion on the issues of relief and development in Lebanon. Therefore, it has successfully acquired the status of special consultant to the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) in a bid to raise its effectiveness and impact at both the local and international levels. The foundation is especially keen on promoting and strengthening dialogue and the meeting of different faiths and cultures in order to nurture interaction and tolerance in keeping with its open, national character.

Since its establishment in the early 1960s, the foundation has set a track record of catering to women’s issues and their educational, health, and professional needs. The foundation is widely esteemed in the female community, especially among the poor and those of limited resources, thanks to its efforts to provide social assistance and care for orphaned girls and to combat other social and economic challenges faced by southern women in dire circumstances.

A world where social justice prevails. We envisage a world free of ignorance, poverty, disease and conflict where each individual and group actively participate in the development of their own communities and enjoy equal rights regardless of their faith, gender or any other difference.

Imam Sadr Foundation is a non-governmental organization that seeks to bring about social justice, change and equity by working closely with the local communities in Lebanon on health, education and promoting a culture of dialogue and reconciliation. The foundation pledges to become, by the end of 2015, a leader in:

• Women’s cultural, health, social, and economic empowerment, where the female graduates of the foundation, not to mention its female employees and administrators, shall set an example as women competently and responsibly participating in the social and economic lives of their families and community.
• The care for and education of children and youths in a safe and organized environment which guarantees social awareness and true learning for all, in addition to providing them with comprehensive care within its cultural complex and at home.
• Offering holistic primary healthcare while ensuring the quality and standards that meet the social, economic, and health needs of communities, and where each of the targeted family members receives proper health care at the proper time and place to respond to the full spectrum of their needs.

Our goal is to increase the number of healthy and educated communities, so that more people can feel empowered to plan and participate in making positive decisions concerning their lives and surroundings. The methodology of our work is based on participation, capacity building and gender equity in order to achieve the following objectives