AJWS has recently awarded more than $5.7 million to 224 grassroots project partners in 33 countries. This total marks an increase of nearly $2 million over its last grants review in June. The new grants are divided into five categories, which include sustainable livelihoods and development, community health, community voice, education for all, and community engagement in conflict and emergencies. They provide funding to organizations in Africa, Asia and the Americas.

AJWS’s mission is to alleviate poverty, hunger and disease among people in developing countries regardless of race, religion or nationality. More than 50 percent of the funds allocated in this review are for renewal grants that provide continued support to ongoing projects. AJWS works with grantees to ensure their long-term financial well-being; the success of this effort is in part seen by the fact that the majority of the organizations awarded grants in this review receive less than 40 percent of their annual budget from AJWS, suggesting that they are successfully on the path to sustainability.

“We are extremely proud of our track record for helping grantees develop and become more able to secure other sources of funding,” said Ruth W. Messinger, president of AJWS. “The solutions that ultimately bring about large scale change are those that are locally developed. As grassroots NGOs are able to gain broad-based support, it is an indication that their ideas are taking hold and that they are making a real impact.”

Recipients of AJWS funding include grassroots organizations working in their communities to enhance human rights, promote social change and address the fundamental causes of poverty, discrimination and injustice. These organizations ensure access to basic services, such as education and health, while assisting individuals to develop livelihoods that will provide them with the means to support their families and contribute meaningfully to the development of their communities.

For more on the five categories listed above, check out Highlights of AJWS’s December 2008 docket.