Al Ansar Education and Welfare Trust

Al Ansar Education and Welfare Trust was founded in April 2001, by Jalaluddin and his wife Iffat, with support from family and a few close friends following Jalal’s first visit to Karachi. The trust was registered with the Charity Commission as a charitable trust in October of that year.

The trust is registered to work within the geographical area of Pakistan for:
a//The advancement of education among the poor
b/ The provision of primary health care
c/ The alleviation of poverty

Al Ansar has a very strong working partnership with Karachi based charity Al Madad Falahi Tanzeem and has a number of projects in partnership with that organisation.
In practice our activities are centred on Karachi with a limited involvement in the village of Chhor (near Umerkot in Sindh).

Our Vision-

Al- Ansar began as a very personal commitment by its founders, Jalaluddin Idrus and Iffat Khan-Idrus, to do whatever they could to help alleviate the poverty and illiteracy in 'shanty town' Karachi, Pakistan. What started as a small personal project is very rapidly growing into a substantial charity organisation.

Al-Ansaar works, in particular, to meet the educational and welfare needs of children living in Karachi's slums. Our aim is to help create not a generation of dependent citizens, but to make it possible for these children to become self-sufficient. Hence our stress on the long-term educational needs of these children; at the same time, we recognise and try to provide for the short-term welfare needs of the families of these children. This we do by personal fact-finding and involvement within these impoverished communities, to ensure that your donations are targeted to reach those who need them the most.
Our goal, therefore, is to raise funds in the UK for both long-and short-term projects which will provide hope for the forgotten poor of Karachi.
Jalaluddin took early retirement from his U.K. teaching job in September 2004 in order to further the development of the trust. He and Iffat are now working voluntarily in Karachi for a large part of the year. Our Karachi office was then opened in November 2004.

Programmes and Activities-

Current projects include;
Educational activities in Al Madad’s schools (3 schools situated in Karachi’s poor areas) and Free Night School Tuition Centres.

A Primary Health Care Unit and Dispensary – opened in December 2003 in the Orangi Town district.

An Orphan and Poor Child Sponsorship Programme – at present the trust has sponsors for 27 children.

Some sponsorship for needy students on higher education courses.

Welfare support for a number of needy families.

Provision of water tanks and wells in areas lacking a main water supply – to date 3 wells and 3 public water tanks.