What We Do
Oxfam America works on the scene, helping people gain the hope, skills, and direction to create a new future. We are also active in the global arena, addressing social injustice through our advocacy, public education, and emergency assistance programs.
Though the rain has started to fall, emergency conditions for millions of people affected by a severe drought and food crisis are expected to persist well into 2012.
In October 2011, torrential rains caused deadly landslides and flooding in El Salvador. Oxfam preparedness programs are helping ensure that aid is quickly reaching those in need.
On January 12, 2010 a major earthquake struck Haiti near the capital of Port-au-Prince causing catastrophic destruction in the western hemisphere's most impoverished nation.
In what many consider the largest humanitarian emergency in the world, millions are living in crowded camps or on the edges of towns and villages.
For the second year, massive floods are inundating millions of acres of land in Pakistan. Oxfam is rushing aid to the region, supporting search-and-rescue, planning food distribution, and supplying clean water and sanitation facilities.
Months after heavy seasonal rains fell in Senegal and Gambia, many are still living in flooded homes.
Oxfam is helping people survive catastrophes like hurricanes and earthquakes, and the dangerous upheavals of war. Learn about Saving Lives 24/7.
Some progress has been made in Afghanistan, but continued conflict and insecurity have added to the hardships that make it one of the poorest countries in the world.
Conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo has cost nearly 5.4 million lives. Many have fled to neighboring countries or temporary camps, and government stability is fragile.
Responding to disasters is a crucial part of Oxfam's humanitarian mission. But finding ways to help communities prepare for and prevent natural events from becoming full-scale disasters is at the cutting edge of our work.
2009 Cholera Crisis in Zimbabwe
The cholera crisis that swept across Zimbabwe through the first half of 2009 was one of the world’s largest recorded outbreaks, sickening 98,592 people and leaving 4,288 dead. Oxfam reached more than two million people with assistance.
With low rainfall, poor harvests, and high food food prices, the potential for a new food crisis is now looming over West Africa. But early action can help protect the most vulnerable people from severe hardship.
Oxfam's GROW campaign aims to build a better food system: one that sustainably feeds a growing population and empowers poor people to earn a living, feed their families, and thrive.
Oxfam's Right to Know Right to Decide campaign challenges international oil, gas, and mining companies to respect a community’s right to revenue transparency and free, prior, and informed consent.
Oxfam is working to improve the way the US delivers aid and support new more effective efforts to fight poverty.
Five years after Hurricane Katrina, Oxfam is helping communities along the Gulf rebuild and using the lessons learned from Hurricanes Katrina and Rita to respond to the BP oil spill.
Having a safe place to save or access to a small loan can help a family work its way out of poverty. Oxfam America has pioneered a microfinance model called Saving for Change, which self-replicates on a large scale and at a low cost.
A growing portion of Oxfam America's work involves collaboration with new allies, including strategic engagement with the private sector.
Our mission is to do whatever we can to reduce suffering and save lives during emergencies—whether they are caused by conflict or by natural events. We partner with local groups in a network that stretches around the world.
Worldwide, nearly one in seven people now suffers from chronic hunger. Oxfam is working on solutions to ensure that no one, no matter where he or she lives, has to go to sleep hungry.
Oxfam seeks fair government policies and corporate practices in the oil, gas, and mining industries, and supports the right of communities to participate in decisions about the use of natural resources.
Insurance and rural resilience
With financial tools, such as insurance, farmers can improve their well-being.
Farm workers in the US are often subjected to mistreatment and exploitation. Oxfam seeks to expose sweatshop conditions and human rights violations in America's fields.
Seventy percent of those living below the poverty line are women. Oxfam helps women and girls overcome gender discrimination, realize their potential, and become decision-makers and leaders in their communities.
The poorest people often find vital drugs priced out of reach—despite promises from the WTO to make medicines affordable and available to all. Oxfam is asking governments and drug companies to make affordable medicine a reality.
Global Reach
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As food crisis looms, the lean season hits early in northern Senegal
An Oxfam team assesses the conditions around a group of small villages where many of the food reserves are now exhausted.
Counting on the rain to continue--or weather insurance to help cover losses
For Ethiopian farmer Gidey Mehari, when the opportunity to buy weather insurance for his crops arose, he jumped at the chance.
Doubling his weather insurance, this Ethiopian farmer is happy for the security it provides
"Anything can happen," says Alemu Tadesse. And that's why he is investing in weather insurance for some of his crops.
Haiti: a grain milling operation offers an economic lifeline for women
To help tackle unemployment and ensure families have access to food, Oxfam is working with a women's group to modernize and expand a service center.
American-owned Doe Run polluted this small mountain community for more than a decade. Now citizens are joining with Oxfam to hold the company accountable.
Haiti: Reducing the risk of flooding in Artibonite
A local mayor enlists support from Oxfam to address major flooding in his community in rural Haiti.
Ethiopian farmers get a payout, easing effects of drought
With cash from the weather insurance policies they bought through an innovative program, farmers from Tigray can now plan for the future.
Rain in drought-hit East Africa brings changing humanitarian needs
Despite the rain, and the relief it brings, emergency conditions will likely last well into 2012.
In the midst of famine, children survive with the help of Oxfam partner SAACID
Community therapeutic care centers across Somalia's capital are admitting more than 3,000 malnourished children every week.
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For less than a dollar a day, you can help Oxfam reach even more people living in poverty with life-changing, community-led programs.
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Events in your area
- Oxfam America blogs
- The transparent hypocrisy of big oil Feb 09, 2012
- For Cambodia flood survivors, cash comes through for poorest Feb 03, 2012
- Four ways to make a difference volunteering this year Feb 02, 2012
- By the numbers—the fight for oil and mining company transparency Jan 31, 2012
- Peru’s Conga Mine: A chance to get it right, or business as usual? Jan 30, 2012
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South America environment human rights hunger women Peru aid reform food security Africa Haiti humanitarian relief oil, gas and mining Sudan United States West Africa climate change agriculture Darfur public health Central America politics and government livelihood equality for women natural disaster Ethiopia indigenous people Horn of Africa trade violence water
