What we do

Our mission is to combat poverty and oppression.

We do this by recruiting experienced professionals to become Development Workers. We send them to share their skills and work with our overseas partners. Through long-term projects, we focus on building the skills and capacities of organisations that represent the poorest people.

Our work with partners is focused in three priority areas: sustainable livelihoods, human rights, and sexual and reproductive health. And while we work with the most disadvantaged groups, we know from experience that disabled people, children, and women are most in need of support and solidarity.

Our long-term partnerships are based on mutual respect, accountability, and a belief in the power of sharing skills and ideas.
We work closely with:

• small, community-based organisations working at a grassroots level
• established national and international charities
• local, regional and national government departments

How we do it

We recruit, train and support experienced professionals – Development Workers - to work with our partner organisations in technical and specialist fields of work.

Our Development Workers share their skills, ideas and expertise. They work with and for our partner organisations, helping to build their capacity to empower, support and represent the poorest and most disadvantaged people in their countries.

What this means for our partners

Each of our partner organisations is unique. Their future is shaped by their past and present. We work closely with them to help identify their strengths, their weaknesses, and the factors that are limiting their performance.

Once these areas have been identified, we enter into a partnership agreement. International Service contributes by:

• recruiting and placing professionals with the expertise needed to help build the organisation’s capacity
• providing support through our own overseas support staff
• facilitating links with other partners who have complementary skills

In return, our partners share their knowledge, skills and professional expertise with us. It is this combination of our Development Workers' specialist skills and our partners' local knowledge that makes our partnerships so effective.