"Whoever maintains brotherly relations with the poor and the needy and lets them: partake in his wealth and behaves justly with the people is a real believer ". (Al Kafi, vol. 2, pg. 119).

Background

According to UNAMI (United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq), 36,000 persons were wounded in terrorist attacks in 2006, although the real figure is thought to be much higher. This translates into at least100 persons being injured every day.

According to WHO (World Health Organization) the health system in Iraq has suffered gradual deterioration over the past 15 years. It is now severely under -equipped and unable to deal with the enormous demands it faces on a daily basis. Indeed, it is doubtful whether any health system would be able to cope in such circumstances. The Iraqi health system does not have the resources to provide persons who became disabled in terrorist attacks with the necessary rehabilitative care and devices, the most basic of which is a wheelchair.

Wheelchairs cost 70 to 90 Dollars in Iraq, a price many needy disabled persons are unable to pay. They have to remain housebound due to lack of a wheelchair. Providing a disabled person with a wheelchair returns a degree of independence to him or her, thereby reducing not only the physical, but also the mental and emotional suffering of such a person.

Beneficiaries

This project was originally designed with the aim of providing a wheelchair to the neediest handicapped persons in Karbala, but IRAC soon began to receive requests from other cities. Therefore, the scope of the project was broadened to include the cities of Karbala, Najaf, Diwaniya, Al Kut and Basra.

Implementation

IRAC selects the beneficiaries of this project according to a set of criteria that determines vulnerability and need. The most important criteria are:

• The degree of disability of the beneficiary
• The family's income and its source
• The number of family members depending on the head-of-family
• The family's living conditions (presence or absence of basic household equipment)
• Whether the family lost one or more of its members due to persecution by Saddam or terrorist violence
• Families headed by a woman

IRAC's team prepared a form that has to be filled in for each beneficiary. The form consists of four sections:

Section one: Basic information on the beneficiary: full name, address, phone number (if any), date of receiving the wheelchair and a space for the beneficiary's signature to confirm receipt.

Section two: This section contains basic information about the person who introduced this beneficiary. The introducing person is known to IRAC as a trustworthy individual.

Section three: This section is reserved for notes and remarks by the project manager.

Section four: This section is a pledge the beneficiary has to sign before receiving the wheelchair. The pledge says: "I, the undersigned, confirm that I have received a wheelchair from IRAC for my own personal use. I have been informed that according to the rules of Islamic law (Shari'a) it is not permissible for me to sell the wheelchair or trade it in for something else because IRAC remains its legal owner."

In addition to signing the pledge, each potential beneficiary was asked to provide IRAC with copies of at least two different ID documents, two recent photographs, and a medical report confirming that he/she needs a wheelchair, In some cases, IRAC had to pay for the medical report because the potential beneficiary could not afford the physician's charge for such a report. As there was no budget line for these expenses, IRAC carried them from its administrative fee.

The logos of both LFT and IRAC are painted on the back of the wheelchairs in order to emphasize that IRAC remains the legal owner of these wheelchairs and that the beneficiaries are not allowed to sell or trade them under any circumstances.

IRAC intends to provide wheelchairs on an ongoing basis. Updates on the phases of implementation are provided below:

Phase Four:

Duration: May to July 2008

26 wheelchairs were distributed to needy handicapped beneficiaries in Karbala and Najaf.

Table 1: Beneficiaries according to location, gender and age group

Table 2: Date and Location of Distribution

Expenditure:

Signed: Management, IRAC, Iraq

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