Near East Foundation
Encyclopedia
The Near East Foundation (NEF), formerly the American Committee for Armenian and Syrian Relief (ACASR), is a Syracuse, NY-based American development agency founded in 1915.
NEF's mission is to help people in the Middle East and Africa build the better lives they envision for themselves and their communities through a variety of practical programs and grassroots development projects.
The Near East Foundation is America’s first nation-wide international philanthropic effort. Nearly a century ago, the NEF pioneered the approach to international development that enables people to acquire the tools they need to help themselves. NEF successes became the model for the United States government’s international aid program and for nearly all current development organizations. NEF works one-on-one with the often-forgotten people at the grass-roots level as equal partners in making our shared world better.
The organization began in 1915 when Cleveland H. Dodge led a group of New York leaders in forming American Committee for Armenian and Syrian Relief, a response to Ambassador to Constantinople Henry Morgenthau's urgent plea for assistance to save victims of the Armenian Genocide
and Assyrian Genocide
and deportations of 1915. In 1930, ACASR was renamed the Near East Foundation.
NEF programs focus on promoting sustainable development in partnership with nationals, sponsoring a variety of innovative self-help initiatives that equip individuals and communities with information, training, skills, and technologies.
Current programs include: environment and natural resource management; agriculture and rural development; urban development and rehabilitation; micro-finance, community-based and bank-guaranteed lending; micro-enterprise promotion and income generation; employment and job creation; population, health, and family planning; human resource development and civil society building; leadership and institutional development; girls and women's development and education, basic education and literacy.
NEF programs help people improve their lives, increase incomes, assist others, and more confidently participate in their societies. Partners include local and international non-governmental organizations, bilateral and multilateral donors, foundations, financial institutions, project teams and government ministries.
In 2006, NEF operated in 16 countries in Africa and the Middle East.
In 2010, NEF moved its headquarters to Syracuse University in Syracuse, NY.
NEF's mission is to help people in the Middle East and Africa build the better lives they envision for themselves and their communities through a variety of practical programs and grassroots development projects.
The Near East Foundation is America’s first nation-wide international philanthropic effort. Nearly a century ago, the NEF pioneered the approach to international development that enables people to acquire the tools they need to help themselves. NEF successes became the model for the United States government’s international aid program and for nearly all current development organizations. NEF works one-on-one with the often-forgotten people at the grass-roots level as equal partners in making our shared world better.
The organization began in 1915 when Cleveland H. Dodge led a group of New York leaders in forming American Committee for Armenian and Syrian Relief, a response to Ambassador to Constantinople Henry Morgenthau's urgent plea for assistance to save victims of the Armenian Genocide
Armenian Genocide
The Armenian Genocide—also known as the Armenian Holocaust, the Armenian Massacres and, by Armenians, as the Great Crime—refers to the deliberate and systematic destruction of the Armenian population of the Ottoman Empire during and just after World War I...
and Assyrian Genocide
Assyrian genocide
The Assyrian Genocide refers to the mass slaughter of the Assyrian/Chaldean/Syriac population of the Ottoman Empire during the 1890s, the First World War, and the period of 1922-1925...
and deportations of 1915. In 1930, ACASR was renamed the Near East Foundation.
Affiliates
- Near East Foundation - Center for Development Services (CDS) - CairoCairoCairo , is the capital of Egypt and the largest city in the Arab world and Africa, and the 16th largest metropolitan area in the world. Nicknamed "The City of a Thousand Minarets" for its preponderance of Islamic architecture, Cairo has long been a centre of the region's political and cultural life...
, EgyptEgyptEgypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world... - Near East Foundation - SudanSudanSudan , officially the Republic of the Sudan , is a country in North Africa, sometimes considered part of the Middle East politically. It is bordered by Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the northeast, Eritrea and Ethiopia to the east, South Sudan to the south, the Central African Republic to the...
- Near East Foundation - West BankWest BankThe West Bank ) of the Jordan River is the landlocked geographical eastern part of the Palestinian territories located in Western Asia. To the west, north, and south, the West Bank shares borders with the state of Israel. To the east, across the Jordan River, lies the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan...
/GazaGazaGaza , also referred to as Gaza City, is a Palestinian city in the Gaza Strip, with a population of about 450,000, making it the largest city in the Palestinian territories.Inhabited since at least the 15th century BC,... - Near East Foundation - AmmanAmmanAmman is the capital of Jordan. It is the country's political, cultural and commercial centre and one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world. The Greater Amman area has a population of 2,842,629 as of 2010. The population of Amman is expected to jump from 2.8 million to almost...
, JordanJordanJordan , officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan , Al-Mamlaka al-Urduniyya al-Hashemiyya) is a kingdom on the East Bank of the River Jordan. The country borders Saudi Arabia to the east and south-east, Iraq to the north-east, Syria to the north and the West Bank and Israel to the west, sharing... - Near East Foundation - New Development Foundation - Amman, Jordan
- Near East Foundation - MoroccoMoroccoMorocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa. It has a population of more than 32 million and an area of 710,850 km², and also primarily administers the disputed region of the Western Sahara...
- Near East Foundation - MaliMaliMali , officially the Republic of Mali , is a landlocked country in Western Africa. Mali borders Algeria on the north, Niger on the east, Burkina Faso and the Côte d'Ivoire on the south, Guinea on the south-west, and Senegal and Mauritania on the west. Its size is just over 1,240,000 km² with...
NEF programs focus on promoting sustainable development in partnership with nationals, sponsoring a variety of innovative self-help initiatives that equip individuals and communities with information, training, skills, and technologies.
Current programs include: environment and natural resource management; agriculture and rural development; urban development and rehabilitation; micro-finance, community-based and bank-guaranteed lending; micro-enterprise promotion and income generation; employment and job creation; population, health, and family planning; human resource development and civil society building; leadership and institutional development; girls and women's development and education, basic education and literacy.
NEF programs help people improve their lives, increase incomes, assist others, and more confidently participate in their societies. Partners include local and international non-governmental organizations, bilateral and multilateral donors, foundations, financial institutions, project teams and government ministries.
In 2006, NEF operated in 16 countries in Africa and the Middle East.
In 2010, NEF moved its headquarters to Syracuse University in Syracuse, NY.
Governance
- President: Charles Benjamin
- Vice President: Lucy Berkowitz
- Program Manager: Joanna Palmer
- Program Officer: Sarah Peterson
- Chair of the Board: Shant Mardirossian
- Egypt Country Director: Alaa Saber
- Jordan Country Director: Khaled Waleed
- Mali Country Director: Yacouba Dème
- Morocco Country Director: Abdelkhalk Aandam
- Palestine Country Director: Salah Abu-Eisheh
- Sudan Country Director: Musa Gismalla