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When as little
as $150 can
change a life
forever, it
pays to invest
your donated
dollars and
cents into
the lives of
developing
world
entrepreneurs.
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International Partners:
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IAS — A Closer Look
With the announcement of GBA’s merger with International Aid Services comes the question for many, "Who is IAS?" I was initially introduced to the work of IAS and Leif Zetterlund, IAS International Executive Director, on a trip to Southern Sudan in 2001. At a time when Sudan was still in the midst of civil war between north and south, very few organizations were on the ground and doing a credible job of helping the Sudanese people. IAS was the exception, making a tremendous impact working in an almost impossible region.
In fact, it was a passion for Sudan that led Leif and his family to move to Southern Sudan in 1977. Working there for approximately a decade, International Aid Services was birthed on New Year’s Eve, 1989 for three primary reasons. First, the Sudanese people experienced immense, unmet need. Second, the injustice and lack of control the Sudanese had over their lives and destinies had to be corrected. And, finally, very few were responding to the call for help.
The vision for IAS was to assist in the establishment of "a godly, transformed society" in Sudan. The founding mission statement was to "save lives, promote self-reliance and dignity through human transformation, going beyond relief and development." It is this methodology that so attracted GBA to IAS — transforming lives in a godly way through capacity-building assistance; a perfect match of vision and mission for two organizations!
In fact, even the IAS logo signifies a desire to see capacity built into the lives of those who receive assistance. The ever-expanding circular bands of water represent the multiplication, or ripple-effect, of IAS international programming. The majority of IAS programs can be broken down into the following fields of work: water and sanitation, agriculture, education (including business training), health, Christian ministries, and emergency response.
Transforming Sudan and Africa —
One Life at a Time
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 Two young friends at the GBA/IAS supported clinic in Nyinbuli, Southern Sudan |
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Members from five international offices in Sweden, Denmark, Norway, Germany, and the United States provide oversight as an executive committee for the overall work of IAS. It is this U.S. office structure which GBA will now join and manage as IAS America. With offices in eighteen countries (most in Africa) and with a primarily African national staff nearing 350, the scope of IAS and its efforts continue to expand.
Having been associated with both Leif and IAS for almost a decade, I am honored that the partnership IAS has had with GBA over the past years has been considered important enough to move these two organizations toward a more permanent union. Your valuable donated dollars will be stretched further than ever before, and over a dozen new countries will now have the opportunity to experience the effects of the capacity-building assistance of “Enterprise Relief.”
More than ever, we ask for your continued partnership with our efforts to transform the developing world into a godly society through capacity-building forms of assistance. Providing a “hand-up” into the future continues to be our goal as we tackle the effects of poverty head-on.
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During this transitional period, please continue to make your donations payable to GBA
– Thank You.
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Douglas Mann
President
GBA/IAS America
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