Anera

American Near East Refugee Aid (Anera) is US-based nonprofit supporting vulnerable Palestinian and Syrian refugees in the Middle East, particularly in Palestine, Jordan, and Lebanon. With programmes ranging from innovative sustainable irrigation systems for farmers to job skills training and psychosocial support, Anera aims to support people surviving conflict and provide them with opportunities to live in safety and dignity.

  • Organisation type Nonprofit
  • Year founded 1968
  • Headquartered Washington DC
  • Registration United States · Jordan · Palestine · Lebanon
  • Website https://www.anera.org/

Related sustainable development goals

  • No Poverty
  • Zero Hunger
  • Good Health and Well-Being
  • Quality Education
  • Gender Equality
  • Clean Water and Sanitation
  • Decent Work and Economic Growth
  • Sustainable Cities and Communities

Impact

US$171M raised in 2023 alone

2.9M+ Palestinians, Lebanese, Syrians, and Jordanians supported

 

Focus areas

Focus sectors

  • Agriculture
    • Irrigation and water management
    • Food security
    • Farming
  • Development
    • Economic development
      • Community improvement
      • Rural development
      • Business and industry
        • Entrepreneurship
  • Education
    • Vocational education
    • Education services
      • Computer literacy
      • E-learning
      • Out-of-school learning
    • Early childhood education
    • Elementary and secondary education
  • Environment
    • Water resources
    • Natural resources
    • Recycling
    • Energy resources
  • Health
    • Out-patient care
      • Health care clinics
      • Preventive care
      • School-based health care
    • Health care quality
    • Public health
      • Water access, sanitation and hygiene
    • Diseases and conditions
      • Infectious and parasitic diseases
    • Healthcare access
  • Humanitarian
    • Free goods distribution
    • Food aid
    • Emergency relief
    • Special population support

Focus populations

  • Asylum seekers
  • Internally displaced people
  • Refugees and displaced people

Focus geographies

  • Middle East
    • Jordan
    • Palestine
    • Lebanon

Partners

  • Americares
  • Catholic Medical Missions Board
  • Direct Relief
  • Health Partners for International of Canada
  • Helping Hands
  • Hikma
  • International Health Partners
  • Medical Education Training and Development
  • Penta
  • Rishho Kosei Kai
  • Sanofi Genzyme Corporation
  • Thaki
  • Wheelchair Foundation
  • World Medical Relief

Programmes

  • Anera agriculture

    From solar-powered irrigation systems to water-smart rooftop gardens and greenhouses, this Anera programme focusses on supporting sustainable agricultural and food security projects in Gaza and the West Bank.

  • Anera community programme

    This programme focusses on providing overall support to the communities Anera serves, including the introduction of sustainable practices such as recycling waste, improvement of food security by building greenhouses, and rebuilding and repairing buildings damaged by bombings and explosions in Lebanon and Palestine.

  • Anera education

    Through this programme, Anera provides vocational, early childhood, coding, e-learning, and out-of-school education to Palestinian and Syrian refugees in Jordan, Lebanon, and Palestine. It also helps build schools and distributes learning materials, including laptops loaded with offline learning content to students and teachers. 

  • Anera emergency aid

    Anera provides hot meals, water, medicine, healthcare supplies, counseling and psychosocial support, infrastructure and rebuilding support, and other emergency relief items to refugees in Lebanon, Palestine, and Jordan in times of crisis.

  • Anera health

    Through its health programme, Anera helps distribute medicine, healthcare supplies, information on waterborne illnesses and hygiene, and vaccinations. It also helps rebuild and improve medical facilities, including hospitals and clinics, serving underprivileged communities in Lebanon, Jordan, and Palestine.

  • Anera Ventures

    The impact investing programme connects individuals and institutions with investors to create and scale economic opportunities for refugees and vulnerable communities in Palestine, Lebanon, and Jordan. 

  • Anera water programme

    Through this programme, Anera helps Palestinian families connect their homes to water networks and install water purification systems in Gaza.

Financials

Details

  • US$ 25M

Funding model

  • Grants to organisations
  • Impact investing
  • In-kind gifts
    • Donated equipment
    • Donated goods
  • Pro bono services
    • Pro bono medical services

Primary funders

  • Ajram Family Foundation
  • Alumbra Innovations Foundation
  • Americares
  • Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration (PRM)
  • Center for Arab American Philanthropy (CAAP)
  • Direct Relief
  • ExxonMobil
  • Foundation for Middle East Peace
  • Helping Hand for Relief and Development
  • Humanity First UK
  • Islamic Relief USA
  • Muslim Aid USA
  • The Abu Dhabi Dream Ball
  • UNHCR
  • UNICEF
  • UNOCHA
  • US Embassy in Lebanon
  • USAID
  • World Food Programme (WFP)
  • Zakat Foundation of America

Funding source

  • Corporate
  • Fundraising
  • Government

Operations

Key staff

  • Samar El-Yassir, country director - Lebanon
  • Sandra Rasheed, country director - Palestine
  • Sean Carrol, president and CEO

Board members

  • Alfred N. Khoury
  • George Doumar
  • Joseph Saba, chair
  • Teresa C. Barger

Contact details

More

Resources

Case study: The key to digital learning. Read more about the organisation working with Anera to provide e-learning opportunties for refugees. 

Building back: How Beirut mobilised after the blast. Read more about how Anera and other organisations in Lebanon took action.

More from Anera:

Annual report 2023