Indus Resource Centre (IRC) is a non-profit organization with a physical presence and active projects in more than 9 districts of Sindh, Pakistan. The Indus Resource Centre (IRC) works on the issues of Education & Literacy, Sustainable Livelihoods, Governance, Democracy & Human Rights and Disaster Relief & Management.
Indus Resource Centre was established in 2000. The Indus Resource Centre (IRC) aims to be a key player by providing replicable models for integrated social and economic development in Pakistan. It has grown from being a one person set up to an organization with over 1000 people with several offices and projects. From an initial focus on building capacity of local community organizations and education for girls, it has developed a comprehensive program around rural development, including income generation, empowerment of the poor, disaster relief and advocacy support.
Since its inception, Indus Resource Centre (IRC) has retained focus on Sindh, recognizing that an integrated and holistic approach is necessary if sustainable positive change is to be achieved. Indus Resource Centre (IRC) has developed its programs so they are linked with each other and are implemented within the same geographic areas and communities.
Indus Resource Centre (IRC) states that in Pakistan, much of the development resources have either not reached the intended beneficiaries, and/or has been largely ineffective because the approaches used are not focused on the needs of the beneficiaries. The model used by IRC addresses this issue by channeling resources directly to the poor and marginalized at minimum operational cost.
Indus Resource Centre (IRC) has a head office in Karachi where the Executive Director’s office, finance and human resource management functions are located. Educational and governance projects are also run from this office. A sales outlet for Indus Resource Centre (IRC) managed arts and crafts centre Khazana, is operated at the Defense Sunday Bazaar. The regional offices are at Khairpur and Dadu and sub offices in Sukkur, Kambar-Shahdadkot, Sehwan and Jamshoro.
IRC strives to achieve the following 5 of the 14 Sustainable Development Goals (SDG):
- No Poverty
- Quality Education
- Gender Equality
- Reduced Inequalitie
- Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions
Education and Literacy:
IRC runs 130 schools with over 400 teachers and 10,322 children. These include primary, elementary and secondary schools started by IRC in the districts of Khairpur, Jamshoro, Dadu, Karachi and Sukkur. Government schools which have been re-opened by IRC and IRC adopted schools. Of these, nine schools are running in Ibrahim Haideri and Rehri, some of the most deprived and poor coastal areas around Karachi. IRC charges nominal fees IRC school pass outs are encouraged to attend college, and some times awarded scholarships to study further.
Disaster Response:
After the floods of 2007, IRC got engaged in disaster risk reduction activities, based on its assessment that people were not at all prepared in case of any such disasters. This program focused on collective thinking and action at a community level, enhancing organizational and technical capacities to reduce vulnerabilities to disasters, identifying and implementing small community actions for disaster mitigation, and promoting engagement of communities with the local Disaster District Management Authority and other stakeholders for improved disaster preparation.
Khazana
Khazana, the IRC brand name for arts and crafts aims to provide space and creating opportunities for women to explore their potential through income generation and skill enhancement. In 2008, IRC was gifted an old and decrepit structure which had been used as storage by affluent landlords in Khairpur. IRC had already set up a vocational training and work centre that provided training to women. The concept of “Khazana” was evolved, including the development of a woman and child friendly social space, promoting the cultural and social heritage of Sindh, developing capacity of artisans and providing them a sales outlet and creating the first open air cafe and restaurant. Skills such as embroidery, patch work, household products made with date and wheat stems, clay work, wood painting, hand-loom weaving are promoted.