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Our Values

We believe that everyone has the right to a just and sustainable world in which they can thrive. We want to see a world where everyone lives with dignity and agency, where rights are respected and the planet is protected.

 

Ending poverty and injustice is only possible if those most impacted are front and centre in finding meaningful solutions and decision-making. We want to show solidarity with the people hardest hit by poverty and injustice, building equal partnerships and dismantling power imbalances. 

 

We want to ensure that everyone can act and speak in freedom, and with control over their own lives. We want to be held to account on living our values and embrace diversity, welcoming different perspectives. 

We believe everyone has the right to be treated fairly and to have the same rights and opportunities.  

 

We believe that ending poverty is only possible by fighting systemic inequality and injustice. True equality can only be achieved if there is also fair and just economies, gender justice, climate justice and accountable governance that dismantles unequal systems and structures.  

 

Our work seeks to demolish all of the barriers that prevent women, girls, the LGBTQI+ community, people with disabilities, refugees and migrants and other marginalised communities from claiming their rights.

We acknowledge and seek to expand people’s agency over their lives and the decisions that impact them.  

 

We believe in investing in the leadership, autonomy and agency of marginalised and vulnerable communities in order to end poverty. We seek to amplify the voices of everyone experiencing exclusion, exploitation and crises. 

 

By tackling inequality and taking action against poverty and injustice on the ground, we aim to support communities to defend, claim and realise their rights through fair, accountable and democratic structures.

 

We join hands, support and collaborate across boundaries for a just and sustainable world.  

 

We build solidarity and connect people across borders and regions. 

 

We stand with marginalised and vulnerable communities experiencing poverty, injustice and inequality, women and girls experiencing any form of exclusion or oppression, and those experiencing the worst effects of climate breakdown or a lack of accountable governance. 

 

We offer direct support where needed and act with people and communities to transform lives.  

 

We work with activists, organisations and movements across the world to share knowledge and capacity and to speak as one voice. And we know our place: when to lead, when to follow and when to stand side-by-side with others.

We embrace diversity and difference and value the perspectives and contributions of all people and communities in their fight against poverty and injustice. 

 

The principle “nothing about us without us” guides our work. We’re working to ensure our programmes are locally-led and owned, shaped by the knowledge, expertise and leadership of the communities we work with. 

 

We are committed to adhering to feminist principles. This means we have a deeply held conviction that ending poverty and injustice is only possible when gender equality is achieved and women and girls and gender non-conforming people fully enjoy their rights.  

 

We are also committed to adhering to anti-racist principles. This means we acknowledge and seek to dismantle historical and ongoing systems of oppression such as racism, colonialism, white supremacy, xenophobia, ageism, ableism and other forms of injustice and discrimination.  

 

All marginalised communities must be central to the decision-making that impacts their lives, whether in the real world or in digital spaces.

We take responsibility for our action and inaction and hold ourselves accountable to the people we work with and for.  

We invite our partners, the communities we work with and our supporters to hold us accountable. We strive to be open and transparent in our finances, fundraising, governance structures and programme responses.  

 

We recognise the longstanding power imbalances in the international development and humanitarian sector in which we work and strive to end any structures or systems that led to discrimination, oppression and harm. 

We adhere to internal and external codes  that promote accountability, transparency and a commitment to development and humanitarian work based on solidarity, self-determination and equality.

We speak truth to power and act with conviction from the justice of our causes. 

 

We have a clear and optimistic vision for the future. We speak in unison with partners, allies and supporters and with authority about the systemic inequality that traps people in poverty and holds them back from living full and dignified lives. We are unrelenting in our fight, converting collective energy and courage into action because we know that together we can build an equal future for ourselves and generations to come.  

 

Looking within isn’t always easy, but we believe in having courageous conversations with each other and with our partners to overcome our biases and to become truly feminist and anti-racist.

our values

Our Vision for 2030

We want a radially different world by 2030

Where We Work

We’re one of 21 Oxfam organisations working together in 86 countries

Accountable To You

We are committed to accountability and transparency.

Safeguarding in Action

Keeping people safe is a vital part of our work worldwide.

Oxfam Ireland History

Learn about Oxfam Ireland and key dates.

Our Programme Partners

We work with our partners to deliver development, humanitarian and influencing programmes.