What we do
Together, we’re a global movement of people working hard to tackle poverty around the globe.
We work with local partners and communities to find practical, innovative ways for people to lift themselves out of poverty and thrive.
What does Oxfam do
Humanitarian Aid
When disaster strikes around the world, we move quickly with our partners to provide people with the assistance they need to survive — clean water, sanitation facilities, food, health and nutrition advice and shelter.
Oxfam is responding to more than 25 emergency situations worldwide at any given time. Once the immediate danger has passed, we work to rebuild lives and reduce the risk of future disasters.
First People’s Justice
Poverty in Australia is just as harsh as it is in developing countries and it’s our Indigenous Australians who are among the most disadvantaged.
Oxfam Australia has worked to advance First Peoples’ rights for more than 40 years.
Gender Equality
Discrimination and injustice are major causes of poverty worldwide, and women, girls and non-binary people bear the brunt of it in all aspects of their lives.
Right across the globe, we partner with local organisations and governments to implement programs and projects that promote women’s rights and gender equality.
Climate Justice
Destructive weather, rising seas, unprecedented fires and historic famines. The climate crisis worsens the inequalities that keep people in poverty. It hits hardest the people who are least responsible for the problem, and least resourced to protect themselves from the impacts.
We support communities on the frontline with climate-smart solutions, while advocating to end the climate crisis.
Economic Inequality
The wealthiest 1% of people in the world have more than double the wealth of 6.9 billion people combined. Meanwhile, millions of people remain trapped in extreme poverty, unable to access their rights, political power and opportunities.
We empower communities with the tools to build better lives for themselves today, we fight to remove the inequalities that keep people in poverty and build fairer and more sustainable economies for tomorrow.
About us
At Oxfam Australia, we believe all lives are equal and no-one should live in poverty.
Oxfam takes a human rights-based approach to development, helping to both foster in people an ability to claim those rights, and establishing capacity for duty bearers to fulfil their obligations to their citizens. Our work ensures the representation of vulnerable people affected by marginalisation and injustice.
Faqs
Where does Oxfam work?
We are working across regions in more than 90 countries, with thousands of partners and allies, supporting communities to build better lives for themselves, build resilience and protect lives and livelihoods also in times of crisis. Because we want lasting solutions, we fight the inequalities that keep people locked in poverty and injustice – and campaign for genuine, durable change.
What does Oxfam mean?
Oxfam International was formed in 1995 by a group of independent non-governmental organizations. They joined together as a confederation to maximize efficiency and achieve greater impact to reduce global poverty and injustice.
The name “Oxfam” comes from the Oxford Committee for Famine Relief, founded in Britain in 1942. The group campaigned for food supplies to be sent through an allied naval blockade to starving women and children in enemy-occupied Greece during the Second World War.
What is Oxfam’s vision?
Our vision is a world that is just and sustainable. A world in which people and planet are at the center of just economies. A world in which women and girls live free from gender-based violence and discrimination. Where the climate crisis is contained, and inclusive and accountable governance systems allow for those in power to be held to account.
