Ali Noor, 24, is a tailor in the village of Sheikh Ismail, in Pakistan’s Nowshehra district. He lives with his family of six brothers and sisters, as well as his parents.
The family home, close to the river, is regularly inundated with water during the seasonal floods. In 2010, it was destroyed completely. Needing to rebuild the house, Ali’s father borrowed from a nearby brick kiln.
When he couldn’t earn enough money to repay the loan, he sent his sons to work for the manufacturer. Three of Ali’s brothers have been working, unpaid, in the kiln for three years.
The family now depend on the little money that his father makes from farming fields that are regularly flooded, and Ali’s income as a tailor.
Ali, who has been disabled since childhood, earns about 4,000 rupees (around 24 GBP) a month – and gives half of his earnings to support his family.
“I work at home, stitching clothes and selling to customers. I used to go to the market in my wheelchair to get materials, but it is not working properly now. I cannot afford to buy a new wheelchair.”
At Ramadan, the family are pushed even further into poverty and debt, as food prices rise.
“Ramadan is the holy and blessed month of Islam. In this month, the prices of food items rise. This affects our purchasing power. We usually borrow money from our neighbours to buy food. We worry about how to get sufficient food in the holy month.
Ali and his family received one of more than 5,100 food parcels distributed by Islamic Relief across Pakistan last Ramadan. The 40kg package contained kitchen essentials such as flour, rice, and pulses, as well as sugar, salt and cooking oil – with dates added as a special treat.
“The help of Islamic Relief in this month is a relief for me and my family. This package will help us to save money. For very poor people like us, a little amount matters a lot.”
This blessed month, use the power of your zakat to provide relief to poor people like Ali and his family. Donate to our Ramadan Appeal today.
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