A second-hand clothing drive by Islamic Relief Russia has provided poor families in the Chechen Republic with much-needed clothing.
Chechnya is one of the poorest regions in Russia, with the legacy of war and many people unemployed. Islamic Relief’s latest initiative in the republic encouraged local people to donate their unwanted clothing to benefit families struggling to make ends meet. The ten-day clothing drive saw 500 kilogrammes of second-hand clothing benefitting more than 100 poor families.

Kuzani Edilsultanova, 39, from Gudermesskii region, to the east of Grozny, helped to inspire the initiative, after visiting our office in Grozny to request clothing for her four-year old son, Magomed. After Islamic Relief’s ‘Give Your Warmth’ appeal, Kuzani received essential clothing for her two children.
“I have received a lot of clothes for both of my children,” she said. “I have found a very fashionable jacket for my daughter. She dreamt about it, but we couldn`t afford to buy it. I would never be able to buy [this clothing] from my disability pension.”
Clothing for men, women and children
Aishat Baymuradova, 41, also chose clothes for her three children, all of whom are under ten years old and have delayed development. Since her divorce, she has taken care of Linda, Bulat, and Aminat alone and finds it hard to meet her family’s basic needs.

“I have found clothes not only for my children, but also for myself,” said Aishat. “My boots have holes in them and I needed new ones greatly. But it is not possible for me to buy them. Here I have received nice, quality shoes for me and many other things for all my family. This is a great help.”
Islamic Relief volunteers gave their time to support the distribution of clothing for men, women, and children.
“I am very thankful to Islamic Relief for giving me the chance to me to take part in this charitable event,” said volunteer Leyla Yahyaeva, 33. “This feeling that you are doing something very important and pleasing to God can’t be compared with anything in the world.”
Islamic Relief has worked in the North Caucasus for almost 20 years, and its current projects include sponsorship for orphaned children, Islamic micro-finance and livelihoods schemes as well as seasonal food distributions.