Caritas Middle East and North Africa (

French French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), ...

: ), also known as Caritas MONA, is a

Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

charity network active in the

Middle East and North Africa The Middle East and North Africa (MENA), also referred to as West Asia and North Africa (WANA) or South West Asia and North Africa (SWANA), is a geographic region which comprises the Middle East (also called West Asia) and North Africa together ...

and in the

Horn of Africa The Horn of Africa (HoA), also known as the Somali Peninsula, is a large peninsula and geopolitical region in East Africa.Robert Stock, ''Africa South of the Sahara, Second Edition: A Geographical Interpretation'', (The Guilford Press; 2004), ...

. It is one of the seven regions of the worldwide

Caritas Internationalis Caritas Internationalis (Latin for ) is a confederation of 162 national Catholic relief, development, and social service organisations operating in over 200 countries and territories worldwide. The name Caritas Internationalis refers to both the ...

confederation. The name Caritas MONA refers both to the regional secretariat, based in

Lebanon Lebanon, officially the Republic of Lebanon, is a country in the Levant region of West Asia. Situated at the crossroads of the Mediterranean Basin and the Arabian Peninsula, it is bordered by Syria to the north and east, Israel to the south ...

, and the network of 15 member organisations.

Work

The work of Caritas MONA's secretariat involves coordinating responses from its member organisations to disasters and humanitarian emergencies within the confederation, as well as providing technical support and capacity-building through training initiatives, among other to ensure compliance with Caritas Internationalis Management Standards. Additionally, Caritas MONA engages in advocacy efforts, such as addressing violence in Iraq in 2008, the

2020 Beirut explosion On 4 August 2020, a major explosion occurred in Beirut, Lebanon, triggered by the ignition of 2,750 tonnes of ammonium nitrate. The chemical, confiscated in 2014 from the cargo ship and stored at the Port of Beirut without adequate safety me ...

, and calling for a ceasefire in the

Gaza humanitarian crisis Gaza may refer to: Places Palestine * Gaza Strip, a Palestinian territory on the eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea ** Gaza City, a city in the Gaza Strip ** Gaza Governorate, a governorate in the Gaza Strip Mandatory Palestine * Gaza Sub ...

in 2023. The member organisations are active in a broad range of sectors in their respective countries, including in healthcare, education, social service provision and humanitarian aid.

Membership

Caritas MONA consists of 15 national member organisations. They are located in the

Maghreb The Maghreb (; ), also known as the Arab Maghreb () and Northwest Africa, is the western part of the Arab world. The region comprises western and central North Africa, including Algeria, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco, and Tunisia. The Maghreb al ...

and the

Mashriq The Mashriq (; ), also known as the Arab Mashriq (), sometimes spelled Mashreq or Mashrek, is a term used by Arabs to refer to the eastern part of the Arab world, as opposed to the Maghreb (western) region, and located in West Asia and easter ...

region, as well as in the

. The Caritas MONA member organisations that are located on the African continent are exclusively members of Caritas MONA; they are not also members of Caritas Africa. Despite being located in an

EU member state The European Union (EU) is a political and economic union of 27 member states that are party to the EU's founding treaties, and thereby subject to the privileges and obligations of membership. They have agreed by the treaties to share their o ...

, Caritas Cyprus is also a member of Caritas MONA. The national Caritas working in Israel and

Palestine Palestine, officially the State of Palestine, is a country in West Asia. Recognized by International recognition of Palestine, 147 of the UN's 193 member states, it encompasses the Israeli-occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and th ...

Caritas Jerusalem Caritas Jerusalem (Arabic: , Hebrew: ) is a Catholic nonprofit organisation based in Jerusalem and operating mainly in the Palestinian territories. It was established in 1967 and is the official aid organisation of the Catholic Church in Palesti ...

List of Member Organisations

Leadership

Presidents

* 1999–2007: Claudette Habesch * 2008–2016: Joseph Farah * 2016–present: Gabriel Hatti

Regional Coordinators

* ?–2017: Rosette Hechaime * 2017–present: Karam Abi Yazbeck

References

{{Authority control Charities based in Lebanon Social justice organizations Catholic Church in Africa Catholic Church in the Middle East Catholic Church in Asia MONA