The Lives and Livelihoods Fund (LLF) is a US$ 2.5 billion development initiative launched in 2016 and funded by an unprecedented global coalition including:

• Abu Dhabi Fund for Development
• Gates Foundation
• Islamic Development Bank
• Islamic Solidarity Fund for Development
• King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Centre
• Qatar Fund for Development

Its goal is to lift the poorest out of poverty across 33 IsDB member countries by addressing 9 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and providing them with accessible and sustainable funding so they can ensure their populations have access to the essential building blocks of prosperity: Primary healthcare, productive agriculture, and social infrastructure.

The LLF is driven by these guiding principles:

• Impact: The LLF includes technical assistance as part of their investment to ensure projects are designed and implemented to create meaningful, measurable, and lasting impact. They use rigorous evaluation to assess, adapt, and improve performance across the LLF ecosystem.
• Inclusion: The LLF prioritizes the empowerment of women, youth, and smallholder farmers.
• Partnership: The LLF builds deep relationships with beneficiary countries, implementation partners, and donors, understanding that only strong partnerships can take on entrenched poverty. It is the flagship development fund for IsDB and its LLF partners, and the leading South-South partnership worldwide.
• Adaptation: The LLF is responsive to the needs of member countries and communities, with a particular emphasis on climate change adaptation and flexibility in the face of external shocks.
• Learning: The LLF learns from the countries, communities, and people it serves, as well as from the collective experience and expertise of its donor and partner ecosystem.

The IsDB serves as the LLF trustee, managing projects once approved by the LLF Impact Committee – a Board representing all partners. The IsDB and LLF partners have established a management unit whose mandate is to coordinate fund activities. The Lives and Livelihoods Fund Management Unit (LLF MU) supports pipeline development and oversees the LLF project portfolio in close collaboration with IsDB teams.

As the largest development initiative of its kind in the Middle East, the Lives and Livelihoods Fund is a joint vision of the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) with the Abu Dhabi Fund for Development (ADFD), the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF), the Islamic Solidarity Fund for Development (ISFD), the King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center (KSRelief), and the Qatar Fund for Development (QFFD), aimed at raising the poorest out of poverty in IsDB member countries.

By collaborating with leading developmental entities and governments, the fund’s mission is to break down the barriers that prevent individuals, organisations, and governments in the lowest income countries from obtaining the resources that empower them to lift themselves out of poverty.

Since its inception in 2016, the fund is transforming the lives of thousands of people through 37 projects in the fields of healthcare, agriculture and basic infrastructure in 22 member countries.

Contact

Know more about how the Lives and Livelihoods Fund creates positive impact by breaking down barriers and enabling real progress.

Lives and Livelihoods Fund Management Unit (LLFMU)
Email:  LLF-MU@isdb.org