Inter-religious collaboration through humanitarian service is a compelling challenge in the early 21st Century. Cooperative efforts can maximize responses to natural and other disasters, enhance economic and social development, and significantly contribute to intercultural understanding and world peace.

The United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR) and its parent organization, the General Board of Global Ministries, are grateful for the opportunity to establish a partner relationship with Muslim Aid. Our organizations have worked harmoniously and with common humanitarian objectives in the wake of the late 2004 tsunami in Sri Lanka. Building on that foundation, we look forward to strong future collaboration in disaster relief and development and to working together to realize our mutual goal of relieving the suffering of people caught up in disasters and to better inter-religious understanding.

The United Methodist Church considers it a privilege to have the opportunity to work across religious lines for human welfare, as it is currently doing through UMCOR not only in Sri Lanka but also in Indonesia, Sudan, the Balkans, Africa and several countries of Central Asia. We are therefore very pleased to sign this worldwide partnership and collaboration agreement with Muslim Aid and we look forward to the expansion of our joint work.

This partnership is not exclusive to UMCOR and Muslim Aid however, and I look forward to exploring with all faith-based NGOs the ideas behind our partnership and hope that as a community of differing faith-based organizations we can all work together in the future to bring relief and development assistance to those unfortunate people in our world who need it.

R. RANDY DAY
General Secretary, Global Ministries