ABOUT QANDIL

Qandil is a Swedish NGO and non-profit association founded in 1991, which aims to improve human rights for the Kurdish population in the Middle East. The operation, which initially focussed on disseminating information and raising awareness in Sweden, has gradually included humanitarian aid in northern parts of Iraq as well. One well known project conducted by Qandil was the construction of a hospital in Halabja, and support to the hospital, after the toxic gas attack that Saddam's regime carried out in the area in 1988.

The humanitarian aid carried out by Qandil was mainly funded by Sida for many years and included projects in refugee camps and poor villages in the northerly provinces. However, various UN bodies have been Qandil's most important funders in recent years. Besides administering the supply of supplies for refugees, Qandil has built up the water supply infrastructure and worked with sewerage and health issues. In recent years, the operation has also included projects that have been more purely focussed on development in both rural and urban environments.

Qandil's headquarters are located in Stockholm, where the board of directors is also based. The administrative office has two to three employees in addition to the Secretary General of the organisation. There are seven ordinary members and two substitutes on the board. The annual assembly attended by members of the Association appoints the board and approves the Association's annual reports.

Qandil's operations in Iraq is managed by a Country Director stationed in Erbil, capital of the Kurdish Regional Governorates, KRG. Approximately 120 staff were working in Iraq during the autumn of 2010, a third of whom are based at the Country Management Office in Erbil. Around 80 staff are posted at seven local project offices in different parts of Iraq.
The budget for 2010 comprises approximately SEK 100 million.