Abu Dhabi: A community group in Abu Dhabi has distributed over 8,000 iftar meals to labourers living on the outskirts of the capital since the start of Ramadan, providing daily meals to hundreds of workers.
The volunteering initiative is being organised by Ishal Abu Dhabi (IBA), a group made of artists who want to use the month of Ramadan as a way of giving back to the community. As part of their routine, the volunteers drive to rural areas of the capital everyday, delivering the food packages to labourers living in accommodations such as Baniyas China Camp.
“We started our initiative on the first day of Ramadan with the goal of helping people during this month. We decided to go to the rural areas and camps because we already saw a lot of programmes being organised in the city, and so we decided to organise something different,” said Rafeek Hydros, chairman of IBA.
“At this point, we have now crossed giving 8,000 meals. During the last 10 days of Ramadan, we have also increased the daily amount of food baskets to 500, whereas before we would distribute around 200 to 300 daily iftar meals,” he added.
Isham, a member of IBA, said that collecting and delivering the food to the workers was a well-planned process requiring a lot of effort from its team of volunteers.
“We have a routine and pattern that we follow, it has become a very systematic process. After we finish work, we drive to Musaffah where we collect the food from a restaurant, we then load the packets into our cars, and then make the drive to the outskirts of Abu Dhabi.
“Our aim is to always reach the camp by around 5.30pm. Once we arrive at the camp, all labourers line up and we finish distributing the food to them in around 15 minutes,” he added.
“We ensure that all labourers who line up for us get their food, as we have tokens that are distributed at a mosque inside the camp, and anyone who has the token will be given an iftar food basket,” he said.
Isham said that around five cars are used to load and transport the food each day, with several volunteers and their families joining along.
“When we informed our team members about this initiative, everyone wanted to contribute and get involved. So we always get a lot of volunteers everyday with members coming with their families to distribute the iftar packets.”
Sana Kareem, another member of IBA, said she was very happy to be involved in the initiative and to bring happiness to the labourers.
“We are all delighted to be serving these workers iftar meals, we do it everyday within our limits, and it really is worth it when you see the labourers smiling with genuine appreciation,” she said.
“All our volunteers have been so dedicated and have really put their best efforts to get this done, so we are proud of what we have achieved and we do really hope we have managed to brighten up Ramadan for all of these workers,” she added.
Mohammad Arafa, another member with IBA, said the volunteering initiative has brought out the best in people.
“It’s been a great pleasure to be a part of this, it is always nice when you have an opportunity to be involved in helping other people and giving back to the community.
“We have had so many kind-hearted individuals helping us along the way, and it’s been great to see so many people coming together for a good cause,” he added.
As well as the daily iftar meals, Hydros said that the group was also sending clothes to the Emirates Red Crescent to donate in Somalia.
“For our second initiative, we have been collecting clothes and have decided to donate this to Somalia, which we are doing through the Emirates Red Crescent. We have sent 15 cartons of clothes so far, and we hope to continue this even after Ramadan.”
