Dubai: The Big Heart Campaign has donated $1.5 million (Dh5.5 million) to the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) to support primary, secondary and technical education for refugees on World Refugee Day.
World Refugee Day is observed every year on June 20, and is dedicated to raising awareness of the situation of refugees throughout the world. The UNHCR’s theme this year is ‘One family torn apart by war is too many’.
Shaikha Jawaher Bint Mohammad Al Qasimi, wife of His Highness Dr Shaikh Sultan Bin Mohammad Al Qasimi, Supreme Council Member and Ruler of Sharjah, expressed her gratitude to everyone who has helped the campaign to improve hundreds of thousands of refugees’ lives over the past year. Shaikha Jawaher is UNHCR’s Eminent Advocate for Refugee Children.
“Nobody chooses to be a refugee, but our supporters have chosen to step into the refugee children’s lives and become mothers to the motherless, fathers to the fatherless and provide hope to the hopeless. Because of you, these children will no longer just be forgotten statistics, but grow into strong adults with strong dreams. The Syrian crisis is not just a Syrian problem, but a challenge for all humankind to prove our humanity,” said Shaikha Jawaher
These words were echoed by Ban Ki-moon, UN Secretary-General, who said, “On World Refugee Day, I call on the international community to intensify efforts to prevent and resolve conflicts, and to help achieve peace and security so that families can be reunited and refugees can return home.”
The Big Heart Campaign has said in a media release that the Big Heart Clinic at Zaatari refugee camp in Jordan is helping 600 refugees facing malnutrition, chronic diseases, and has an emergency ward for critical cases. Considering that over 40,000 Syrian babies have been born as refugees, the clinic also offers reproductive health services and post-natal care.
