Dubai: His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, has called for establishing an Arab philanthropy foundation to unify charitable work in the Arab region.
Addressing participants at a conference here on regional philanthropy, Shaikh Mohammad stressed the importance of cooperation to form a unified force that works under an Arab foundation.
Philanthropic organisations in the Arab world should coordinate their charitable activities to establish an Arab philanthropy foundation, Shaikh Mohammad told the forum, titled From Charity to Change Trends in Arab Philanthropy.
"You are all people of giving who work at an individual level, but you need to work collectively to give a stronger boost to your initiatives that aim to serve the poor and needy," Shaikh Mohammad said.
The two-day forum, organised by the Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Foundation, brought together prominent Arab philanthropists to formulate strategies, explore new ideas and chart a roadmap for the future of the philanthropic work in the Arab region.
The Vice-President announced the foundation's endowment would be doubled, especially after implementing several projects that aim to promote human development, improve knowledge infrastructure and encourage researchers and scientists in the Arab and Islamic worlds.
Queen Rania of Jordan praised Shaikh Mohammad for his humanitarian and scientific initiatives, and called for enhancing the principle of true partnership between the public and private sectors in the field of charitable work.
The establishment of an Arab philanthropy foundation will be the highlight of the conference, said Mohammad Abdullah Al Gergawi, Minister of State for Cabinet Affairs and Chairman of the foundation.
A programme to build up philanthropic leaders and setting up a social fund will be among other proposals.
