Dubai
UAE students and schools have been awarded for raising funds towards primary education access of children in developing countries, in what could become an annual award in an “advanced” format.
They were awarded on Thursday by Dubai Cares for winning its Distinguished Philanthropic Award in Schools initiative. The campaign saw participating schools and students hold fund-raising events in support of Dubai Cares programmes.
GEMS The Millennium School won the Philanthropic School Award category for raising the most funds. Fund-raising figures were not announced during the award ceremony. However, students and staff from the school told ‘Gulf News’ they had raised a total of “around Dh330,000” from various activities.
As part of the award, the school received 30 iPads for its computer lab.
In the Young Philanthropists Award category, which recognises the group of students with the most creative fund-raising projects, GEMS Jumeirah College won first place. Four of the five students named in the announcement were present on stage, and each was awarded a MacBook Air laptop.
Their winning fund-raising activity involved a “24-hour circuit” where participants paid an entry fee for an exercise programme that ran around the clock. The students said they raised Dh19,000 from the activity.
“The initiative raises awareness and informs us why we are raising money. It inspires people,” said Zara Zaman, a winning student from GEMS Jumeirah College.
During the ceremony, held at Jumeirah Creekside Hotel, Dubai Cares also unveiled a surprise trophy that was given to Adnoc Schools (Females Branch), Abu Dhabi, which raised the most funds proportionate to its number of participating students. More details were not available during the ceremony.
Addressing the gathering, Dubai Cares CEO Tariq Al Gurg said the plan is to make the award an annual event, and “to build it into an advanced model”. He added that the “main aim of the award is to instill the spirit of volunteerism and charitable work” in the school community.
Al Gurg said: “The level of energy shown by schools and students through this initiative across the UAE has been truly inspiring. These awards enabled us, not only as a philanthropic organisation, but also as a country, to instill the social entrepreneurial spirit in our schools and children. The winners were awarded based on the process and the outcomes of their fund-raising efforts, and each entry has gone a long way towards supporting Dubai Cares and what we strive to achieve. I would like to thank all participants for their inputs and enthusiasm.”
During the ceremony, Dubai Cares also honoured its supporting partners in the initiative, namely the Ministry of Education, the Knowledge & Human Development Authority in Dubai and the Abu Dhabi Education Council.
The UAE-based global philanthropic organisation also acknowledged all participating schools.
Dubai Cares, part of Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Global Initiatives, aims to provide children in developing countries access to quality primary education.
