Dubai: Over 5,000 volunteers from the UAE have signed up for a unique global volunteers programme launched on Wednesday.
The programme launched by the Aster DM Health Care group to mark completion of 30 years in the UAE was also launched in honour of the Zayed Humanitarian Day to mark the death anniversary of the late Shaikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan, founding father of the UAE.
Talking about various aspects of the volunteer programme, Dr Zeba Moopen, management associate at Aster DM Health Care who launched the campaign, said: “We at Aster wanted to do our bit for to alleviate the world humanitarian crisis. So, in line with the Year of Giving, we decided to bridge the gap between those who had the time and expertise and those who needed it. You need not have medical expertise, it could be financial wizardry, or just offering time to help out a geriatric patient reach his appointment at a hospital, it could be any kind of help. Volunteers can register at www.astervolunteers.com and will be called upon to make a difference to the world we live in.”
Registered volunteers will work with Aster medical aid programme running in a host of countries around the globe such as at Al Zaatari, Al Azraq and Irbid camps for Syrian refugees in Jordan, the Salma food aid programme in conjunction with the Awqaf and Minors Affairs Foundation (AMAF) delivering food packets to famine-affected districts in Somalia, or participating in the ‘Save little hearts’ programme conducting free cardiac surgery on children in the Philippines and India, among several such projects.
Dr Azad Moopen, chairman and founder of Aster DM Health Care, told Gulf News: “I have been humbled by the love and support I have received here in the UAE and thought it was time for me to give back to this community. I have decided to contribute at least 20 per cent of my profits to charitable causes and thought why not involve the entire community to make this contribution truly memorable for those waiting to receive this help. A very small instance is the Basic Life Support (BLS) training programme which we started this year. We plan to train at least 300,000 people under BLS of which 200,000 would be in India, and at least a 100,000 across GCC countries. This, I feel, will not only empower those being trained but will prove decisive in saving thousands of life. There are several such programmes which will help us build a big volunteer support for the communities around the globe.”
Dr Ameen Hussain Al Amiri, assistant undersecretary for medical practice and licensing sector at the Ministry of Health and Prevention, lauded Dr Moopen for initiating the volunteer programme and signed up as the 5,651st volunteer. Other dignitaries who signed up were Indian Consul-General Vipul; Omar Abdul Aziz Nur, Consul-General of Somalia; Dr Sae’d Radadieh; Consul-General of Jordan; Tayyeb Al Rais, secretary-general of AMAF, among other dignitaries.
