Dubai: Donors will be able to check online in real time the “progress bar” of charity projects they choose to support under a new initiative called ‘Ahsen’.

Ahsen, which means ‘benevolent’ in Arabic, was announced in Dubai on Sunday by Mashreq Al Islami, the Islamic banking division of Mashreq Bank. It will support projects by UAE humanitarian entities Beit Al Khair, Dar Al Ber and Fujairah Welfare.

Donors will be given an online charity account that will list the projects being undertaken and the value of funds required to complete them. Once they select the project they would like to support, they can submit their donation to that project.

The progress of the donations — pooled from other donors — towards the target amount will be show in real-time on a bar. Once the target is met, the funds will be handed over to the entity handling the project. Donors will then get access to an online portal that tracks the progress of the project on the ground, with pictures, videos and other updates being posted as the project progresses towards completion.

Ahsen is being billed as the first project of its kind in the UAE, with real-time updates and interactivity offered to donors.

Donors who are not Mashreq Al Islami customers can also participate by following instructions to create their secure online profile.

The first four projects supported through Ahsen are education for 50 children, support for 50 orphans, Zakat Al Fitr (all three projects in the UAE and elsewhere) and wells and water access for 4,500 people in Ethiopia.

More projects will continue to be added as Ahsen evolves over time, officials said on Sunday during a press briefing.

Mashreq CEO Abdul Aziz Al Ghurair said donors will find Ahsen attractive, leading to more participation and donations. By giving donors access to monitoring of the developments, donors will be pleased to observe how their support is changing lives on the ground, he added.

“They will be flying to the location of the project, visiting homes of the recipients. This is the kind of feeling we need in society,” Al Ghurair said.

“We are blessed to be in a country where the culture of giving is deeply rooted in our society and it has been always nurtured by our leaders since the inception of the UAE.”

Any Mashreq customer can donate using MashreqOnline, Snapp or any of some 270 Mashreq ATMs. For non-Mashreq customers, the bank has launched an “instant” Islamic Account that can be opened “immediately” from its website, www.mashreq.com.

Ahsen projects

First Ahsen projects (UAE and elsewhere)

Education for 50 children

Support for 50 orphans

Zakat Al Fitr (staple food distribution to needy at the end of Ramadan)

Wells and water access for 4,500 people in Ethiopia