Charity helps educate two million in Yemen

Dubai: Dubai Cares' latest partnership with the United Nations Children's Fund (Unicef) will benefit more than two million children in Yemen, the charity campaign said on Sunday.

Gulf News quoted the chairperson of the campaign, minister of state Reem Ebrahim Al Hashemi, last week as saying that the campaign had already set aside funds to educate three million children, including two million in Yemen, tripling the initial target of educating a million children in developing countries.

Reem said earlier that the money raised was being spent carefully and that the partner organisations had agreed to only take minimum operational fees.

The money was raised by Dubai businesses and residents, as well as His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, in the campaign that started last Ramadan.

In Yemen, Dubai Cares and partner Unicef will support efforts that promote girls' education in rural areas, both through policy formulation and direct involvement in rural communities.

Reem said: "Despite an increase in enrolment rates from 73 per cent in 2000-01 to 76 per cent in 2004-05, the rate for girls was only 63 per cent in 2004-05." She said gender parity has been improving but it will still be difficult for Yemen to achieve its milennium development goals for gender equality by 2015.