UAE raises over Dh40 million for Rohingyas refugees
More than 900,000 Rohingya live in one of world’s biggest refugee areas in Bangladesh
Dubai: A nationwide campaign to support Rohingya refugees raised Dh40,159,814 on its second day, Saturday, with residents and charities across the country showing their full support.
Under the directives of President His Highness Shaikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the humanitarian initiative, titled ‘From the UAE for Rohingya Children and Women’, aims to provide more than one million displaced refugees with food supplies, medical assistance, clean water, education and housing.
The Rohingya are an ethnic minority people living in Myanmar (formerly Burma). An estimated one million Rohingya used to live in the county’s Rakhine State, and were forced to flee to neighbouring Bangladesh after a series of military crackdowns took place between 2016 and 2018.
The campaign is supported by His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai and His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, and is overlooked by Shaikh Hamdan Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Ruler’s Representative in Al Dhafra Region, Chairman of the Emirates Red Crescent.
The campaign continues tomorrow and will be jointly aired live by a number of TV channels, starting 4pm through 7pm.
According to international statistics, the vast majority of Rohingya refugees are made up of women and children, with at least 660,000 children lacking access to health care services, education, food and water, and over 253,000 women having no access to clean water and sufficient food.
The campaign will continue over two weeks to receive donations across multiple platforms set by the participating charities, along with the Emirates Red Crescent.
On Sunday, Al Ansari Exchange, the UAE-based foreign exchange and worldwide money transfer company, announced a donation of Dh1 million to the UAE Red Crescent Society in support of the campaign.
“Our donation to the campaign aims to alleviate the suffering of the Rohingya refugees by providing much needed assistance to women and children across the fields of education, health, shelter and food. It is also in response to the directives of our wise leadership to support the Rohingya refugees, where the UAE has provided considerable assistance since the onset of the crisis,” said Mohammad Al Ansari, Chairman and Managing Director of Al Ansari Exchange. Currently, more than 900,000 Rohingya live in one of the world’s biggest refugee areas in Bangladesh.