Donate new pillows to help workers fight off bedbugs

DUBAI A charity group is collecting up to 5,000 sets of pillows, mattresses and bed sheets to help construction workers get relief from the nightly scourge of bed bugs and lice in Dubai’s labour camps.

The annual Adopt-A-Camp campaign, now on its seventh year, hopes to rally more volunteers this year and aims to outnumber the 3,000 “care packages” collected and given away in Ramadan last year.

Saher Shaikh, a Dubai resident who founded the charity, said the group is working with the Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry and the Dubai World Trade Centre, where the items collected will be packed by volunteers.

“The problem with bed bugs is worse in these camps due the close proximity of people and high density of the residents, with so many men staying in one room. If one gets it, the bugs spread rapidly.”

The items the group gives are all brand new. The vacuum-packed pillows and bedding are part of the package neatly packed in a cardboard box and includes toiletries and personal hygiene items. A complete pack costs Dh125 at wholesale prices, said Shaikh.

“There’s no point in giving a new pillow if the bed linen is still the same,” said Shaikh.

“We’re asking people to try and get companies to sponsor personal hygiene items – toothpastes, toothbrushes, razors, soaps, shaving foams, prayer mats,” she said.

The group campaigns for the items throughout the year and distributes the boxes during Ramadan.

The deadline for all donations this year is July 24.

Hundreds then help repack them in one night at the Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC), prior to distribution. The repacking jamboree is set on August 9, from 9pm to 1am.

Good vibes

The volunteers also help clean up an entire labour camp.

“When we go, we give them the supplies,” she said. The charity targets groups of camps at a time all across the UAE.

The volunteers also go in groups to give the metal bed frames a complete wipe-down with disinfectant. “Metal is much easier than wood because there are no nook and crannies where bugs can hide.”

Some 16,000 packs had been distributed since the group started. The campaign has gained traction with residents here. Wahbeez Wankadia, a 42-year-old chemicals industry analyst, has been with the group for five years. “You feel a lot of good vibes doing this kind of work. It’s fun – my way of giving back to the community.”

The American Women’s Association in Dubai has pledged 5,000 pillows while the Jumeirah English Speaking School (JESS) has helped organised a cricket tournament to cover some of the care packages.

“The response from the communities is amazing. I’m blown away by the kindness of people here,” said Wankadia.

What if one can’t give anything now?

“It’s OK,” said Shaikh. “By just smiling at them [workers] or treating them with more respect, we would have succeeded in this campaign.”