Dubai: The UAE Water Aid Foundation (Suqia UAE) has launched a Ramadan campaign to provide free water bottles to the needy throughout the holy month.
Suqia’s annual Ramadan campaign is running for the ninth year in a row to provide water bottles to workers’ houses, needy families, mosques and Ramadan tents for fasting people across the UAE.
Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer, chairman of the Board of Trustees of Suqia UAE, announced this on Thursday.
The Ramadan campaign is being organised in cooperation with Mai Dubai and 14 local associations and charities in the UAE.
Providing updates about Suqia UAE’s acitivities in view of the World Water Day that was observed on March 22, Al Tayer said Suqia positively affected the lives of more than 13.6 million people in 37 countries worldwide since its establishment in March 2015 until the end of 2022. This became possible through over 1,000 sustainable water projects around the world.
The World Water Day this year was observed under the theme ‘Be the Change You Want to See in The World.’
Serving the quake-hit
This year Suqia provided relief for those affected by earthquakes in Syria and Turkey, in collaboration with the Emirates Red Crescent.
“It provided 50,000 cartons of drinking water bottles from Mai Dubai.”
Operating under the umbrella of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Global Initiatives Foundation, Suqia intends to expand the scope of its positive impact by working with its strategic partners to implement new projects outside the UAE to help the affected communities suffering from water scarcity.
The projects implemented by Suqia in 2022 vary from drilling artesian and hand pump wells, extending water distribution networks, and launching the water, sanitation and hygiene programme.
“In the Year of Sustainability in the UAE, we seek to consolidate the UAE’s position as one of the most generous countries worldwide. We continue our effective contribution to ending the global water crisis by developing innovative solutions to water scarcity, supporting sustainable growth, and achieving economic and social development, by providing water to the needy and afflicted in various parts of the world,” said Al Tayer.
He pointed out that this is especially important as the global water crisis is escalating.
“The United Nations declared that one in three people globally does not have access to safe drinking water. [More than] two billion people live in countries where the water supply is inadequate,” Al Tayer pointed out.
Fulfilling dreams
Al Tayer affirmed Suqia’s commitment to continue making a positive change in the lives of millions around the world by providing clean water, and turn their dream of access to clean and safe water into a reality.
Global Water Award
Al Tayer highlighted that Suqia’s goals are not limited to securing safe drinking water for those in need, but it also works to integrate innovative and sustainable technologies to be part of the solution to the global water crisis.
Suqia is supervising the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Global Water Award launched by Sheikh Mohammed. With total prizes of $1million, the Award aims to encourage research centres, individuals, and innovators worldwide to find new and innovative technologies to produce, distribute, store, monitor, purify, and desalinate water using renewable energy to counter water scarcity.
Suqia has concluded three cycles of the Award to date, and honoured 31 winners from individuals, leading institutions and research centres. The Award includes four primary categories: Innovative Projects Award, Innovative R&D Award, Innovative Individual Award, and Innovative Crisis Solutions Award.
Did you know?
1.4 million people die annually and 74 million will have their lives shortened by diseases related to poor water, sanitation and hygiene. (WHO 2022)
Today, 1 in 4 people – 2 billion people worldwide – lack safe drinking water. (WHO/UNICEF 2021)
Almost half of the global population – 3.6 billion people – lack safe sanitation. (WHO/UNICEF 2021)
Globally, 44 per cent of household wastewater is not safely treated. (UN-Water 2021)
Global water demand (in water withdrawals) is projected to increase by 55 per cent by 2050. (OECD 2012)
