A businesswoman in Dubai has pledged to provide free food to 17 needy families during Ramadan.
Saeeda Riaz, 40, who runs a property management company in the emirate, will offer food to people who have lost jobs or took pay cuts during the pandemic.
Families contacted her through the Helping Hands UAE Facebook group managed by Ms Riaz and her husband.
“I am providing them food that can be used for iftar and suhoor consisting of items like flour, dates, chickpeas and juices,” said Ms Riaz, from Pakistan.
“A lot of people have been affected by the pandemic and need help.
“I am paying for it as I felt it was important to support families who have been struggling.”
Ms Riaz said she made sure help was given to those who needed it the most.
“I had to do due diligence on the people applying and make sure they could prove they had lost their jobs or had received pay cuts because of the pandemic,” she said.
“There were quite a few people who reached out but couldn’t provide any documentation or proof. I felt they were just trying their luck to get free meals.”
Ms Riaz also helped several families last summer. They were mainly residents who lost their jobs or were waiting for clearance to return to their home countries. She let them stay for free at the properties she managed.
"Many of the families who are receiving the Ramadan packages contacted me after reading about Helping Hands last year in The National," she said.
“I was able to take a look at their circumstances and see who was most in need of help.
“One of the families was a widow with seven children. She hadn’t been hit by the pandemic but still needed help to provide for her children.
“Another husband and wife just came out of quarantine after contracting Covid-19 and he was not paid for the time he was off.
“They were relying on his Dh2,500 salary but missed out on half of it because he wasn’t able to attend work for 15 days.”
Filipino Mark Bolonio, 34, an office administrator, lost his job in June 2020. He praised Ms Riaz for helping him and his family.
“It is a big, big help. Both me and my wife have been out of work for so long,” said Mr Bolonio, father of an 11-month-old daughter.
“She also helped us by providing milk and diapers recently and I can’t thank her enough.”
Sheryl De La Cruz, 35, lost her job as a nursery assistant in Ras Al Khaimah last summer.
Her husband, who works as a chef, took a 50 per cent pay cut around the same time, leaving them with Dh1,500 to survive.
“We have two daughters, one is six-months-old and the other is three years,” she said.
“We are all living in the same room. We are extremely grateful for all the help Ms Riaz has given us.”
UAE's 10 million meals campaign in 2020 - in pictures
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A worker holds a food pack from Dubai's Beit Al Khair Society, as part of the Ruler of Dubai's 2020 campaign to deliver 10 million meals to low income residents. This year, the campaign will expand to 100 million meals in 20 countries in the region. All photos by Pawan Singh / The National -
Volunteers distribute food packages in Dubai in May 2020, as the social and economic impact of the pandemic is felt -
Restaurants across the city joined the campaign to feed workers in the absence of daily Ramadan iftars at mosques and in light of job losses and salary reductions -
Staff at Al Nadeg restaurant in Deira, Dubai box up fresh and dried food -
This box contains biryani, laban, fruit, dates and water -
Staff and workers practise social distancing -
Staff at Al Nadeg in Deira prepare fresh produce for the campaign -
Fresh roasted chicken is prepared for the next batch of boxes -
The 10 million meals project was brought in to replace the free iftars run by mosques across the country, which were halted due to the coronavirus -
Staff of Al Nadeg restaurant in Deira prepare the food to be delivered -
1,000 boxes were readied for this particular camp -
Roast chicken is prepared for delivery -
Restaurants across the city are volunteering their kitchens and staff as part of the campaign
