ABU DHABI // Almost 650,000 people in Yemen have benefited from the Emirates Red Crescent aid programme during the conflict there.
The charitable organisation said its team of 170 volunteers and employees helped 643,909 people and more than 90,000 families in Aden and surrounding towns. The aid included food, maintenance equipment and machinery.
About Dh81 million was spent on renovating schools and distributing stationery and school bags to pupils.
More than Dh10m had been spent on repairing the sewer system in Yemen, as well as buying waste-collection lorries and containers.
About Dh48.5m was allocated for medical services and health projects in Aden, which will be used to rebuild hospitals, equip health centres, and maintain medical supply warehouses.
Another Dh4m was allocated for cancer medication and kidney patients, while an additional Dh5m was used to purchase ambulances and vehicles used to transport medicine.
The Restore Hope Hospital in Ramah was refurbished by the ERC, while the organisation had also organised three social entertainment festivals for children. It was also working to repair and maintain the Corniche in Aden at a cost of Dh4m as well as eight separate gardens for Dh16m.
During Eid Al Ahda, the ERC provided social assistance programmes for sacrificial animals and clothes.
It also recently implemented a programme to provide assistance for the families of fallen Yemeni soldiers in Aden.
The UAE’s Minister of International Cooperation and Development, meanwhile, met the president of the Red Cross to discuss the ERC efforts in Yemen and possible collaboration.
Sheikha Lubna Al Qasimi, also head of the UAE Committee for the Coordination of Humanitarian Aid, met Peter Maurer to discuss Red Cross plans to respond to disasters in the Middle East. She also described the UAE’s relief efforts in Yemen, as well as in Syria.
aalkhoori@thenational.ae
