DUBAI // Ninety tonnes of relief supplies for refugees were airlifted to Uganda this week with the help of Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid.
The Dh1.6 million in aid from Dubai’s International Humanitarian City was flown to Entebbe on Tuesday on board a Boeing 747B loaned by the Vice President and Ruler of Dubai.
The shipment was sent to help South Sudanese refugees who have fled to Uganda to escape the civil war in their country. Most refugees are women and children and many arrive to Uganda on foot and malnourished.
It was the second such aid shipment supported by Sheikh Mohammed for South Sudanese refugees this month and the third airlift to Entebbe in the past year.
The supplies were donated by the World Health Organisation, Unicef, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, and the UN Humanitarian Response Depots.
The aid includes shelter, water, sanitation items, school materials, logistics assets and medical supplies.
Princess Haya bint Al Hussein, Chairwoman of International Humanitarian City, thanked those who helped send the shipment “in record time”, calling the plight of South Sudanese refugees “horrific”.
“I pray we see a political solution that puts an end to the civil war, which has led to famine and millions fleeing their homes,” she said.
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