Water Aid raises Dh4m in 24 hours

Contributions to the UAE Water Aid campaign continued to pour in on Thursday, with more than Dh4 million donated in 24 hours to provide drinking water to more than 160,000 people in impoverished parts of the world.

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DUBAI // Contributions to the UAE Water Aid campaign continued to pour in on Thursday, with more than Dh4 million donated in 24 hours to provide drinking water to more than 160,000 people in impoverished parts of the world.

Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan Charitable and Humanitarian Foundation donated Dh2.5 million to the campaign. The sum will provide clean drinking water to 100,000 people.

Damas Jewellery and Mohammad Al Sayah each donated Dh500,000 that will help to provide fresh drinking water to 20,000 people.

Mohammed bin Rashid Housing Establishment donated Dh200,000, while Dubai Civil Aviation Authority, Al Hathboor group and civilian Ahmed Saeed Al Mulla each donated Dh100,000. Their donations will provide clean water to 20,000 people.

Community Development Authority staff donated Dh55,850 – enough to help 2,234 people.

The Dubai Ladies Club said it would allocate proceeds from the Designs of Hope exhibition, from July 15 to July 17, to the initiative.

The campaign aims to provide fresh drinking water to five million people in poor parts of the world.

Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President and Ruler of Dubai, launched the drive that targets conglomerates and individuals alike.

The campaign has so far raised more than Dh111.3m – achieving more than 89 per cent of its Dh125m target – providing drinking water to 4,452,000 people. Of the Dh103.2m donated in the first 10 days – enough to provide 4.1 million people in undeveloped countries with fresh water – Dh8.8m was given by the public via text messages.

The UAE spent Dh1 billion between 2009 and last year on water projects around the world.

These projects have helped to improve school enrolment rates, and have been particularly beneficial for girls living in rural areas as they could now spend less time collecting water from distant wells.

The availability of water has also allowed women to take better care of their families, which has led to improved child health and has given families more time to spend on gaining livelihoods.

The UAE has provided better water resources in more than 61 countries, helping to reduce conflicts and provide security.

The country’s assistance in building dams and major water projects is not limited to providing drinking water, but has also helped agriculture and hydroelectric schemes.

newsdesk@thenational.ae