Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President and Ruler of Dubai, has announced a new campaign to begin at the start of Ramadan.
In a message shared online, Sheikh Mohammed said the initiative aims to donate one billion meals to the poor and hungry around the world.
It will run until the goal of raising enough money to fund one billion meals has been achieved.
“Brothers and sisters, today we announce the one billion meals campaign for the poor and the needy around the world,” Sheikh Mohammed wrote.
“The campaign will begin at the beginning of the holy month and will continue for the coming years until the goal is achieved.
“Its motto: 'A person who sleeps with a full stomach while his neighbour is hungry is not a believer.'
“Eight hundred million people suffer from hunger around the world. Our humanism and our religion push us to extend a helping hand.”
Food parcels are already being distributed in collaboration with the UN World Food Programme, the Food Banking Regional Network (FBRN), the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Humanitarian and Charity Establishment (MBRCH) and humanitarian organisations in targeted countries.
“The goal of this campaign is to deliver one billion meals and one billion humanitarian messages from the UAE to the world," Sheikh Mohammed said.
“The best charity is to [donate] food and the best of peoples are those who are thoughtful of others.
“Our country is preserved with the kindness that we offer to the needy.
“Our date is on the first of Ramadan, God willing, and we ask God to accept from us and from you our good deeds.”
During Ramadan 2021, the UAE set a target of raising enough donations for 100 million meals. This target was reached within 10 days.
Organised by Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Global Initiatives, the total was reached thanks to the generosity of 185,000 donors, which included individual people and companies, inside and outside the UAE.
The One Billion Meals campaign aims to secure food aid for vulnerable communities in 50 countries, supporting efforts to achieve the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goal 2 that aims to end hunger by 2030.
About 25,000 people die of hunger daily and of the 800 million malnourished people on Earth, 52 million are in the Mena region.
Last year's 100 Million Meals campaign provided support such as food parcels and instant smart vouchers to millions of people across four continents including in Palestine, Lebanon, Jordan, Sudan, Yemen, Tunisia, Iraq, Egypt, Kosovo, Brazil, Benin, Burundi, Tanzania, Ethiopia, Senegal, Kenya, Uganda, Ghana, Angola, Sierra Leone, India, Nepal, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan.
The series of food campaigns started with the locally held 10 Million Meals that supported communities hit by Covid-19 across the UAE throughout Ramadan in 2020.
100 Million Meals campaign distributes more than 10 million meals in the UAE in 2021: in pictures
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The 100 Million Meals campaign has successfully distributed 10,868,400 meals in the UAE, in collaboration with the UAE Food Bank. All photos: UAE Government Media Office -
Organisers said there were a total of 362,280 beneficiaries in the UAE, made up of 182,916 low-income families and 179,364 low-income individuals. -
The 100 Million Meals campaign aims to provide food to those in need across more than 30 countries. -
People involved in the project are hard at work. -
Generous public donations have helped to raise enough money to exceed initial targets. -
Sara Al Nuaimi, director of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Global initiative. -
Eng. Dawood Al Hajri, vice chairman of the board of trustees of the UAE Food Bank.
