Noor Dubai signs agreement with Dar Al Ber Charity

Dubai: Noor Dubai Foundation has announced signing an agreement with the Dar Al Ber Charity to raise funds for restoring vision for the visually challenged around the world.

The agreement signed between Dubai Health Authority (DHA), Dar Al Ber Society and Noor Dubai will enable the foundation to conduct preventive and treatment programmes in the UAE and many other countries.

Dr Manal Taryam, Board member and CEO of Noor Dubai Foundation, said so far similar programmes have benefited more than 25 million individuals suffering from visual impairment since its inception in 2008 across 20 countries and 28 cities in Africa and Asia.

Dr Taryam said when Noor Dubai was first launched as an initiative in 2008, it aimed to treat and prevent visual impairment through educational and treatment programmes. She added that through its award winning outreach programme in the UAE, the mobile clinic succeeded in conducting vision screening on more than 7,000 individuals across various segments of society.

Find The Quality Of Air From Greenpeace’s Clean Air Nation App

As part of Clean Air Nation campaign, Greenpeace India has launched Clean Air Nation app which empowers users to find out the quality of air and how to protect themselves on bad polluted days and what actions government should take to protect public health.

Shivanandan L, Technology Manager at Greenpeace India, said, “As a father, I wanted to do something to highlight the dangers they face – which affect 35% of school going Indian children. The obvious answer would surely be to tackle the problem of air pollution by reducing emissions at sources. But in India that’s not going to happen quickly – so do people need to continue to suffer from hazardous PM and pollution – or can we introduce preventative measures now. I’m a tech minded guy – so is there some tech I can build which will help? So we decided Greenpeace India can create a solution which will help people to take precautionary measures for our loved ones.”

Once the user downloads the app, they can go through different cities’ air quality data as provided by the NAQI (National Air Quality Index). Depending on the quality of the air, the app will give users precautionary measures for different various groups (children, elders and pregnant women).

(source Next Big What.com)

Now Donation, recycling of digital devices just a click away

Dubai Municipality launches mobile app for overhaul of electronic devices.

Recycling your old digital devices is now just a touch away with the Dubai Municipality launching a mobile app that supports easy donation and overhaul of electronic devices.

The app called Taheel (refurbish in Arabic) is now available on Android and iOS applications.

With the slogan "your old device is gold for others," Taheel helps to access the municipality's Personal Computer Refurbishment Centre (PCRC) service now renamed as Digital Devices Refurbishment Centre (DCRC) from smartphones.

The services offered through the app include donating devices, requesting for used devices, technical training and support to establish a training lab using refurbished devices.

"This application enables community members and businesses to register donation requests and be aware of the available collection points and delivery options available," Head of the Centre Qasim Mohammed Rafi told Khaleej Times. On the other hand, he said, it also enables the authorised parties, who meet the requesting conditions, to request for these refurbished devices.

"Companies and others can send applications via the smartphone app. We will send a team to collect the donated items if they meet our criteria," said Rafi.

"If there is a big quantity of whole units of PC, say more than 25 complete units, we will send a team to collect them..For small quantities, we direct them to drop the used products at a nearby DM centre or to our office."

The contact details and locations of the PC Refurbishment Centre and Dubai Municipality centres where deliveries can be made are provided.

The interactive smart channel has been provided by the Dubai Municipality as a supportive step towards its efforts for environmental conservation and community service.

Reducing e-waste through charity

A website www.ddrc.ae has also been created to support the initiative that is aimed at considerably reducing e-waste in Dubai through an environmental-friendly and charitable project.

The civic body has collaborated with Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Humanitarian and Charity Establishment and Microsoft for the PC refurbishment and donation project.

While Microsoft offers the technical support, the charity helps in distribution of these devices to people, mostly students, in need across the UAE and abroad.

The initiative is for individuals, institutions and the general public to generously donate second-hand, damaged or discarded computers to the centre.

The items, after the necessary repairs, will be donated to educational institutions, social and charity organisations.

About 55,000 devices including over 17,000 desktop computers and about 1,300 lap tops were refurbished and donated to needy students since the inception of the centre in 2007 to 2014.

Another 10,000 devices including desktops, laptops, printers and scanners are being given for free to aid the students and other needy people this year.

More than 80 entities have listed themselves as bulk donors of electronic devices while the municipality has longer lists of establishments inside and outside the UAE as the recipients of these refurbished devices.

The municipality aims to popularise the app and the services of the centre during the Gitex Technology Week Exhibition.

The civic body will showcase the other mobile applications and e-services that its various departments are offering as well.

(with Inputs from Khaleej Times)

How Mobile Phones Are Making Childbirth Safer in Ethiopia

In Ethiopia where almost nine in every 10 women give birth at home after pregnancies with little or no medical support, a mobile phone app is coming to the rescue with lifesaving guidelines when things go wrong.

The "Safe Delivery App", created by the Danish development organisation the Maternity Foundation, provides simplified instructions and animated films to deal with emergency situations, be it haemorrhaging, birthing complications, resuscitating newborns or infections.

"Midwives may have skills and knowledge," said Mesfin Wondafrash, the Maternity Foundation's program manager in the Horn of Africa state. "But they may not apply the right procedures when complications arise - even simple complications."

At the touch of a button, the app can give crucial guidelines to birth attendants, who are often traditionally educated and may lack training in up-to-date procedures that could save lives.

The initiative is proving even more vital in rural areas, where the only help many mothers get is from family members or a local woman.

Described as an "emergency training tool", the app is available in local languages and in English. And a key asset: it can be pre-installed on a mobile telephone so it works even without a network connection or Internet access.

'Easy to understand, access, update'
Officially, 85 percent of Ethiopian babies are born at home. The hospital is often seen as an option only when major complications arise - often too late to save a life.

"Pregnant women wait at home and if a complication occurs, like bleeding, it may be too late to access care," Mesfin told AFP.

In a promising trial run, testing started last year in the small town of Gimbie in the Oromo region, some 450 kilometres (280 miles) west of the capital Addis Ababa.

A total 78 mobile phones with the "Safe Delivery App" were given to midwives attending local women.

"After a year, the capacity of the app users to manage bleeding rose from 20 to 60 percent, and for new born resuscitation, from 30 to 70 percent," Mesfin added.

"If all health care providers could use this app, safe delivery would increase."

The Maternity Foundation says the preliminary results "show a remarkable improvement in the skill and knowledge level of the health workers."

"The advantage of the app over a medical book is that it is easy to understand, easy to access and easy to update," said foundation chief Anna Frellsen.

Every year, five million babies and 289,000 mothers die from complications related to childbirth worldwide, with the majority of the deaths in developing countries such as Ethiopia.

The foundation - whose motto is "no women should die giving life" - aims to tap the sharp rise in mobile phone users in Africa, a technology, it said, that offers "abundant unexplored potential" to quickly reach otherwise hard to access areas.

"With the Safe Delivery App, we can overcome one of the biggest barriers to preventing maternal mortality: the lack of trained childbirth support. We can reach health workers that are otherwise difficult to reach," she said.

The app is also being tested in Ghana and will soon be deployed in Tanzania, Guinea and elsewhere. The foundation's goal is to equip 10,000 health workers by 2017.

"If we achieve that, we will have ensured a safer birth for approximately one million women," said Frellsen.

Courtesy Agence France-Presse

India’s First Civic Crowdfunding Platform, Fund for Unity Launched

Gurajat government has launched Fund for Unity, India’s first civic crowd

funding platform that facilitates public funding and participation in community development projects.

Fund for Unity is a digital initiative under the umbrella of the Statue of Unity project, and seeks individual public and private philanthropic funds for enhancing the social and physical infrastructure, and the HDI, in backward regions of Gujarat.

It is an interactive platform which can host fundraising campaigns for multiple projects. It provides a secure, socially connected, end-to-end user experience where a potential contributor can browse through listed projects, understand their respective value propositions, and contribute funds in Indian currency to the projects of their choice via a secure integrated payment gateway. Contributions made on this platform are eligible for exemption at 50% under section 80(G) of the Income Tax Act of India.

All projects listed on Fund for Unity are initiated and managed by entities validated by the Government of Gujarat. Through this platform, people from all walks of life can contribute funds to projects they see merit in, and work with the government to enhance the quality of life of communities they live in and care for.

Upon registering at Fund for Unity, users can view statistical information about the implementation, effectiveness and reach of projects they have supported on their personal dashboards. All projects will feature regular updates on implementation, thereby ensuring full accountability to contributors.

Uber rolls out service for seniors, people with disabilities in Singapore

SINGAPORE — Dozens of drivers from private-car sharing app Uber are now ready to help passengers with mobility problems, having completed a one-day course on disability equality.

Under uberASSIST, which was launched yesterday (Oct 29), drivers who are part of this specially-designed service will be able to provide additional assistance not just to physically-disabled passengers, but also to other groups such as senior citizens and the visually-impaired. uberASSIST vehicles can also accommodate most folding wheelchairs, walkers and scooters.

A 26-year-old Uber driver, who wants to be known only as Sham, is among those who have been handpicked to join uberASSIST due to the good ratings given to them by their passengers.

With a rating of 4.8 out of 5 and six months’ experience as an Uber driver under his belt, Sham said about two out of 10 of his passengers had mobility issues.

Sham said in the past, he would often go with the flow when dealing with such passengers. But after attending the course, developed and conducted by disabled trainers from consultancy firm LevelField, he learnt the dos and don’ts in handling such people.

“I learnt that being overzealous is not good, and I’ve learnt to understand their needs better,” said Sham.

“One (part) of the training included blindfolding us and letting us experience how it felt if (the driver) took away my walking stick… it was an eye-opener for me,” he added.

According to a National Council of Social Service estimate, more than 110,000 Singaporeans have some form of disability.

Disabled People’s Association’s executive director Dr Marissa Lee said a service such as uberASSIST is “an important step towards an inclusive society” as it allows persons with disabilities and senior citizens with mobility issues to be “given as many choices as possible”.

She said: “Back in the days, disability is quite a taboo subject. It’s very much about learning how to engage persons with disabilities on an individual basis, so it’s about being okay with asking and understanding their needs. If they say that they don’t need help, then they don’t need help – at least you asked.”

National para-athlete Theresa Goh, said uberASSIST will help persons with disabilities to feel more at ease.

Although she hoped that all drivers can eventually be trained to handle persons with disabilities, the 28-year-old added: “I understand that there are some drivers who have a little bit of physical impairments (themselves) too, like bad backs or something, so they cannot carry something heavy like a wheelchair”.

Uber hopes to fully add wheelchair accessible vehicles to its platform early next year.

Big-hearted UAE is world’s top donor: Report

Abu Dhabi — The UAE spent Dh21.63 billion in foreign aid in 2013 — more than any other nation in the world. The figure was revealed on Monday during the launch of the 2013 UAE Foreign Aid report, in the presence of His Highness Shaikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai; UAE ministers; and senior government officials.

“Our contribution has been predominantly towards development, helping people in the long term, eradicating poverty, establishing education systems and building sustainable life,” said Shaikha Lubna Al Qasimi, Minister of International Cooperation and Development.

According to the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), which records the foreign aid offered by nations around the world, the UAE rose from 0.33 per cent of the global official developmental assistance in 2012 to 1.33 per cent in 2013.

“For many nations around the world, this came as a surprise. They expected Switzerland, Luxembourg, (or) maybe Norway to come first,” said Erik Solheim, president of the Development Assistance Committee, which is affiliated to the OECD. “I came here today to thank you, on behalf of the world’s poor, and to ask you ... (to) ... please ... (not) ... stop.”

With the help of foreign aid, poverty was reduced by half in the last 20 years and malaria reduced by half in the last 10 years. Solheim expressed hope that the OECD will set a new target to eradicate absolute poverty by 2030 and that the UAE’s vision and contribution to developing nations in need will set an example for the world’s richest.

The UAE’s Dh21.63-billion contribution was disbursed via 38 donor entities in 145 countries. Of the net amount, 94.6 per cent was for development projects, and the rest divided between charitable assistance (2.9 per cent) and humanitarian aid (2.5 per cent).

Not surprisingly, countries in the Middle East and the region received the biggest chunk of the aid, especially countries affected by conflicts and political unrest. Egypt, which received Dh16.99 billion, topped the list, followed by Jordan with Dh582.93 million and Pakistan with Dh546.54 million.

The UAE also offered aid to less obvious contenders such as Europe (0.78 per cent), North America (0.01 per cent) and Australia and New Zeeland (0.01 per cent).

“Some may point the finger at the UAE for spending most on regional countries, but helping out ... those close to you (first) is normal and commendable. They are the people of your neighbourhood, with whom you have historical and cultural ties,” stressed Solheim.

Shaikha Lubna said: “When your immediate environment is in conflict, it has an impact on you, so we need to help them to avoid being affected ourselves.”

During the launch of the report, Shaikh Mohammed awarded the 38 entities that contributed to the UAE foreign aid in 2013.

Among them were 17 government ministries and authorities, which disbursed Dh17.85 billion for development, humanitarian and charity programmes in 30 countries. The largest sum came from the Abu Dhabi Department of Finance, which gave Dh16.7 billion to Egypt in the form of bilateral assistance.

Other prominent contributors were the Abu Dhabi Fund for Development (Dh1.68 billion); Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan Foundation (Dh776.8 million); Red Crescent Authority (Dh556.46 million); Dar Al Ber Society (Dh126.4 million); Sharjah Charity Association (Dh91.79 million); Ahmed bin Zayed Al Nahyan Charitable and Humanitarian Foundation (Dh77.4 million); and Al Maktoum Foundation (Dh56.36 million).

courtesy an article published in khaleejtimes

Clothes donations shouldn’t be just about clearing out, UAE charity projects head says

ABU DHABI // On the ground floor of a two-storey building in Mussaffah, about a dozen women sit at desks, closely inspecting and sorting through piles of clothes. Even the smallest stains are detected and clothes are cast aside as unsuitable.

Manal Salim, a supervisor, holds up what looks like a perfect purple T-shirt.

“No,” she says. “This looks all faded and you wouldn’t wear it.”

The shirt joins countless others in a pile.

The items that have passed the scrupulous inspections are folded, sealed in plastic, marked with the size and placed in large, labelled cabinets that fill a corner of the workspace.

In a few days, the clothes will be packed into a lorry and sent to people in need as part of the Hefz Al Nema, or saving grace, charity project administered by the Emirates Red Crescent.

“When donating, always think, ‘would I wear this?’,” says Sultan Al Shehi, the head of the charity projects department at the office of Sheikh Hamdan bin Zayed, Ruler’s Representative in the Western Region. “If it’s good enough for you, then it’s good enough for others. There is an etiquette to donating. The clothes should be in good condition, clean and even perfumed.”

Clothes deemed unfit to be given away are sent to factories for resale. Those that require only cleaning are sent to a laundry.

“Donation shouldn’t be about giving away what is old,” says Mr Al Shehi. “We need to change this mindset. It isn’t right. This donation goes to God before it goes to the poor.”

This culture is needed and while the UAE is “known for being one of the most charitable countries in the world, it is lacking”.

“To donate what is important to you, not what you don’t need or what is old. Yes, the poor will take it anyway because they are in need, but why don’t we be more civilised then that?”

Ms Salim calls on those in need and asks what size they wear, their favourite colours and their specific needs. “We have requests for different things, such as blankets, abayas, dresses and kanduras. We try to make sure that we send them what they want.”

On the second floor of the building there are wedding gowns and fancy dresses. The gowns are loaned to brides-to-be.

“Brides will be given a wedding dress of their choice on loan and a gift with them. They can even come here and try the dresses on,” says Ms Salim.

The gifts are usually perfumes, accessories and other dresses.

“Most of these brides are orphans, so we try to give them everything they need. Help them furnish their house and so on.”

Six wedding dresses have been sent to the Zaatari refugee camp in Jordan.

Clothes to be delivered within the UAE are packaged in gold boxes that carry no signs or logos.

“It is important for us that these feel like gifts and don’t have the Red Crescent logos,” says Mr Al Shehi. “The delivery lorries also have no signs on them.”

The Emirates Red Crescent logo is only on boxes shipped abroad.

Last year 1,326 families in the UAE received these parcels, amounting to more than three tonnes of clothes.

Mr Al Shehi also plans to launch electronic donation boxes inside buildings. These will have electronic screens with awareness messages.

“We are still in the initial stages, but we hope to have these in every building. It is cleaner and offers easier access for residents.”

He says the receptacles will be sealed, and will sound an alarm when they are full.

“We will have a lorry pass by and unload them. There will also be options for different categories, such as shoes, blankets and clothes.”

The programme also sends food packages, home appliances and furniture.

Those who want to donate can call the toll-free number 800 5011, or 050 906 8204.

“Our service is door to door,” says Mr Al Shehi. “A lorry will come and pick up the donation, and then deliver it to the doors of people in need.”

courtesy an article written by Shireena Al Nowais on The National

salnuwais@thenational.ae

Dubai municipality honors Malabar Gold & Diamonds

Dubai, Feb 11: Dubai municipality honored Malabar Gold & Diamonds, one of the leading jewellery group with over 126 retail outlets for its outstanding support and participation in the public awareness campaign, ‘ Clean up the world 2014’. Hamza K S, manager, CSR of Malabar Gold & Diamonds received the award from engineer Saleh Abdulrahman Amiri, assistant director of General Environment & Public Health Services and engineer Abdul MajeedSaifaie, Ddrector of Waste Management Department & Head of Clean up the World team 2014.

Being a sponsor of the event, Malabar Gold & Diamonds, one of the leading jewellery groups supported the campaign in the emirate of Dubai launched by H EEng. Hussain Nasser Lootah, Director General, Dubai Municipality under the slogan ‘ Our Place…Our Planet...Our Responsibility’.

The event, which was aimed at creating public awareness on maintaining clean city, was held in different parts of Dubai and above 40,000 registered volunteers from different walks of life took part in it.

To support this initiative, volunteers from Malabar Gold & Diamonds joined the officials from various government departments, schools and other delegates to clean various parts of Dubai.

The official bodies of UAE give significant importance to the health and safety of the environment and run different cleaning campaigns to improve the quality of life here. It also keeps attracting millions of tourists to this magnificent country. Multinational companies like Malabar Group can play an important role to enhance the standard of living of the community and it sets a wonderful example of philanthropy that others can follow.

Speaking on this occasion, Shamlal Ahamed, managing director of International Operations, Malabar Gold & Diamonds said, “We believe that companies like us can bring a real difference to the society by actively getting involved in CSR activities. We encourage more companies in UAE to support such initiatives, as it is only through our combined efforts that we will be able to pass on this beautiful country for our future generation.”

Similar initiatives were taken by Malabar Gold & Diamonds in Bahrain and in India and it drew good response from the public.

CSR activities are a fundamental part of Malabar Group’s culture and the organization ensures that a fixed percentage of its net profit is used for CSR activities every year.The group supports many philanthropic activities and is always ready to take initiatives to help the deprived section in the society. The key focus areas of the CSR initiatives of Malabar Group are in the areas of Health, Education, Women Empowerment, Housing and Environment.

The company, which has a strong corporate social responsibility scheme embedded in its system, is committed to make a difference in human lives by spending over Rs300 million in charitable activities in the year 2015, part of the Rs850 million earmarked for charitable activities between 2012 - 2015.

Charity dinner in support of Emirates Red Crescent held in Dubai

DUBAI: A charity dinner event was held in Dubai recently in support of the Emirates Red Crescent and the UAE Compassion (Tarahamu) campaign, organised by Richmond Hughes Limit

ed, Gallery Ward and Nenu Tech.

The UAE Compassion (Tarahamu) campaign was launched earlier this year on the directives of President His Highness Sheikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, with the patronage of Vice President and Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, to help Syrian refugees caught in the biting cold in the Levant this winter.

Pir Shafi Muhammad from Richmond Hughes, Yaser Askar and Maha Alsharif from the Gallery Ward welcomed the guests. Salem Bin Dasmal, Founder of the Silver Spoon Investments, was the major sponsor of the event.

Prominent personalities who graced the occasion included Misbah Ahmad, Vice President, Dun & Bradstreet South Asia Middle East Limited; Muhammad Kamal and Mr Hassan from Emirates Red Crescent; Kashif Arbab, CEO, Envestors, MENA — an affiliate of Capital Quantum; Ahmad A.Fahmy, Senior Projects Manager, Alico; Ivan Woods, Executive Director, Arqaam Capital; Shanka Abeywardene, Senior Director, Alpen Asset Advisers and Asela Abeywardene; Liv Baggen, Associate Director at Lawrie Shabibi; Pir Abdul Wahid, a prominent lawyer from Pakistan; Zafar Mahmood and Altaf Shah from the NTES Group; Jahangir Moghal, a senior immigration lawyer from Child & Child, UK; Maisoun Sharif, Muhammad Arif, Faisal Rehman from the BSI bank; Ali Walayat a senior banker, and others.

Welcoming the honourable guests, Pir Shafi Muhammad said: “It is an integral part of Richmond Hughes’ vision and mission to organise events aimed at making a positive contribution to the society and we thank Allah for all the blessings he has bestowed on us.”

The event showcased art pieces, including paintings, photographs and sculptures from the contemporary artists belonging mainly to the Middle East region. The guests and art connoisseurs were impressed with the modern trends depicted by the young and not-so young artists. They particularly evinced keen interest in the photograph ‘Dubai’ by Ayman Lotfy, the painting ‘Being’ by Irfan Gul Dahri and a bronze piece titled ‘Cat’ by Essam Darwish. 

The event was a resounding success both in terms of promoting current artists from the Arab world as well as generating proceeds to be spent on noble causes through the Tarahamu campaign and the Emirates Red Crescent.

Later, Pir Shafi Muhammad thanked all the participants and the event sponsor, Salem Bin Dasmal, for the memorable event.

The event was the first in a series of fundraising events for charity Richmond Hughes – a real estate investment company with a focus on the London property market — plans to organise in the Middle East and UK this year. Richmond Hughes hosted a similar fundraising event in London in December 2014, co-hosted by Lahd gallery. The event was attended by prominent personalities from London and funds were raised through an arts auction in support of Nishat Welfare Organisation and Caspian Arts Foundation.

The Red Crescent in Dubai has worked since its establishment to promote the spirit of solidarity and compassion among the community members, and thanks the support and assistance of the philanthropists and benefactors for its charitable programmes. It has crossed several milestones of providing services in the humanitarian field. The Emirates Red Crescent has expanded its programmes and activities to include all walks of life and various aspects of support and assistance for low-income (limited) and needy people and families.