UAE is ‘perfect centre for humanitarian aid’, says chief of top charity organisation

Jasmine Whitbread, who has been with Save the Children since 2005, says the UAE possessed physical and spiritual qualities that had positioned it as one of the top foreign aid donors in the world.

Abu Dhabi // One of the world’s top charity organisations has described the UAE as the perfect centre for humanitarian aid.

In a visit to the capital, Jasmine Whitbread, chief executive of Save The Children, said it is evident that there is great aid work being done.

“I think the UAE is definitely moving along in that area and am impressed by the willingness to look outward, work with others, and share knowledge, which results in much better-quality programming.”

Mrs Whitbread, who has been with Save the Children since 2005, said the UAE possessed physical and spiritual qualities that had positioned it as one of the top foreign aid donors in the world.

The UAE was the world’s 16th largest donor of foreign aid last year, spending Dh5.83 billion in 137 countries and earmarking a further Dh5.59bn for future projects.

“All these things that make the UAE the perfect port for business also make it the perfect centre for humanitarian aid. These include geography, logistics, coordination, transport and communication.

“On the softer side, there is a long tradition of giving in the UAE in terms of responding to the needs of the less fortunate, which is strong here and getting stronger.”

With conflicts in the region causing humanitarian crises in several countries, Mrs Whitbread said that the Middle East was increasingly becoming a priority for Save the Children.

“It is important for me to learn what the UAE has been doing in international humanitarian aid for the past 30 years,” she said.

Save the Children has already developed strong ties with UAE-based charity groups such as Dubai Cares, a charity launched in 2007 by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President and Ruler of Dubai, which works to improve children’s access to primary education in developing countries.

“After the launch of Dubai Cares we decided that in order to benchmark our work at the highest world standard it was necessary to engage partners who had proven methodologies and delivered sustainable impacts at scale,” said Tariq Al Gurg, chief executive of Dubai Cares.

Save the Children’s extensive experience in implementing the programmes Dubai Cares sought to create made it a natural partner, Mr Al Gurg said.

“We have been a key partner of Dubai Cares since 2008, who have contributed more than US$20 million (Dh73.4m) to programmes implemented by us that have impacted the lives of millions of children,” said Soha Ellaithy, director of Gulf partnerships at Save the Children.

Another UAE aid group that Save the Children is working closely with is Salam Ya Seghar Fund, established in 2008 by Sheikha Jawaher Al Qasimi to support Palestinian children.

“Together we are helping Palestinian children with special needs to lead as normal a life as possible as well as working with children suffering from malnutrition and other serious medical conditions,” said Mrs Ellaithy.

Mrs Whitbread’s upcoming visit to Jordan highlights the most pressing of all the organisation’s projects.

“The Syrian crisis is a huge and grave concern for us,” she said.

Being one of the few aid organisations operating in the country, Save the Children’s lack of accessibility was hampering its work on the ground, Mrs Whitbread said.

“Although we are reaching about 230,000 people, many thousands are not accessible to us.”

She said problems aid workers faced in Syria included kidnapping, which happened to six Red Cross workers and one Syrian Arab Red Crescent worker in the Idlib province last week, as well as numerous checkpoints in a confined area.

“There is a stretch of 60 kilometres with 50 checkpoints. You just can’t get from A to B.”

The consequences of aid not being able to reach those in greatest need has led to reports that two million children are at risk of malnutrition in Syria and that groups of Syrian imams are issuing fatwas that allow people to eat cats, dogs and donkeys to stave off hunger.

“If children are malnourished before the age of two they are at risk of being physically and mentally stunted for life.”

Referring to reports that UN chemical weapons inspectors were enjoying greater accessibility than those of aid workers, Mrs Whitbread said: “This is why we have redoubled our calls for humanitarian access to all sides and parties.”