Abu Dhabi National Hotels, its customers and business partners are helping thousands of youngsters in Iraq receive vital schooling.
An ADNH initiative in partnership with UNICEF has raised AED67,000, which will pay for nearly 6,000 Iraqi children to go back to school for at least one year.
The ADNH’s chain of nine Al Diar hotel properties in the UAE capital invited guests last year to add at least AED5 to their hotel bill and support UNICEF’s efforts to build a better life for Iraq’s young generation.
Al Diar guests raised AED23,000 in several months, which ADNH raised to AED50,000. A recent gala dinner at the Al Diar Sands Hotel in Abu Dhabi collected a further AED17,000 for the cause from ticket sales and a raffle draw.
At the dinner, attended by around 150 VIP guests, Khalfan Al Shamsi, Marketing Manager, Abu Dhabi National Hotels, handed over a cheque for AED50,000 to Omar Shehadeh, UNICEF’s Marketing Advisor in Dubai.
National carrier Etihad Airways joined in the fund-raising, contributing two business class tickets as raffle prizes on the night. “Iraq’s schools are in a desperate state,” said Talal Al Fahim, Director of Al Diar Hotels and Resorts. “The Al Diar campaign has been very successful in raising both money and awareness for UNICEF and its worthy cause. Al Diar is proud to have played a part and will contribute where it can in the future.”
Hussein Chehimi, General Manager of Al Diar Sands hotel, said: “The generosity of Al Diar guests has been tremendous, and everyone at the Sands Hotel is delighted the gala dinner was a great success, raising even more money for so many children in Iraq.”
Almost half of Iraq’s population is under 18, and youngsters are particularly vulnerable to malnutrition and disease. The situation is so critical that one in eight children in Iraq die before the age of five.
UNICEF is working closely with the Ministry of Education in Iraq to improve conditions. The UNICEF Iraqi Children Fund aims to raise US$30 million to help as many as 5 million school students in Iraq; money raised will go towards the rehabilitation and construction of 12,500 schools.
Omar Shehadeh of UNICEF said: “Abu Dhabi National Hotels and Al Diar Hotels have always supported our work, and they are the main sponsors each year of the UNICEF greetings card sales drive. This latest campaign was an opportunity for people to show how much they care about events in Iraq.”
UNICEF’s fund-raising efforts also involve collecting schoolbooks and other essential items. UNICEF is supporting an Iraq Ministry of Education survey to assess needs at 20,000 schools across the country. It is also working to compile school curricula and training for approximately 250,000 teachers.
