Page 172 - UAE Foreign Aid Report 2022

United Arab Emirates
172
Foreign Aid Report 2022

Aid Allocation Overview

The Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Humanitarian practices, the Establishment continued to disburse all
and Charity Establishment has consistently its funding as grants.
demonstrated its commitment as a key foreign aid In terms of assistance category, the Establishment’s
donor from the UAE, disbursing a significant AED 91.8 allocation reveals that global development projects
million (USD 25.0 million) in 2022. This international aid remained the focal point, securing 85% of the 2022
touched the lives of people in 26 diverse countries. A funding. Charitable endeavors followed with a 12%
striking feature of the year’s funding was that over half allocation, with the balance channeling towards
was dedicated to an extensive multi-country initiative. humanitarian and emergency relief projects. In a regional
Additionally, while 10% focused on supporting 11 breakdown, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, and Afghanistan
of the world’s Least Developed Countries (LDCs), a emerged as the primary beneficiaries for the year.
significant one-third of the budget was allocated to aid On the global stage, aligned with the Sustainable
10 lower-middle income nations. Development Goals (SDGs), the Establishment threw
The Establishment’s operational strategy has its weight behind seven of the 17 SDGs, with SDGs 2
historically blended hands-on implementation with (Zero Hunger), 1 (No Poverty), and 3 (Good Health and
collaborations involving national non-governmental Well-being) taking the top spots.
organizations (NGOs) and civil society organizations Zooming out to view the Mohammed bin Rashid Al
(CSOs) in beneficiary nations. However, 2022 marked Maktoum Humanitarian and Charity Establishment’s
a notable shift in this strategy, as the organization philanthropic journey over the years, between 2018
took the helm to implement 100% of its foreign aid and 2022, it has channelled AED 340.8 million (USD
projects directly. This move not only demonstrated 92.8 million) into global development, humanitarian,
the Establishment’s evolving approach but also its and charitable pursuits, underlining its unwavering
faith in the effectiveness and efficiency of hands-on commitment to fostering change and promoting global
project management. Keeping consistent with its past welfare.

Allocation Insights

01 Commodity Aid

In 2022, the Commodity Aid Sector, with disbursements the region. This effort received more than half of the
reaching AED 52.9 million (USD 14.4 million), Establishment’s foreign aid budget for the year and a
was highlighted by the Mohammed bin Rashid Al significant 95% of the Commodity Aid Sector’s funds.
Maktoum Humanitarian and Charity Establishment’s One of the standout projects of the “1 Billion Meals”
pivotal focus on the “1 Billion Meals” campaign. This campaign was in Jordan’s refugee camps, where 3.6
ambitious initiative, under the subsector food aid and million meals were distributed. Utilizing innovative
food security programmes, allocated a budget of AED technology, instantly redeemable smart vouchers
50.2 million (USD 13.7 million) in 2022, represented were dispatched as electronic codes to beneficiaries’
a growth trajectory from its earlier campaigns. The mobile phones. This collaborative endeavor with
‘10 Million Meals’ campaign of 2020, launched the United Nations’ World Food Programme (WFP)
domestically, provided significant relief to COVID-19- enabled recipients to choose and purchase their
affected communities within the UAE. This initiative desired food from WFP-accredited outlets, providing
paved the way for the more expansive ‘100 Million both sustenance and a semblance of autonomy. This
Meals’ campaign of 2021, which sought to benefit innovative approach fortified food security for 40,109
communities across 30 countries. Impressively, this individuals in Jordan.
initiative not only met its intended target but secured
an astounding 216 million meals for communities In addition to the substantial “1 Billion Meals” campaign,
across the Middle East, Africa, Asia, Europe, and South the Establishment executed food distribution initiatives
America. The 2022 “1 Billion Meals” campaign, aiming in Tajikistan, emphasizing the broader theme of food
to deliver a billion meals to 50 countries, marked the aid and food security programmes. Concurrently,
apex of the Establishment’s food donation initiatives. the emergency multi-sector aid initiative ensured
Within just a month of its launch in April 2022, this that Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Tajikistan received
campaign achieved its grand objective, positioning vital emergency relief materials, underscoring the
itself as the most prominent food donation drive in Establishment’s multifaceted humanitarian outreach.