Qatar Charity (QC) has launched the second stage of the strategic plan for the Rufaqaa Orphan Care Initiative under the slogan “Rufaqaa Continues to Give”, targeting to sponsor 150,000 orphans by the end of next year 2018.
Qatar Charity began its orphan sponsorship projects more than three decades ago as part of its social welfare services.
At the end of 2013, the Charity launched the Rufaqaa initiative that focuses exclusively on children and orphans around the world, aiming to take the lead in establishing social solidarity, to serve humanity and to contribute to sustainable development projects.
In less than four years, the Rufaqaa initiative has made Qatar Charity the largest orphan care organisation worldwide, sponsoring 106,000 orphans including the sponsorship of 73,000 orphans over the past four years alone.
This was achieved thanks to charitable people’s collaboration with the organisation in its efforts to include cases in need.
In his speech at the press conference that announced the launch of the second stage of the Rufaqaa Initiative’s strategic plan, Faisal al-Fuhaida, executive director of the Charity’s operations department, said that the success achieved in the first phase of the initiative would not have been possible without the comprehensive care provided for orphans at the educational, health and social levels.
“These services also included entertainment and training activities and programmes directly supervised buy our field offices around the world. This success is also due to the completion of a number of huge projects serving orphans such as the Sheikha Aisha bint Hamad Al-Attiya city in Sudan which serves 5,000 orphans, as well as orphan homes and institutions in Bangladesh which benefit 2,000 orphans.
“Moreover, we build excellent relationship with the sponsors, enabling them to follow up and check on their sponsored orphans in various easy methods, and we also facilitate the process of paying their donations.”
He also stated that the Rufaqaa Initiative continues its mission confidently under the slogan “Rufaqaa continue to Give” by launching the second phase of its strategic plan which aims to extend its aid to about 50,000 new orphans in several countries with the sponsored orphans to 150,000 by the end of 2018.
The charity wants to fill the gap in this field, especially with the continuing crises and disasters, the latest of which is the Rohingya crisis.
Al-Fuhaida expressed hope that charitable people will respond to this campaign.
He also thanked sponsors, donors and supporters of the programs and projects.
The Rufaqaa initiative’s 2018 plan aims to provide comprehensive care for additional 50,000 orphans around the world, as well as launching additional services for the current beneficiaries in various fields and expanding major orphan care projects.
Statistics indicate that three children lose one or both parents every three minutes around the world.
Qatar Charity, thought its Rufaqaa Initiative, is proud to sponsor more than 50 orphans every 24 hours which means 15,000 orphans every year.
The upcoming sponsorship projects will target orphans in Palestine, Turkey (Syrian Refugees), Lebanon, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Kosovo where each orphan receives aid equivalent to 250 Riyals per month, in addition to the Sudan, Indonesia, Pakistan and Tunisia projects where the monthly aid for each individual amounts to 200 Riyals.
Once a new sponsorship is established, the sponsor receives a detailed report of the sponsored orphan’s status (twice a year).
The sponsor will also be able to communicate directly with the sponsored orphan through voice and video calls.
Moreover, the sponsor will have an electronic account enabling him to manage his donations, track the transfers and review reports as well as have access to video and photographic reports and will be able to go on field trips to meet the sponsored orphans.
The press conference included a presentation about the Rufaqaa Initiative that displayed its most important achievements so far, the prizes it received, the projects it implemented and the services it offers for both donors and beneficiaries.
The presentation also referred to the Sheikha Aisha model village for orphans in Sudan, showed a video clip depicting the success story of a sponsored orphan, as well as the statement of an official from Al-Arqam Academy for girls who has participated in the Sponsoring School project that was implemented by the initiative.
The presentation also showed two pupils studying at school and who have participated in this initiative as a model for the youngest sponsors.
