An artist seen making a clown face for a girl during Rota’s Garangao celebration at Hamad hospital.

Several organisations and companies have spread joy among children across the country with their Garangao celebrations.
Garangao, held in the middle of Ramadan, is celebrated mainly in Qatar, Kuwait and Bahrain and is a much-anticipated event for kids every year. Children dress in traditional clothing and go door-to-door in their neighbourhood to collect sweets and nuts.
In Qatar, a large number of organisations have taken the opportunity to bring a smile to the faces of children with special festivities. Following are the highlights of some of the events held on the occasion:

* Rota spreads happiness
Reach Out To Asia (Rota) has celebrated the joy of Garangao with child patients at Hamad hospital’s paediatric ward as part of its Ramadan 2013 Project, sponsored by Occidental Petroleum of Qatar Limited (Oxy Qatar).
Rota volunteers co-ordinated fun activities and games with the children for the traditional Qatari celebration and distributed bags filled with toys, sweets and nuts while they sang the traditional Garangao song.
“We thank all the Rota volunteers who visited the paediatric ward, celebrating Garangao with the staff and patients and helping sustain Qatari culture,” said a spokesperson for Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC), lauding the efforts of Rota.
“The Garangao celebration with child patients at Hamad hospital reiterates the importance of giving back to the community, which we are a part of. Rota is committed to engaging the local community and contributing to its welfare, especially during the Holy Month of Ramadan, where it is the custom to reach out to the less fortunate,” said Essa al-Mannai, Rota executive director.
He asserted that by helping build and strengthen the community, Rota was continuing to invest in the future of Qatar and its people, as well as creating a better future for the entire community.
Rota’s Ramadan 2013 Project sponsored by Oxy Qatar includes an extensive programme of community activities, such as distributing groceries to families in need, celebrating Iftar with community partners and conducting house renovation for families in need.
“At this special time of the year, it is a privilege for Oxy Qatar to be able to support and participate in the celebration of the joyful Garangao tradition with children and staff at Hamad hospital’s paediatric ward,” said Steve Kelly, Oxy Qatar president and general manager.
One of Rota’s private partners for the Ramadan 2013 Project, Salad Boutique restaurant, has announced that it will donate 5% of its daily sales to Rota. In addition, the restaurant will also include on its Instagram account a quiz about Rota. It will also host a Sohour today and all proceeds will be donated to Rota.
The donations will be used by Rota to support charity and goodwill projects to further improve the standard of living and quality of life for all. For more information on Rota’s Ramadan 2013 Project, visit www.reachouttoasia.org or www.facebook.com/reachouttoasia

* MoI shares joy and a message
Various departments of the Ministry of Interior (MoI) have joined other organisations in the country to celebrate Garangao Night with children through a number of outdoor activities.
The Traffic Department celebrated the night at Hyatt Plaza under the national traffic safety initiative - One Second - in association with Qatargas.
Young children, accompanied by famous cartoon characters, participated in a Garangao song during the event where sweets and other goodies were distributed. Several interesting contests were also held as part of the celebration to raise traffic safety awareness among children. The kids were quizzed on traffic signals, proper road crossing practices, how to get in and get out of school buses safely and other traffic safety tips. There was also a short skit on traffic safety for children.
Besides the celebration, the Traffic Department distributed Garangao gifts at its headquarters while a group from the department visited children at Hamad hospital to make them part of the festivities.
The Airport Security and Passports Department (ASPD) also distributed Garangao gifts for children arriving at the airport to help bridge the gap between security agencies, citizens, residents and visitors to the country.
A Ramadan tent set up by ASPD in association with Doha International Airport (DIA) has hosted several activities. Sheikh Dr Saad bin Ateeq al-Ateeq, director of the guidance office at King Khaled Military College in Riyadh, has presented a religious lecture. The programmes at the tent will continue until July 28.
The Traffic Department will continue with its safe driving awareness campaign launched in the beginning of Ramadan, for the seventh time in a row, apart from providing community Iftar programmes for Asian expatriates.
Lectures on traffic errors and safe traffic practices for motorists and pedestrians were included in the Iftar gathering. Meanwhile, the department’s mobile awareness vehicle visited various shopping complexes and crowded areas to show awareness films to the public.
The Ramadan safe driving campaign is sponsored by Qatargas, which has also participated in the Garangao celebrations by distributing goodies and toys to children at Hamad hospital.
Several activities are being carried out as part of this year’s Ramadan Road Safety Campaign for both adults and children.
Also, during the final week of the campaign, Qatargas will distribute infant car seats to parents of newborn babies at Hamad hospital.
The campaign is designed to deliver basic road safety messages such as the importance of following traffic rules and regulations and being attentive while driving and the dangers associated with speeding, not wearing seatbelts and using mobile phones while driving.
Meanwhile, Qatar Airways and DIA shared the spirit of the Holy Month with a special Garangao evening with youngsters from Shafallah Centre for Children with Special Needs. The event was held at the Ramadan tent organised by the MoI and sponsored by DIA. In keeping with traditional Garangao traditions, colourful lantern packages prepared by the Shafallah youngsters were presented to children at the event.

* Qapco reaches out
Qatar Petrochemical Company (Qapco) visited Qatar Foundation for Elderly People Care (Ihsan) to draw attention and show gratitude to the elderly as part of its annual Garangao celebrations held recently.
The company has also held Garangao festivities at both its Doha head office and its club in Mesaieed by setting up traditional tents in the two locations for more than 2,000 Qapco employees’ children, guests and passersby.
During the event, Qapco recreated the typical Garangao atmosphere, with children wearing traditional clothing and singing songs such as “Give us what God gives you, have a house in Makkah for your generosity” - their bags full of treats and sweets.
Qapco vice-chairman and chief executive officer Dr Mohamed Yousef al-Mulla said, “Sharing our culture and traditions with our employees and the community, via joyful celebrations such as Garangao, is important to us. Garangao is about celebrating and preserving our heritage and sharing the values associated with Ramadan with the younger generations. We are glad the evening was a success and that so many families participated in the gathering.”
Qapco also thanked the police and Doha Municipality for their assistance.

* Surprises from Al Mirqab
More than 100 children dressed in traditional costumes celebrated a colourful Garangao Night at Al Mirqab Boutique Hotel, part of the Souq Waqif Boutique Hotels, where they were treated to an evening full of fun-filled surprises.
The children were able to spend time with a storyteller who shared with them tales of Qatar’s culture and heritage, as well as enjoy a variety of activities that are part of the annual Garangao custom, including games of musical chairs, a creative arts and crafts session and Qatari bread baking, among other competitions.
The night ended with raffle draws for 10 complimentary Iftar and a one-night stay at Al Mirqab Boutique Hotel.
Vibranty-designed Garangao giveaways containing Arabic sweets, nuts and snacks were distributed to children during the event, which has been part of Qatar’s history.

* Ooredoo’s ‘friends’ bring smiles
Ooredoo has celebrated the Qatari tradition of Garangao with families and children at Souq Waqif as part of the company’s Alrabaa (friends) campaign during Ramadan.
Shortly after the Ishaa evening prayer, the Alrabaa - a group of seven characters - and volunteers from Ooredoo and the Qatar community, distributed sweets, sang songs and took photographs with children and families.
Community and public relations director Fatima al-Kuwari said, “Our Alrabaa campaign has seen great response on social media. While the Alrabaa have spread joy among hundreds of people in Qatar through their activities, the real impact has come online. Thousands of people in Qatar and around the world have enjoyed behind-the-scenes photographs and videos of the Alrabaa’s journey of doing good deeds.”
Ooredoo’s website, www.ooredoo.qa, and its social media pages, including www.facebook.com/OoredooQatar and Twitter @OoredooQatar, have been some of the most popular pages during Ramadan.
People have eagerly followed the Alrabaa’s activities, including helping people carry groceries and hail taxis at Villaggio, engaging in sports with labourers, giving toys to children at HMC and distributing Iftar boxes in the Ramadan cannon area.
Recognising the reach of social media, Ooredoo has also run its first Garangao contest on Instagram. People who post Garangao-related photographs and tag them with @OoredooQatar or #Alrabaa enter a draw for one of three BlackBerry Q10 smartphones. The winners will be announced on Ooredoo’s Instagram account on July 28.
The Alrabaa will offer encouragement to people on the Corniche on 23rd of Ramadan, perform good deeds at Al Khor Mall on 29th of Ramadan and take children from Dhreima (Qatar Orphan Foundation) to Gondolania at Villaggio on the third day of Eid al-Fitr.
Complementing the Alrabaa are charity initiatives such as “Sharing Spheres” at Villaggio for donation of goods and enabling Nojoom members to donate Nojoom Points to charity. Ooredoo has also pledged to donate 1dh per local call to charity during the Holy Month.

* Magic with Dukhan Operations
The Dukhan community has celebrated the annual Garangao Night in a colourful and joyous fashion.
Organised by Qatar Petroleum’s Dukhan Operations, the event was held at Dukhan Water Sports Club and attended by a large number of children and adults.
The evening started with the distribution of free cotton candy and popcorn among all the participants. This was followed by an interactive storytelling show, which included magic elements, puppets, a bubble-making machine and a balloon-twisting show.
Many of the children also took advantage of face painting and henna tattooing, which were available during the event. The night ended with the traditional distribution of Garangao packets among all the children.