*Festive evening highlighted traditional Qatari culture with a range of games, stories and authentic cuisine
To mark the holy month of Ramadan, Qatar Airways celebrated its annual Garangao event with its staff and their families on May 20 at Katara Hall. Special guests from Doha’s Shafallah Centre for Children with Special Needs were also present to enjoy the Qatari customs and traditions, alongside the community of Qatar Airways employees and their families.
Qatar Airways’ mascots, Orry and Orrah, also made a special appearance to bring joy to the children. The celebration featured a number of traditional Qatari houses and tents, each with a surprise awaiting the guests, as well as a range of traditional games that introduced the children to the way games were played in the past. Authentic Qatari cuisine was also served to further create an experience celebrating the uniqueness of Qatari culture for the children. Families enjoyed the festivities and celebrated this entertaining and culturally-engaging event as the children collected treats and listened to stories from the past.
Qatar Airways Senior Vice President Human Resources, Nabeela Fakhri, said: “Celebrating Garangao is a wonderful way to rejoice in the spirit of Ramadan and to share Qatari culture with our Qatar Airways family and our guests from Shafallah Centre. This joyous event was designed to highlight local traditions and customs, and provide a platform for our children to participate in a variety of traditional activities that have been passed down through generations. Through this event, we hope to instill Qatari traditions among younger generations and to foster social engagement throughout the entire community.”
“Qatar Airways is deeply committed to investing in the Qatari community though our range of CSR initiatives, and I am delighted that our Garangao celebration brought families together in this atmosphere while also helping to maintaining a link between children and our rich cultural heritage. As the national carrier of the State of Qatar, one of our primary values is pride in Qatar, and we are delighted to display this by providing a rich learning experience and wonderful evening for our guests.”
Garangao takes place in the middle of Ramadan after sunset prayer. On Garangao, children walk through their neighborhoods, knocking on doors and collecting nuts and sweets. On this day, children are also encouraged to wear colourful traditional clothing to further enhance the festivities.
Qatar Airways is proud to partner with Doha’s Shafallah Centre to provide adults with special needs with employment opportunities at Qatar Airways. This partnership is in line with the Qatar 2030 Vision to contribute to community development. Corporate Social Responsibility is an important part of Qatar Airways’ values. The airline is a proud supporter of the Educate A Child programme, an initiative that provides educational opportunities to children without access to education due to constraints such as extreme poverty, cultural barriers and conflict-affected environments.
A multiple-award-winning airline, Qatar Airways was named ‘World’s Best Business Class’ by the 2018 World Airline Awards, managed by international air transport rating organisation Skytrax. It was also named ‘Best Business Class Seat’, ‘Best Airline in the Middle East’, and ‘World’s Best First Class Airline Lounge’.
Qatar Airways currently operates a modern fleet of more than 250 aircraft via its hub, Hamad International Airport to more than 160 destinations worldwide. The airline will add a number of new destinations to its extensive route network in 2019, including Izmir, Turkey; Rabat, Morocco; Malta; Davao, Philippines; Lisbon, Portugal; Mogadishu, Somalia and Langkawi, Malaysia.
