The single largest contributor to the “1 Billion Meals Endowment” has promised to keep supporting UAE humanitarian initiatives in the future and has urged individuals and businesses to contribute more to the ongoing Ramadan campaign, which aims to establish the largest sustainable food aid fund.
Azizi Developments’ commitment to the “1 Billion Meals Endowment” now totals a staggering Dh100 million after adding an additional Dh50 million to its initial Dh50 million pledge to the annual initiative launched by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, that got underway on the first day of Ramadan this year.
Farhad Azizi, CEO of Azizi Developments, told Khaleej Times in an exclusive interview on Friday: “We’re donating Dh100 million – one shot – to one initiative.” This effort has had a huge impact on so many people’s lives. We participated both last year (the corporation donated Dh10 million) and this year. We will participate in the future.
Azizi stated that an estimated 800 million people do not have enough food to eat every day, making world hunger a serious issue. He went on to say that “the campaign will establish a sustainable framework to aid those in need all over the world.”
“We will assist in any way we can.”
Azizi, 38, who moved to Dubai as a young child and grew up learning from his father, Mirwais Azizi, who founded Azizi Group in 1989, said it is up to each and every one of us to contribute – in whatever capacity we can – to secure a brighter future in which all of humanity has access to essential, healthy nutrition.
Azizi noted that their exceptional luck logically resulted in their sizeable donation to the UAE’s food drive. We always believe in giving back as a family and as a company, he said. It is only fair that we pay back the nation for all that it has done for us.
“When we first came here more than 30 years ago, my father ran a business with just a few million dirhams, but today our businesses (trading, banking, real estate development) have grown so much that the family is dealing in multi-billion dirham deals,” he explained.
Increased efforts
According to the company, the most recent donation to the “1 Billion Meals Endowment” campaign is just one of many endowments included in Azizi’s CSR (corporate social responsibility) portfolio.
“We have been involved in many initiatives, such as athletic competitions, women’s empowerment, medical assistance, scholarship grants, and more,” he claimed. Over the past 6-7 years, we have provided support to the Rashid Centre for People of Determination and the Dubai Autism Center. We’ve built cancer patient hospitals in Afghanistan along with dialysis centers and orphanages. We also provide scholarships to support students attendance at other colleges and universities.
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