UAE to boost ties with global humanitarian institutions

The UAE Minister of International Cooperation and Development, Sheikha Lubna bint Khalid, has said that her ministry will work as an umbrella that will seek to improve the UAE’s relations with the rest of the world and that it will act as the UAE’s medium into effectively coordinating the efforts of humanitarian institutions.
Her remarks came during the concluding ceremony of the Dubai International Humanitarian Aid and Development Conference and Exhibition (DIHAD 2013) yesterday. The conference, which was inaugurated by Princess Haya bint Al Hussein, UN Messenger of Peace and Chairperson of the International Humanitarian City, has witnessed extensive discussions by a large number of researchers, academics and social workers from 66 countries.
They mainly discussed key issues related to improving partnerships on critical humanitarian and development issues. The meeting also discussed partnerships in the food security and disaster response processes.
A number of distinguished international figures, including British Minister of State for International Development, Alan Duncan, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) António Guterres and many other GCC figures representing various international and regional humanitarian institutions and donor agencies attended the event.
“In ten years since its inception, DIHAD has become an event of global importance. None of the major humanitarian and development goals — be it to eliminate poverty, foster education and healthcare, rebuild communities destroyed by war or help victims of humanitarian crises — can be achieved in isolation,” Antonio Guterres said in his key speech.
Earlier, Sheikha Lubna and Guterres discussed various ways to tackle humanitarian crises.
According to statistics from the UN Food and Agriculture Organization, more than 870 million people in the world are classified as hungry. In addition, more than 146 million children in developing countries are under-weight due to chronic starvation. Meanwhile, the World Food Program says natural disasters, war and poverty are the top three causes of famine in the world.
Noor Awqaf, a Dubai-based joint venture between Noor Investment Group and the Awqaf and Minors Affairs Foundation (AMAF) also launched a humanitarian project as part of the DIHAD. The program will give aid agencies around the world access to relief aid in the form of Halal meat at times of natural disasters and famine.
More than 275 exhibitors from governmental and non-governmental organizations, charity organizations, the healthcare sector, medical equipment suppliers and temporary hospitals participated in the three-day event.