Art of giving sustainably

UAE's leadership firmly believes in improving the welfare of people across the globe, and is among the generous, proactive nations to lend foreign aid UAE's leadership firmly believes in improving the welfare of people across the globe, and is among the generous, proactive nations to lend foreign aid

For a nation that has independently existed for around 47 years, the UAE has made great strides in the field of foreign aid. To date, the country is one of the top nations that provide financial support and relief assistance to other countries during times of crises - be it a natural disaster, medical outbreak, or international conflict.
The UAE leads in three notable categories to empower and uplift people across the world - humanitarian, where it initiates emergency and relief operations in order to save lives; development, where it works towards improving a nation's economic and social welfare; and charitable aid, where it hosts projects in line with the UAE's religious views and culture.
Guided by a dream laid down by its forefathers, the UAE aims to be United in Destiny, as it marches ahead in line with Vision 2021. It looks forward to becoming a role model as a donor that effectively leads in global, development and humanitarian aid.
The UAE was recently named the world's top donor of official development aid relative to its national income, according to a report published by Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).
A close look at figures reveals that humanitarian assistance provided by the UAE in 2017 reached Dh19.32 billion, according to OECD. Furthermore, its involvement with the United Nations shows that the country is among the top generous donors for Least Developed Countries (LDCs), marking a contribution of 1.31 per cent of its gross national income on foreign developmental aid, far beyond UN's target of 0.7 per cent. The UAE contributed around 43 per cent towards Asia, out of which 36 per cent was solely dedicated to Yemen.
According to the UAE Foreign Aid report, which was published in January this year by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, the UAE had provided foreign assistance valued at Dh22.23 billion ($6.05 million). Among these, the country took part in a number charitable programmes, and lent a hand in development and humanitarian efforts based in developing countries. It also assisted 44 LDCs.
The report showed that 65 per cent of assistance is focused on developing countries in Africa, followed by Asia at 23 per cent, 9 per cent in Europe, and 3 per cent to the rest of the world. Looking further into the disbursement of the funds to affected areas, the UAE has contributed towards urban development, infrastructure projects such as buildings and roads, emergency food aid, shelters, medical services, education, and water supply systems, to name a few.
The UAE has a prominent role in supporting development projects in Afghanistan, Jordan, Morocco and Yemen, where it takes part in food security, healthcare, infrastructure development and renewable energy programmes. Working alongside the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the UN's 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, the UAE has been actively working to eliminate poverty and create decent employment through numerous projects - aimed to give rise to a high-skilled workforce in Third-World countries.  
Khaleej Times, the oldest English language newspapers in the UAE, is at the forefront of covering the latest news and updates as they happen to keep the UAE and its neighbouring countries well-informed of its leaderships' generous and inspiring initiatives, sustainable projects, and continuous efforts in foreign aid.  
Humanitarian Logistics Databank
In order to improve its continued efforts of providing relief during global crises, the UAE has launched the Humanitarian Logistics Databank in February 2018. The platform will help coordinate and track the shipments of aid and boost efficiency.

• UAE