In a tumultuous year marked by economic and social upheavals worldwide as nations battled the unprecedented COVID-19 pandemic, and compounded by tragic disasters such as the Beirut port blasts and several natural calamities including devastating floods in Sudan, The Big Heart Foundation (TBHF), a Sharjah-based global humanitarian organisation, rose to the forefront of spearheading an international philanthropic response as it funded 39 projects in key vital sectors, totalling AED38,979,601 (US$10,598,043).

Signalling an increase of 23 projects from the previous year, TBHF’s 2020 annual report states that these collaborative partnerships have also impacted 803,175 beneficiaries in 15 countries - up by 656,404 beneficiaries across 11 countries in 2019. Amid a surging pandemic, many of TBHF’s humanitarian projects in 2020 focused on boosting healthcare capacities and sanitation facilities on sites for refugees and internally displaced people around the world, while also prioritising education, infrastructural facilities, living conditions, and ensuring necessities, as well as providing emergency aid and relief operations

According to the 2020 annual report, TBHF funded 12 healthcare projects worth AED19,486,327 that benefitted 714,258 individuals and eight projects in the education sector that impacted 66,657 beneficiaries at a cost of AED4,727,341. It launched four infrastructure projects worth AED7,442,013 targeting 3,340 people; eight projects to improve the livelihood of 5,710 individuals at a cost of AED3,908,886, and three projects in the protection sector worth AED1,470,968 to benefit 912 children, refugees, and displaced people.

In addition, the Sharjah-based foundation provided emergency relief to 10,798 beneficiaries through three projects valued at AED1,643,658 and launched an AED300,408-project to provide for the basic needs of 1,500 individuals.

In a statement, Mariam Al Hammadi, Director of TBHF, said that the extraordinary events of 2020 are a reminder for humanitarian organisations to adopt an emergency response preparedness approach to deliver critical assistance swiftly and efficiently in cooperation and coordination with relevant entities working to achieve the same goals.

She pointed out that under the directives of H.H. Sheikha Jawaher bint Mohammed Al Qasimi, wife of H.H. Dr. Sheikh Sultan bin Muhammad Al Qasimi, Supreme Council Member and Ruler of Sharjah, Chairperson of TBHF, and UNHCR Eminent Advocate for Refugee Children, the Foundation continues to boost its readiness to fulfil its duties in overcoming humanitarian challenges being encountered globally, and focused attention on sustainable projects designed to benefit the most vulnerable populations including children, refugees and displaced persons, who have been disproportionately impacted by the events of 2020.

In August 2020, Sheikha Jawaher launched an international emergency aid campaign titled “Salam Beirut” to support the victims of the devastating explosions that struck Port Beirut. Mobilised in cooperation with on-ground local partners, the humanitarian initiative focused on providing medical aid, food and water supplies as well as shelter to victims, in addition to vital services such as healthcare and sanitation.

Since its launch last year, the campaign received an amount of AED33 million in donations. From this, a sum of AED13.7 million has been utilised for relief work carried out in 2020 including the restoration of 485 homes; reconstruction of the emergency and trauma (ERT) unit of the Saint George Hospital University Medical Centre; rehabilitation of migrant workers who lost their homes and sources of livelihood, and the provision of support and psychological care for 630 boys and girls and reuniting them with their families. The remaining AED19.3 million will be utilised for the second phase of projects to be implemented in Lebanon in 2021.

Throughout 2020, TBHF funded humanitarian interventions in Lebanon across several vital sectors worth AED16.5 million, including AED2.8 million for various projects that were funded before the Port Beirut blasts.

WAM