UAE. Dubai Duty Free Foundation has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to support Al Jalila Foundation, a non-profit global philanthropic organisation.
Under the agreement, Dubai Duty Free will contribute AED500,000 (US$136,126) every year to support Al Jalila Foundation’s medical education and research aims, as well as other projects that are best aligned with the goals of the Dubai Duty Free Foundation.
The agreement runs for ten years commencing this month, and was signed by Dubai Duty Free Executive Vice Chairman and CEO Colm McLoughlin and Al Jalila Foundation CEO Dr. Abdulkareem Sultan Al Olama (pictured below).
“We launched the Dubai Duty Free Foundation back in 2004 with the objective of improving the lives of families and in particular women and children both in the UAE and around the world,” said McLoughlin. “Since then, we have supported 39 local and 52 overseas charities including the travel retail industry-led Hand in Hand for Haiti, Sightsavers in India and in the Philippines with Smile Train, to name a few, which is a clear indication of Dubai Duty Free’s ongoing commitment to the community.”
Al Olama commented: “Al Jalila Foundation is committed to transforming lives through medical research, education and treatment and our success is dependent on the support of our partners and donors. Dubai Duty Free Foundation’s long-term commitment to fund our work will enable us to continue to fulfil our mission.
“Through this partnership we are further empowered to support important healthcare causes, from empowering children with special needs to providing lifesaving treatment to patients and investing in medical research to discover better treatment options for diseases prevalent in the region.”
Over the past four years, Al Jalila Foundation has invested AED59 million (US$16 million) in healthcare programmes in the areas of medical treatment, education and research in the UAE and globally. Relying solely on donor funding, it has reached over 1.6 million beneficiaries from 129 nationalities since 2013.