Microsoft Gulf donates Dh9.9M of software to UAE Red Crescent

DUBAI, 24th March 2015 (WAM) --- Microsoft has donated Dh9.9 worth of software to the Emirates Red Crescent, ERC, to facilitate its humanitarian activities and services. The grant is intended to improve the utilisation of Information Technology solutions and tools at the charity organisation. It is also part of Microsoft’s Software Donation Program to non-profit organisations (NGOs) in UAE aimed at enhancing their abilities to service the community. The 40 Microsoft software products donated to Emirates Red Crescent come in various quantities and all include license information and instructions, download and installation guidelines, software assurance benefits and automatic upgrades. Furthermore, the donated software will help the Emirates Red Crescent to enhance efficient collaboration with SharePoint and Exchange Servers, modernise their IT departments with the latest software and equip the organisation with Microsoft Dynamics CRM to fuel staff productivity within the Emirates Red Crescent. "At Microsoft, we believe that technology can go a long way in making real and lasting differences in people’s lives. The donation to Emirates Red Crescent underlines our commitment to community engagement in form of grants and software that unlock people’s potential through technology innovation. The software grant will enable the Emirates Red Crescent to get to know our technology better and use it to impact the productivity of its operational processes and thereby positively impact the social work they carry out in the country. We will continue to make technology more accessible to organisations such as the Emirates Red Crescent to increase their productivity, reach more people and deliver new, improved services that directly help local communities," said Samer Abu Ltaif, Regional General Manager, Microsoft Gulf. "This donation comes at a time when we need to streamline our IT services to ensure quick and timely delivery of services to the community. I would like to thank Microsoft Gulf for this humanitarian gesture and for their sustained engagement in community support programs. At the Emirates Crescent, we strongly believe that broad digital inclusion and modern IT infrastructures are key elements in addressing current and future humanitarian challenges," said Mohammed Yusuf Al Fahim, Deputy Secretary General for Support Services, Emirates Red Crescent. The Software Donation Program is a global initiative by Microsoft that provides over 60,000 non-profit organisations around the world. Through this program, non-profit organisations are empowered to, operate more effectively, enhancing their services to the community. The program has already provided more than $3.9 billion worth of software to non-profits around the world since its establishment in 1998. To date, this partnership has supported 22 non-profit organisations across the UAE by providing access to the latest Microsoft technology that enhances their abilities to service the community. The software portfolio available to these non-profits includes Microsoft’s latest productivity solutions such as Windows Client, Office, SQL Server, and SharePoint Server. – Emirates News Agency, WAM – http://www.wam.ae/en/news/emirates/1395278341060.html