Qatar Red Crescent Holds Ramadan Iftar in Syria

Doha, July 15 (QNA) - Qatar Red Crescent (QRC) launched its Ramadan Iftar campaign for Syrian IDPs, to alleviate their difficult humanitarian situation, as they have largely lost their sources of income and savings due to the ongoing crisis, which negatively affected every aspect of life and made subsistence a heavy burden for Syrians. The $203,000 project distributes one-month food packages to 8,000 families (48,000 people) in several IDP parts, including Latakia countryside, Idlib countryside, Hama countryside, Aleppo and its countryside, and Taftanaz camps. With the start of Ramadan, QRC mission carried out the project on a large scale. A full volunteer team will work throughout the month to distribute the food products, which the program managers chose to procure from local sources, with a view to stimulating the local markets and helping small suppliers. A main warehouse in Idlib countryside was rented to be a hub for food storage, packaging, and distribution to all the targeted areas. The mission cooperated with some trustworthy local actors in selecting the families eligible for this assistance. Some local residents were also engaged in the conduct and coordination of distributions. Commenting on the project, QRC Secretary-General, Saleh bin Ali Al-Mohannadi, said, "Amid the continuing humanitarian tragedy experienced by the Syrian brothers and as part of the numerous QRC relief and medical projects for Syrian refugees and IDPs, QRC allocated more than $200,000 to provide food for many most-needy Syrian families to fulfill their basic humanitarian needs and remove their deprivation and hunger during these blessed days. "To identify which food items are most needed by the Syrian IDPs, the Turkey-based QRC mission made an assessment study, which found that purchasing the food supplies from outside Syria would not help the already troubled local economy, as farmers would not be able to market their crops, labor would lack seasonal income-generating job opportunities, the Syrian people would rely only on relief aid. Purchasing food goods from inside the Syrian territories and distributing them to the needy would be beneficial in many ways: It will help meet the food needs, encourage local agriculture, secure temporary job opportunities for the unemployed, and inject money into the stagnant local economy." Al-Mohannadi stressed that QRC will spare no efforts to stand by the Syrian people affected by the crisis, not only in terms of food provisions like the Ramadan Iftar project, but also in healthcare, water and sanitation services, social psychosocial support, and other vital sectors. This food provision is part of QRC's abroad Ramadan Iftar program, which costs QR 2,338,700 and serves more than 58,600 people in seven countries: Palestine (Jerusalem), Syria (inside and outside), Central Africa (inside and outside), Sudan (Darfur), Nepal, and the Philippines. Well ahead of Ramadan, QRC offices and volunteers abroad were in place, together with some charities in host countries, to implement this project, which is funded from donations by Qatari philanthropists for the benefit of their brothers in other countries who are in dire need of support during the fasting season. (QNA)