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February 16th, 2016 ― Doha: Under its Warm Winter campaign for this 2015- 2016 winter, Qatar Red Crescent Society (QRCS) has concluded the winterization relief project in Afghanistan, distributing $275,000 (QR 1,000,810) worth of winterization and food aid to the poorest and displaced families in inaccessible areas.
The project lasted from mid-November 2015 till the end of January 2016, with a view to alleviating the suffering of the needy and displaced in the face of the cold winter, as well as reducing malnutrition.
A total of 12,000 beneficiaries were covered in numerous districts of four provinces, as follows: Badakhshan (6,000), Kabul (4,200), Faryab (900), and Wardak (900).
It involves distributing 8,000 blankets (seven blankets per family), 1,000 wood heaters, 1,000 bags of winter clothes, and 2,000 food packages, each containing 77 kg of food such as rice, vegetable oil, sugar, beans, and tea.
Among the challenges that faced the project's staff were the freezing weather and insecurity in the target provinces. However, the project was completely executed as planned, in coordination with local partners and authorities. This success was hailed by the local and national media, which highlighted QRCS as the first international humanitarian organization to reach out to the beneficiary areas.
QRCS coordinated with the Afghan Red Crescent Society (ARCS) in relation to the procurement of relief items from the local market, quality checks, and local community surveys to select the beneficiaries from the families with no source of income, the families whose breadwinners are widows or children, and the families with disabled persons.
Following the distributions, Badakhshan Governor met with the QRCS team to award them a certificate of appreciation in recognition of QRCS's relief efforts in the province. The meeting was attended by a representative of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Thousands of homeless families are suffering severe conditions amid below-zero temperatures in northern regions, heavy snowing in cities, and blocked roads in mountains.
This project is part of QRCS's Warm Winter campaign, which is well in progress to provide more than QR 11 million winterization aid for more than 200,000 beneficiaries in Afghanistan, Yemen, Syria, Lebanon (Syrian and Palestinian refugees), Jordan (Syrian refugees), and Iraqi Kurdistan (Syrian refugees).
About Qatar Red Crescent Society (QRCS)
Established in 1978, Qatar Red Crescent Society (QRCS) is a humanitarian charitable organization that aims to assist and empower vulnerable individuals and communities without partiality or discrimination. QRCS is a member of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement, which consists of the International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent (IFRC) in Geneva, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), and 190 National Societies. QRCS is also a member of several Gulf, Arab, and Islamic assemblies, such as: the Islamic Committee of International Crescent and the Secretariat-General of the Arab Organization of Red Crescent and Red Cross. In this legally recognized capacity, QRCS has access to disaster and conflict zones, thus serving as an auxiliary to the State of Qatar in its humanitarian efforts, a role that distinguishes it from other local charitable or philanthropic organizations.
QRCS operates both locally and internationally and has ongoing international relief and development projects in a number of countries throughout the Middle East, Asia, Africa, and Europe. QRCS's humanitarian actions include providing support in disaster preparedness, disaster response, risk reduction, and disaster recovery. To mitigate the impact of disasters and improve the livelihoods of affected populations, QRCS provides medical services, healthcare, and social development to local communities. It is also active at the humanitarian advocacy front. With the help of a vast network of trained, committed staff and volunteers, QRCS aspires to improve the lives of vulnerable people by mobilizing the power of humanity. As a reflection of its long-standing accomplishments and credibility, QRCS's Chairman, Dr. Mohammed Al-Maadheed, is former Vice-President of the IFRC.
Qatar Red Crescent works under the umbrella of the seven international humanitarian principles: Humanity, impartiality, neutrality, independence, voluntary service, unity, and universality.
For more information about Qatar Red Crescent, please contact Mr. Fareed Adnan, Head of Media Affairs, Communication Department, Tel.: +974 5583 7338, email: fareed@qrcs.org.qa. Or you can visit our website: www.qrcs.org.qa, or like and follow our social media pages: Facebook: www.facebook.com/QatarRedCrescent Twitter/ Instgram: @QRCS LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/qatar-red-crescent