SAUDI ARABIA

Feeding the needy

Charity laments lukewarm response from the business community

February 22, 2018

Maryam Al-Saghir



Okaz/Saudi Gazette

RIYADH – Khairat Charitable Society, which was established in Riyadh by Noura Al-Ajami and her husband Sulaiman Al-Obaidan in 2015, plays an important humanitarian role by collecting surplus food from hotels and party halls and distributing it among the poor and needy.

“We received 207,000 meals from the month-long camel beauty pageant in Al-Dahna,” said Noura Al-Saif, executive director of the charity while speaking to Okaz/Saudi Gazette. However, she expressed her disappointment over the lukewarm response of the business community toward her project.

Within a short span of two years, Khairat has made remarkable achievements. “We have now 13 vehicles. But we need 60 vehicles to cover Riyadh city and its surrounding villages,” Al-Saif said, adding that the charity received 5,000 meals from an event hosted by a well-known person.

In the beginning Al-Ajami and her husband Al-Obaidan collected surplus food from various events individually with the support of their children. Now it has been developed into a big charitable project with the support of philanthropists and volunteers.

With the grace and blessing of Allah Almighty, the idea received the support of Al-Ajami’s neighbors and friends. “Finding the needy to distribute the collected food was a big task. When the project became big we formed a registered charity with the name Khairat to ensure credibility and transparency,” she explained.

Khairat collects surplus food from big hotels, restaurants, wedding halls and other special events and distribute the meals among the needy and low income people after packing them properly. The charity conducts campaigns to collect names of individuals and families that required its services as well as to mobilize the support of philanthropists and the business community to the project.

“There are many poor people who live in far off places and we are now thinking of ways and means to supply meals to them,” Al-Saif said.

Khairat uses vehicles without the charity's signs on them in order to preserve self-esteem of families that do not wish to live on handouts, she pointed out.

Al-Saif said the charity distributes healthy food that fulfills all hygiene conditions. “We intend to distribute quality food and label the food packets with all details including the type of food, the place where it was collected from and an expiration date.”

The food collected for distribution include main meals, pastries, desserts and salads. Some of these meals are distributed through mosques with the support of prayer leaders.

“More than 500 poor families have been registered with the charity in Riyadh city alone,” Al-Saif said. “We need more donors to expand our charitable program to cover more people in the region,” she said, adding that some of the families benefiting from the project have up to 20 members.

“There are many people who need assistance out there. They approach us not for money but for food as a result of hunger and starvation. Many of us are ignorant about the plight of these poor families,” she explained.

The charity’s headquarters is located in Al-Falah district of Riyadh. “We need greater support from the media to reach our message to more people. Unfortunately we have not received enough support from businessmen and businesswomen,” Al-Saif said.

The executive director commended the enthusiasm of the charity’s male and female volunteers. “We have the desire to expand our work but lack of financial support from businessmen and rich people have disappointed us. We are still hopeful of their support.”

Al-Saif said the charity coordinates with event and hotel managers to collect surplus food.

“Our chairperson Noura Al-Ajami once received a call at 2 a.m. from a woman requesting food for her poor family. She sent a group of volunteers immediately with necessary supplies to alleviate the difficult situation of that poor family,” she explained.

Speaking about food collection during the camel pageant, Al-Saif said: “We collected 207,343 meals in a month and packed and distributed them among 129,000 foreign workers and 4,350 poor families.”

The charity also collects leftover food unsuitable for distributes from hotels and events but converts them into fertilizers.


February 22, 2018
2192 views
HIGHLIGHTS
SAUDI ARABIA
15 minutes ago

Saudi chamber forms national committee for military industries  

SAUDI ARABIA
6 hours ago

FDI inflows to Saudi Arabia jump 16%, reaching over SR13 billion in 4Q of 2023

SAUDI ARABIA
6 hours ago

Saudi pavilion to showcase Manal AlDowayan's 'Shifting Sands: A Battle Song' at Venice Biennale