Awqaf and Minors Affairs Foundation Grows in Revenue, Doubles Number of Projects

Saturday 23 April 2016
His Excellency Tayeb Abdul Rahman Al-Rais

Dubai - MENA Herald: Dubai’s Awqaf and Minors Affairs Foundation (AMAF) has issued its annual report for 2015, recording a 19% growth in revenue to hit AED172 million compared with AED144 million in 2014. Over the past year, the Foundation has emerged as a global model for endowment development and nurturing of minors.
In 2015, AMAF’s five endowment accounts - Social Affairs, Health, Education, Islamic Affairs, Piety and Righteousness - received total funds of about AED72 million. Currently, 26 projects and initiatives benefit from these accounts, having doubled in number since 2014.
His Excellency Tayeb Abdul Rahman Al-Rais, Secretary General of AMAF, said: ”The directives of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, have created an environment conducive to the development of endowment and care of minors. This has enabled the Foundation to generate higher revenues in the past year. Orphans and minors under our care will greatly benefit from this achievement that also empowers us further to ensure their wellbeing in a truly sustainable way.”
Al Rais pointed out that 2015 marked an important period in AMAF’s history. Apart from increased revenue, the Foundation expanded the scope of its projects’ beneficiaries, and launched a number of new time-saving services, including smart donations, in line with the smart government initiative. He expressed thanks to all those who offered their support, whether in cash, kind or in media exposure. “Our benefactors’ contribution to achieving the objectives of communal harmony and strengthening the spirit of charity and solidarity must not be forgotten,” he emphasized.
In 2015, the Foundation spent AED27 million in aid to children, providing housing, education, medical treatment, financial and material assistance. The organization also held 70 events dedicated to nurturing and training of minors. Building on the efforts of its innovation team, specializing in developing new services and improving existing ones, the Foundation launched four new initiatives to enhance its service offering, including empowerment, training, disbursal of financial dues and smart social research.
In the past year, AMAF’s Endowment Development Department scored a number of significant achievements in its drive to develop endowment assets, build fruitful endowment relations, and encourage innovation in managing endowment operations. Having organized a number of visits to charitable institutions and potential benefactors to trump up much-needed support, it succeeded in acquiring new endowment assets, such as the Saif Al Ashram endowment.

In addition, the department arranged for the existing endowers to visit their endowment projects in person so that they can see the progress first-hand. The department also staged several events to promote a culture of endowment within the society, and implemented an initiative to raise awareness of the salma Humanitarian Relief project and other endowment programs by advertising on bags for supermarkets as well as on electronic screens in public places.

According to a stakeholder survey that accompanied the annual report for 2015, satisfaction ratings of the endowers hit 94%, those of the beneficiaries reached 92%, while the satisfaction levels of the supervisors and caretakers of the endowments totaled 89%. AMAF achieved first place for the third year in a row in the implementation of its operational plan and the achievement of performance indicators.
Most notably, AMAF also introduced seven endowment innovations and community services that promote endowment work among the public, and inaugurated a state-of-the-art, fully equipped room for children with special needs. In addition, the Foundation, as the first of its kind in the UAE, uploaded 90% of its registered endowments on the application “My Places” in coordination with Dubai Municipality.
Since early 2015, AMAF has implemented a wide range of initiatives, programs, and projects including the Pioneers program in partnership with Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA), which sent a group of minors for training to Singapore. In order to help identify the right way forward, the Foundation has formed a team to research best practices in the field of social work to serve as an inspiration for future initiatives.
The year 2015 also saw the launch of many successful partnerships with companies and institutions for nurturing and employment of minors, as well as the acceleration of real-time settlement processing. To speed up the calculation of inheritance, AMAF has appointed a specialist accountant to supervise the process in addition to contracting Emirates Auctions to assess the value of inherited assets for sale.
The Engineering Services section of the Foundation’s Investment Department continued working on several endowment real estate development projects in different areas of Dubai, including the construction of two residential buildings in Al Warqa and three mixed-use buildings in Al Bida’a.
In accordance with Dubai Municipality Green Building Regulations, the buildings use insulation against external heat, as well as double-glazed windows to reflect sunrays, paints with low carbon emissions, and energy-saving lighting systems. The proceeds of the projects, earmarked for completion in end 2016, will be allocated exclusively to AMAF’s Family Village.
The Family Village launched in 2015 by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum has continued to play an important role in creating a stable home environment for orphans. Each group of children has a full-time mother, who gives them all the love and care they need. This unique concept currently provides shelter, nutrition, education, as well as physical and mental healthcare to orphans. Consisting of 16 villas, an administrative building, a kindergarten and a medical centre, the village is equipped with all necessary facilities, such as kitchen, laundry and playgrounds to help orphans grow up in a similar environment as their counterparts who have parents.
Launched by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, salma is a global humanitarian project aiming to provide a million Halal meals a year to disaster victims around the world. The initiative won the Islamic Economy Award in the Food and Health category in addition to three other accolades at the fifth Asia Best CSR Practices Awards. The responsibility for its implementation lies with Noor Awqaf, a joint venture between Noor Investment Group and AMAF.
To ensure the sustainability of the program, AMAF calls upon UAE residents to demonstrate their support by contributing to victim relief. Etisalat users can donate by texting ‘salma’ or ‘do’ to 7710 (AED 10), 7750 (AED 50), or 3100 (AED 100). The Foundation also accepts donations to its Dubai Islamic Bank Waqf Corner account no. 01-520-9451498-01.

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