Aster plays saviour to 1,500 needy Yemeni families, gives 75 tonnes of food

Gulf Today, Staff Reporter

As Yemen continues to grapple with one of the world's worst humanitarian crisis, Aster Volunteers, the global CSR arm of Aster DM Healthcare along with supporting NGOs like Dar Al Shifa Establishment and Governor of Seiyun- Hadramout region, launched a relief mission to distribute ration kits among the people of Yemen.

Around 1,500 families received a ration kit weighing 50kg each, providing for around 360,000 meals. The dry ration kit included rice, wheat flour, sugar, cooking oil, beans, milk powder, pulses and other essential food items to provide a balanced diet for entire families of young children, lactating mothers and other adults, as per UNFP and WHO guidelines.

The on-ground mission was led by Jaleel PA, Head – CSR at Aster DM Healthcare and external volunteers who distributed the ration kits in remote communities of Hadramout region near Seiyun International Airport, where Yemenis continue to suffer due to food insecurity, malnutrition, healthcare gaps, lockdown impact of the COVID-19 crisis and a recent sudden flash flood which led to the destruction of homes and livelihoods.

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Through this mission, Aster Volunteers were able to support about 5,000 individuals who received food kits from distribution centres set up in Seiyun, Tarim and Shibam towns from August 15. The food items were procured locally with the help of funds donated by Aster employees and with a matching donation from Aster DM Healthcare.

Food baskets

Speaking on the relief mission Dr. Azad Moopen, Founder Chairman and Managing Director of Aster DM Healthcare said, “Yemen continues to suffer from years of civil war which has resulted in huge devastation — unfortunately, the human disaster is humongous leading to loss of life of civilians through conflict, starvation and death. In fact, Yemen is on the brink of one of the worst famines in history affecting millions including children. The programme by Aster Volunteers is our effort to help the population of Yemen in whatever little way that we can. I salute the team who took up the mission to personally meet and assist the people in distress in spite of the uncertainties and risks.

“We thank Aster DM Healthcare and Dar Al Shifa Foundation for arranging the food baskets for about 1,500 families in the targeted five districts,” said Engineer Hisham Mohammad Al-Saidi, Hadhramout’s Assistant Undersecretary for the Affairs of the Valley and Desert Directorates.

Aster Volunteers support 5,000 individuals with food kits from distribution centres set up in Seiyun, Tarim and Shibam towns from August 15, 2021.

Fahmi Mohammed Al-Saqqaf, Head of Dar Al-Shifa Charitable Foundation, has also expressed his appreciation of the partnership with Aster Volunteers that helped support the poor and the needy citizens of Yemen.

Aster Volunteers also plan to organise medical education, training and capacity building sessions for local doctors of Yemen that would equip them with the latest information required to meet the healthcare needs of the local population.

During the four-day mission, a delegation of Aster Volunteers met senior government officials, academics, students and members of the business community to understand the challenges faced by people of this region. In the coming months, Aster Volunteers will engage with local charity organisations and government departments to provide support in several areas, including primary healthcare, health awareness among remote communities and in the education sector.

The food relief mission is a part of Aster Volunteers’ natural disaster support and relief aid programme which has previously supported Kerala flood victims, famine-hit Somalians, Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh, Syrian refugees in Jordan’s Zaatari camp among others, which has benefited 288,158 people till date.

Aster Volunteers donate ration kits weighing 50kg to each of the needy families in Yemen.

Aster Volunteers programme, the global corporate social responsibility initiative of Aster DM Healthcare, was launched on the occasion of the company's 30th anniversary in 2017 and provides a platform which bridges the gap between people who would like to help with those in need. Driven by Aster DM Foundation, through various initiatives, the programme has been able to impact over 2 million lives across geographies. Aster Volunteers have been able to treat 331,713 individuals through mobile medical camps; 171,238 people have benefited from basic life support trainingnand 37,657 free surgeries and health investigations were conducted, supported with the recruitment of 114 differently abled people and treated 550,956 people through medical camps. The aid programme in Somali land, Jordan, Bangladesh, and Kerala has benefited 288,158 people, while 21,302 children have benefited under Child Health & Wellness initiatives. Aster Volunteers have also undertaken 124 initiatives towards Sustainability & Community Connect. These initiatives have impacted more than 2,438,034 lives.

Aster Volunteers have also been at the forefront of the battle against COVID-19, with 104,688 people having benefited from mobile medical camps and 565,995+ from awareness webinars. More than 331,250 people have benefited through distribution of food and ration kits and 15,486 have received PPE kits. The team has also reached out to the community by distributing 2,200 gift boxes during the holy month of Ramadan and has worked towards answering of 16,697 distress calls during the global lockdown. Through these COVID initiatives the team has impacted 1,036,772 lives.