du to bring the joy of Ramadan to the less fortunate

Living the charitable spirit embodied by the Holy month of Ramadan, du, for the fourth consecutive year, will provide 80,000 nutritious, ready-to-go Iftar meals to the less fortunate this year, as compared to 70,000 last year. The initiative comes in line with the company’s corporate social responsibility efforts to give back to the UAE’s community by demonstrating the spirit of giving which is what the Holy Month is all about. 

This year, for the first time, du offers its customers the chance of contributing by donating money from their du lines via SMS as well as donating time by registering as volunteers to help distribute meals to hundreds of people throughout the distribution points. In parallel there will be an internal money and time donation campaign open for its employees and a number of staff members including senior management are already registered as volunteers. 

From the first night of Ramadan until the end of the Holy Month, the meal boxes will be distributed from three Mawaed Al Rahman (Iftar distribution points) locations, these being - next to Shaikh Khalifa Masjid in Abu Dhabi (near the fifth street), Nad Al Qusais Masjid in Dubai and Al Fisht Masjid near Salem bin Ali Al Owais in Al Fisht area in Sharjah.  

Due to the warm weather, coolers will be installed around the distribution points and for those who decide to have their meals near the Masjid, seating and cooling arrangements are in place to ensure a pleasant experience while breaking the fast. 

“Ramadan is a gift to Muslims where good deeds are rewarded by Allah (God) more than any other time in the year, and we want to bring a bit of joy to the less fortunate in the UAE. We’re very pleased to be able to distribute 80,000 meals this year, with which we hope to make a difference to people lives this Ramadan,” commented Hala Badri, Executive Vice President, Brand and Communications, du. “By opening the donation channels to our customers we’re hoping to encourage a sense of unity while offering the opportunity to perform a charitable deed, whether that means making a monetary contribution or participating in the rewarding task of handing out the meal boxes. If we achieve a good public response, we may be able to open a fourth location for Iftar meal distribution. We look forward to this being a healthy, blessed Ramadan for all.” 

To donate, du customers need to simply SMS the word ‘Ramadan’ to 8000. They will then receive an SMS that includes a menu of amounts to donate and choose whether they would like to gift AED20, AED50, AED100, AED200.