Taking the laudable tradition of helping brothers in distress forward, Qatar is the first country that has started sending aid to floods-hit people of Somalia under the directives of Amir H H Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani.
So far, in the last few days hundreds of tonnes of relief goods have been transported to Somlaia to mitigate the sufferings of Somali citizens coping with natural disaster in southern and central parts of the country.
Qatar Fund for Development (QFFD), in coordination with the Standing Committee for Rescue and Relief Works and Humanitarian Aids for Afflicted Areas in Brotherly and Friendly Countries, has sent many batches of aid of various medical and relief material.
Torrential rains have raised the water levels of the Shabelle and Juba rivers in the Federal Republic of Somalia, and caused the displacement of thousands of families from their homes to the highlands.
The Somali government has also praised the assistance being provided by the State of Qatar. In his remarks, Somali Federal Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Disaster Management, Hamza Said Hamza, praised the repeated relief initiatives undertaken by the State of Qatar for the benefit of Somali citizens. He expressed his deep thanks and appreciation to Amir H H Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani.
The Somali Federal Minister said that the Qatari aid was timely because citizens in the affected areas of Somalia suffered the most, pointing out that this assistance would ease the suffering.
Qatar is not only providing assistance to Somalia to meet immediate demands created by floods but has also hosted the Ministerial Meeting of the OIC Contact Group on Somalia on November 3 in Doha to assist Somali government on war footing to address country’s ailing economy and tackle security challenges.
Chairing the Ministerial Meeting, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs H E Sheikh Mohamed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani had said that the State of Qatar would continue to be a key supporter of Somalia and will spare no effort in providing the necessary assistance for development plans and programmes of government of Somalia in partnership with the United Nations and the World Bank. The State of Qatar has also recently provided a $25m aid to the Somali government.
Last month, Somalia’s Minister of Health and Social Care, Dr Fawziya Abikar, had also praised the Qatari people and government for supporting the Somali people and appreciated Qatar Charity’s initiatives to help vulnerable groups, set up hospitals and health units, and care for mothers and children.
