QFFD and QRCS join hands to provide humanitarian aid in Libya

DOHA: Qatar Fund for Development (QFFD) and Qatar Red Crescent Society (QRCS) have signed an agreement to finance the projects worth $8m to address the humanitarian and medical needs of more than 623,000 beneficiaries in Libya.

The agreement was signed by Misfer Hamad Al Shahwani, Director of Development Projects at QFFD, and Rashid Saad Al Mohannadi, Director of Relief and International Development at QRCS.

According to Sheikh Mohamed bin Nasser bin Jassim Al Thani, Ambassador of Qatar to Libya, this donation builds upon the continuous Qatari humanitarian endeavors in Libya since 2016. It is part of a larger $10m initiative announced by the State of Qatar to help improve the conditions in the war-torn country, through diverse humanitarian operations in cooperation with the Libyan Red Crescent.

Following the signing ceremony, Al Shahwani stated, “This joint work is aimed at meeting the humanitarian needs of the affected communities, in the fields of food security, water and sanitation, and nonfood aid.
Also, it is planned to throw out a lifeline to hospitals and health centers, operate mobile clinics, and launch capacity-building programs for medical professionals”.

Al Mohannadi said: “I would like to thank QFFD for this generous support to QRCS’s ongoing relief work in Libya. With these funds, we will be able to expand our intervention to take in more and more beneficiaries. Our ultimate goal is to alleviate their suffering in such a protracted ordeal, while respecting their dignity”.

Commending the strategic partnership with QFFD,  Al Mohannadi sees it as a reflection of Qatar’s unwavering support for the vulnerable, particularly in regional war zones like Syria, Iraq, Yemen, and Libya. “At the center of these efforts is QRCS, in its internationally recognized capacity and auxiliary role to the State of Qatar in its local and international humanitarian policies,” he noted.

Under the agreement, a relief action plan will be implemented in southern cities of Libya, covering many activities including  training 180 physicians, nurses, and midwives;  providing three major hospitals and three health centers with medicines, equipment, and medical consumables; and  deploying mobile medical convoys to three underserved districts. As per the agreement, food packages will be distributed to 4,000 households, containing rice, pasta, canned tuna, sugar, and other food staples.

This aspect involves digging water wells and installing pumps and power generators for three cities, with an overall population of 100,000 people. Nonfood items will be distributed to 4,000 households. These include mattresses, adults’ and kids’ blankets, and rugs.