Qatar sends urgent relief for Darfur displaced

November 6, 2007 (DOHA) — Qatar is to send urgent relief to the displaced people in Sudan’s Darfur region, said a statement issued by the Qatar Authority for Charitable Activities (QACA), Gulf Times reported.

QACA relief department head Ahmed bin Mohamed al-Zuwaidi, who led a Qatari delegation to a recent conference in Sudan on the situation in Darfur, said the QACA was launching the relief effort in association with Qatar Airways.

Al-Zuwaidi added that the QACA is currently conducting a comprehensive study on the developmental projects that Qatari charities can implement in the conflict-torn area. “Qatar will implement rehabilitation programmes for the people hit by the conflict,” he said.

He said Qatar has previously set up a joint ‘Qatari-Libyan fund for development in Africa’ with a donation of $15mn.

The donors who participated in the conference, attended by non-government organisations from Arab countries, have pledged a total of $250mn to address the deteriorating humanitarian situation in Darfur, the statement added.

The Qatari delegation also paid a field visit to refugee camps in Darfur and was briefed by province officials on the humanitarian situation there.

(Gulf Times)