• More than 2.4 million beneficiaries of the ‘Warmth and Peace’ campaign during the 2019-2020 and 2020-2021 winter seasons
• 320 trucks of aid under ‘Qatar Relief Convoys’ for Syrian IDPs and refugees during the 2020-2021 winter season
• ‘Warmth and Peace’ focuses on countries in crises and exceptional circumstances

‘Warmth and Peace’, the winter drive of Qatar Charity (QC), has benefited more than 2.4 million people, including the internally displaced persons (IDPs), refugees, and underprivileged families, across the globe during the 2019-2020 and 2020-2021 winter seasons.

The aid products, worth more than 130 million Qatari riyals, contributed to supplying targeted communities with essential winters aid to eliminate possible exposure.

The winter campaign ‘Warmth and Peace’ focused on countries going through exceptional circumstances such as Syria, Yemen, Palestine, and Rohingya refugees. It also concentrated on the countries that face a harsh winter with temperatures dropping below zero, in addition to those affected by the COVID-19 pandemic in areas of asylum and displacement as well as in remote areas.

Largest Share

The Syrians within their country and in the countries of asylum received the largest share of the aid. More than one million beneficiaries of the 2019-2020 winter campaign received aid, worth over 37 million Qatari riyals, given their prolonged catastrophic situation that has been going on for more than 10 years, and the increase in the number of IDPs and refugees, which exceeds 12 million.

Areas of Intervention

The areas of Qatar Charity’s intervention included shelter, food, health, and education, as well as water, sanitation and hygiene. Qatar Charity provided food packages, warm clothes, blankets, heaters, heating fuel, tents, and caravans, in addition to providing shelter kits. It also carried out tent maintenance and house renovation, and provided winter bags for orphans.

The winter campaign for the last two seasons covered 18 African, Asian and European countries, including Ethiopia, Jordan, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, India, Yemen, Pakistan, Turkey, Chad, Tunisia, Syria, Palestine, Kyrgyzstan, Kosovo, Kenya, Lebanon, and Nepal.

Qatar Relief Convoys

The “Warmth and Peace” campaign for the 2020-2021 winter season saw a large number of Qatar Charity’s convoys that delivered aid to the internally displaced Syrians and Syrian refugees in many countries facing a harsh winter.

The number of ‘Qatar Relief Convoys’ reached 320. Aid shipments included relief materials, shelter, food, heating, and health aid. The convoys managed to meet the needs of 244,755 displaced and refugee beneficiaries, at a cost of 13.4 million Qatari riyals.

Assistance for Orphans

During the last two winter seasons, Qatar Charity gave orphans hundreds of winter bags that included warm clothes, blankets, and food packages. This aid is part of Qatar Charity’s comprehensive care for orphans and their families to meet their needs during winter, which is considered to be one of the toughest seasons of the year.

Despite the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic in delivering aid to the vulnerable, and precautionary measures taken in some countries to limit the spread of the coronavirus, Qatar Charity’s field teams managed to reach the affected in areas of asylum and displacement, as well as in remote places, providing them with assistance in the past two years.

Thanks and Appreciation

Qatar Charity thanked the donors of Qatar for extending continuous support and a helping hand to alleviate the suffering of the refugees and IDPs, especially at the onset of the cold winter. This reflects the philanthropic image of the people of Qatar about helping someone in desperate need, and their love for giving and doing good.

As the predictions of international organizations indicate that the 2021-2022 winter season will be difficult for the IDPs and refugees, especially due to the repercussions of the COVID-19 pandemic, Qatar Charity urges the benefactors of Qatar to support its forthcoming ‘Warmth and Peace’ drive to provide much needed and more urgent winterization assistance to lessen the plight of the vulnerable, including refugees, IDPs, and the necessitous.

The early support will contribute to avoiding many risks facing them, especially in times of severe cold, heavy rains and snowfall, which are expected within the next three months.

Harsh Winter

The 2021-2022 winter will be the 11th consecutive cold season in displacement for a large number of IDPs and refugees, who continue to face the increased hardships due to the economic situation and the COVID-19 pandemic. The suffering of these vulnerable people is further increased in times of severe cold, heavy rains and snowfall. The IDPs and refugees live in substandard accommodations and are unable to afford the additional costs of heating fuel and warm clothes, as well as health costs.

Source: Qatar Charity