NCCAL holds lecture on Kuwait's humanitarian leadership

KUWAIT, Nov 23 (KUNA) -- Political figures agreed Sunday evening that the UN honoring of His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah as humanitarian leader and Kuwait as humanitarian center on September 9, 2014, came in recognition of Kuwait contributions to UN-led relief efforts.
Speaking at a lecture, organized by the National Council for Culture, Arts and Letters (NCCAL) under the title of "Kuwait - International Humanitarian Center," Advisor to the Amiri Diwan Mohammad Abul-Hassan said His Highness the Amir has a long history of contribution to the relief efforts worldwide.
"These contributions date back to 1985 when His Highness the Amir (then foreign minister) chaired the international committee on the combat of desertification in Africa," Abul-Hassan pointed out.
"The State of Kuwait is one of the biggest donors to the UN agencies and funds concerned with response to natural and man-made disasters regardless of any racial, religious or political backgrounds of the affected people.
"Kuwait offers annual funding for these funds without attaching any conditions unlike other countries which donate selectively to specific emergency relief efforts," he stressed.
"Kuwait's cash contributions are directly channeled to disaster-hit communities not through the dominant powers in the aid-receiving countries or any other considerations.
"Alongside with His Highness the Amir and the government, the Kuwaiti civil society organizations play an important role in raising funds for the victims of disasters," Abul-Hassan went on. On her part, Dr. Maasouma Al-Mubarak, former minister and ex-MP, said the UN Humanitarian Leadership is a well-deserved honoring for His Highness the Amir.
"Kuwait's generous donations for the needy people stem from pure humanitarian grounds and aren't tied to any political or racial conditions," she said.
Dr. Al-Mubarak highlighted the role of Kuwait Fund for Arab Economic Development (KFAED) in managing the aid funds and development projects financed by the government and NGOs.
"KFAED, founded in 1961, expanded its activities from the regional Arab scale to the global one in 1974," she said.
"The Fund's activities include not only offering financial assistance to the aid recipients but also assessing their needs for grants and loans; offering technical assistance; and managing the funding for and supervising the implementation of aid and development projects," Dr. Al-Mubarak noted.
The Fund used to be an affiliate of the Ministry of Finance before until 2003 when it became the development arm of the Foreign Ministry with a view to driving the country's economic diplomacy, she added.
The lecture is part of the cultural cafe held by NCCAL on the sidelines 39th edition of Kuwait Book Fair. (end) has.gb