Mohammed bin Rashid, the first hope maker

His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defense and Chairman of the Executive Council of the Emirate of Dubai, in the presence of His Highness Sheikh Maktoum bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, First Deputy Ruler of Dubai, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance, and His Highness Sheikh Ahmed bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Second Deputy Ruler of Dubai, yesterday crowned Fawzia Jabbara Mahmoudi from the Kingdom of Morocco with the title of “First Hope Maker” in the Arab world, and she received a financial reward. Worth one million dirhams.

In addition, His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum directed to honor the finalists, who are, in addition to Fawzia Jabbara Mahmoudi, Hind Al-Hajri from the State of Kuwait, and Abdul Rahman Al-Rais from the Kingdom of Morocco, and grant each of them a reward of one million dirhams, bringing the value of the prize in the sixth session of the “Hope Makers” initiative to three million dirhams.

Fawzia Jabbara Mahmoudi was crowned with the title of “First Hope Maker”, after she received the highest percentage of votes at the closing ceremony of the sixth session, which was organized yesterday, at the “Coca-Cola Arena” in Dubai, for her initiative to establish the “Operation Smile” association, and her success in performing more than 19 thousand surgical operations, outperforming more than 15 thousand and 800 hope makers who applied to participate in the sixth session of the largest initiative of its kind to honor those who give in the nation. Arab League, bringing the total number of participants in the “Hope Makers” initiative over six sessions to more than 335,000 participants.

His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum congratulated the new champions of giving in the Arab world, and everyone who participated in the sixth session of the “Hope Makers” initiative and left a positive mark on people’s lives.

His Highness said: “We congratulate you on this strength of effort and dedication, and this humanitarian presence that influences the present and future of our countries and societies.”

His Highness added: “There is no pursuit in life and no success without hope. Every challenge we overcome and every progress we seek depends on having hope. Conquering the impossible begins with hope, and the story of human civilization was written by man with hope.”

His Highness added: “The UAE will remain loyal to its great humanitarian mission of creating hope. It is our duty and responsibility to cultivate goodness and nurture every noble idea whose goal is to elevate humanity.”

His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum said, in a blog post on the “X” platform, yesterday: “Today in Dubai, we honored a group of Arab ‘makers of hope’ in its sixth session, which was launched by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the first maker of hope, the maker of positivity in our region, and the builder of the most hopeful global model in the world. We congratulate the winner, Fawzia Mahmoudi, Hind Al-Hajri from Kuwait, and Abdul Rahman Al-Rais from Morocco for winning the Hope Makers tournament. In Dubai, everyone is a winner today, and everyone is a maker of goodness that we are proud of and their work.”

The closing ceremony of the sixth session of the Hope Makers Initiative was attended by His Highness Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, Chairman of the Dubai Civil Aviation Authority and Supreme President and CEO of Emirates Airline and Group, His Highness Sheikh Mansour bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, President of the National Olympic Committee, Her Highness Sheikha Latifa bint Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, President of the Dubai Culture and Arts Authority, and a number of senior officials.

Spread optimism

The Secretary-General of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Global Initiatives Foundation, Mohammed Abdullah Al Gergawi, confirmed that the Hope Makers Initiative embodies the vision of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, may God protect him, in spreading optimism and positivity, and supporting noble initiatives aimed at changing the reality of Arab societies for the better, noting that this unique initiative opened broad horizons for humanitarian and voluntary work in the Arab world, and revealed models She is a role model for effort, silent work, and the ability to transform ideas into ambitious projects aimed at helping others and giving them the opportunity to live a decent life.

He said: “The Hope Makers Initiative demonstrated, over six sessions, and through more than 335,000 inspiring stories, the extent of the drive for volunteer and humanitarian work in Arab societies, and the extent of the need for the continuation of these benevolent efforts, which highlights the importance of the Hope Makers in highlighting the efforts of the heroes of giving, encouraging them to continue this approach, and inspiring new generations to participate in this humanitarian journey,” noting the great Arab interest that the initiative has received since its launch in 2017, and the demand for nominations in every round of the campaign. Her courses to obtain the honor of winning the title of “Hope Maker”.

“Operation Smile”

In 1999, the Moroccan hope maker, Fawzia Jebara Mahmoudi, founded the “Operation Smile” association, an association that provides free and comprehensive treatment for deformities of cleft lip and cleft palate from birth until adulthood. Today the association runs three centers in the cities of Casablanca, El Jadida and Oujda, in addition to a fourth center under construction in the city of Marrakesh. The association has sent 164 missions to 30 cities, each mission lasting five days, during which an examination is carried out. 100-150 cases, and about 90 operations are performed on average. Since its founding, with the help of more than 650 volunteers from all over the Kingdom of Morocco, the association has been able to perform more than 19,000 surgical operations and provide dental treatment services that benefited more than 120,000 people.

“Fatima’s House”

The story of the Kuwaiti Hope Maker, Hind Al-Hajri, began during her work as a volunteer teacher in the United Republic of Tanzania, where many of her students were orphans. Hind Al-Hajri used to frequent the homes of her students in Zanzibar, and some of those homes were destined to be demolished during the rainy season, so that the sibling children living in those homes ended up being dispersed and living with families who lived below the poverty line and could not provide them with the basics of life.

Hind Al-Hajri – seeing the sibling children separated by difficult circumstances without any means of communicating with each other – decided to act immediately. She took the initiative to buy a piece of land and build a large house on it that she called “Fatima House.” Today, six years have passed since the construction of “Fatima House,” which embraces 47 children and provides them with safety, decent living conditions, and confidence in a better future.

Hind Al-Hajri lives in Zanzibar with these orphan children, who are 20 girls and 27 boys. She knows all their stories and carefully follows the details of their daily lives.

“Surour” program

The name of the hope maker, the Moroccan Abdul Rahman Al-Rais, was linked to a humanitarian program to help widows and needy women throughout the Kingdom of Morocco. Al-Rais, a content creator, launched the “Surour” program, and took upon himself the task of touring the rural and remote areas of the Kingdom of Morocco, going to the groceries in the villages with the aim of paying off the debts of any widow, girl, or needy woman who supports her family, without support or assistance from anyone.

Abdul Rahman Al-Rais chooses remote villages that are far from the main cities and to which aid is difficult to reach, because he realizes that this category of society is the most in need of assistance. He receives financial contributions from those who wish to provide aid and charity without appearing or announcing themselves, and he takes it upon himself to deliver them to those who need them in the remote villages.

Abdel Rahman publishes his initiative on YouTube through episodes in which he documents aid operations without showing the faces of needy women, and spreads a culture of hope and positivity in Moroccan society. The number of beneficiaries of the initiative to pay off the debts of widows and needy families has reached more than 7,000 people.

Abdul Rahman Al-Rais’s efforts are not limited to paying off debts, but he implemented other initiatives such as digging wells, building small homes, and helping needy people perform Umrah rituals with the support of benefactors, bringing the total beneficiaries of his initiatives to more than 20 thousand people.

Hamdan bin Mohammed:

• The UAE will remain loyal to its great humanitarian mission of creating hope.

• We congratulate you on this strength of effort and dedication, and this humanitarian presence that influences the present and future of our countries and societies.

• There is no pursuit in life and no success without hope. Every challenge we overcome and every progress we seek depends on having hope.

• Conquering the impossible begins with hope, and the story of human civilization was written by man with hope.

Muhammad Al-Gergawi:

• “Hope Makers Initiative” embodies Mohammed bin Rashid’s vision of spreading optimism and positivity, and supporting noble initiatives aimed at changing the reality of Arab societies for the better.

• Moroccan Fawzia Mahmoudi establishes the “Operation Smile” association and treats thousands for free.

• Kuwaiti Hind Al-Hajri builds a house in Tanzania to house dozens of orphan children.

• Moroccan Abdel Rahman Al-Rais launches a humanitarian program to help widows and needy women.