UAE world's largest donor of official development aid, OECD report says

The National -- The UAE has been ranked as the world's largest donor of official development aid, relative to its national income, according to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).

The official development aid provided by the UAE during 2016 reached Dh15.57 billion, making up 1.21 per cent of the country's gross national income.

More than 58 per cent of the development aid provided by the UAE was in the form of grants, WAM reported.

Norway came second, contributing 1.12 per cent of its gross national income, followed by Luxembourg at 1 per cent and Sweden at 0.94 per cent.

Sultan Mohammed Al Shamsi, assistant minister of foreign affairs and international cooperation for international development affairs, said the ranking is a result of the directives of The President Sheikh Khalifa; Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces; and Vice President and Ruler of Dubai, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid.

The data comes as it was revealed that The Year of Giving resulted in about 275,000 volunteers taking part in charitable activities, spending 2.8 million hours contributing to good causes, according to an end of year report by the Government.

More than Dh1.5 billion was given by the private sector alone.

Among the initiatives was the Reaching the Last Mile forum in November, which was dedicated to eradicating diseases such as malaria and polio.

At the event in Abu Dhabi, a US$100 million fund was announced with the goal of wiping out many of the world's deadliest diseases. Sheikh Mohammed contributed US$20 million.

The Year of Giving was launched last year by Sheikh Khalifa with three areas of focus: corporate social responsibility, volunteering and serving the nation.

The year-long initiative was inspired by the example of the country’s late President, Sheikh Zayed, and 2018 has been declared the Year of Zayed.