A report issued by the Sharjah Charity International (SCI) showed that the number of sponsored people registered in the indexes and files of SCI had reached 30,000, until the end of August.

They were classified into five categories, namely orphans, families abstaining from begging, seekers of education, people of determination (people with special needs), teachers and mosque Imams in the developing countries.

Abdullah Mubarak Al Dukhan, Secretary-General of SCI, said that the Sponsorship Project was one of the leading projects that had achieved great success, since its launch, coinciding with the establishment of the SCI in 1989, and its role was still growing, while the numbers of those benefitting from it in many countries had increased.

He clarified that those who had been sponsored and registered in the SCI were divided into five sectors.

There are currently 29,054 orphans while the number of sponsored families abstaining from begging total 642 people, and the number of sponsored people of determination under 15 years old is around 132, and the number of sponsored teachers and mosque imams is 128, and 44 people are registered as sponsored students and education seekers.

The total funds spent on all sponsorship projects, since the start of the year, has reached some AED14 million.

He pointed out that SCI is working to remove all obstacles to attracting charitable people who want to participate in the sponsorship programme, and these efforts have resulted in the sponsorship of 3,040 new people since the start of January to the end of August of the current year, highlighting the fact that sponsorship is not just about money, but is primarily a humanitarian and spiritual relationship between the orphan and the sponsor, which includes visiting the orphan and getting to know them directly and the methods of caring for them, as well as gifts and mutual letters on special occasions.

He explained that the yearly expense for each orphan is nearly AED1,800, equivalent to $490, which is spent on SCI’s services to provide for their total care in the various aspects of living, upbringing, health, community and education.