The Emirates Telecommunications Corporation, Etisalat, today announced it will donate five percent of all food orders placed on its Smiles app, to the ‘100 Million Meals’ campaign.

The donations will go towards providing food parcels for disadvantaged individuals and families across 20 countries in the Middle East, Asia, and Africa during the Holy Month of Ramadan.

Etisalat app users can donate to the campaign directly in cash or through Smiles points in their accounts, which they earn with every purchase using the app.

Etisalat also announced it will change its mobile network logo to feature ‘100 Million Meals’ for the duration of the campaign to encourage users to donate.

Etisalat has designated a series of numbers, listed on the campaign’s website www.100millionmeals.ae, that enable users to donate by SMS with the value of their choice.

Commenting on the launch of the humanitarian initiative, Dr. Ahmed bin Ali, Senior Vice President of Corporate Communications at Etisalat Group, said, "This great humanitarian campaign is indicative of the conscientious approach the UAE has taken in recent years to drive global efforts to ensure the world’s most vulnerable are cared for in the most difficult times, and Etisalat is proud to support its aims through our dedicated Smiles app."

The ‘100 Million Meals’ campaign, organised by the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Global Initiatives (MBRGI), was launched to encourage individuals, institutions, companies and businesspeople from all sectors of society to help provide food security to those in need during the Holy Month, as part of the UAE’s commitment to global humanitarian efforts to alleviate hunger and malnutrition.

The ‘100 Million Meals’ campaign enables people and organisations inside and outside the UAE to contribute the cost of basic foodstuffs starting from AED1 –the equivalent cost of ingredients needed to prepare a meal in the lowest-income communities in beneficiary countries including Uganda, Lebanon, Egypt, Sudan, Angola, Jordan and Pakistan.

To ensure food parcels are safely distributed to underserved homes and villages, MBRGI is teaming up with the World Food Programme, the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Humanitarian and Charity Establishment (MBRCH), the Food Banking Regional Network, and humanitarian organisations in beneficiary countries.

Four ways to donate Donations to the ‘100 Million Meals’ campaign can be made in four ways: online, SMS, bank transfer and call centre.

Donations starting from AED10 to secure 10 meals, rising to AED500, can be made on the campaign website www.100millionmeals.ae.

Individuals and businesses inside and outside the UAE can donate to designated bank account for the campaign through Dubai Islamic Bank (AE080240001520977815201.). Local donations can also be made by sending "meal" in English by SMS on specified UAE numbers on the Du or Etisalat networks listed on the website.

Big monetary donations can be received through reaching out to the campaign’s team on the toll-free number 8004999.