BankMuscat, Omantel charity campaign from today

MUSCAT — ‘Together for a Happier Eid’, a social initiative by Omantel and BankMuscat, will be launched at BankMuscat corporate headquarters today under the auspices of Sheikh Ahmed bin Rashid Mohammed Al Ma’amri, undersecretary at the Ministry of Social Development. The ceremony will be attended by Dr Laila Omar Jaad, Unicef representative in Oman; dignitaries, guests and senior representatives of Omantel, BankMuscat and institutions partnering in the Ramadan campaign. This initiative will benefit children of the less privileged families in Oman. Tapping into the largest countrywide branch network and customer base of Omantel and BankMuscat, the official launch of ‘Together for a Happier Eid’ at BankMuscat is expected to give the campaign a headstart. Conceived as the biggest private-public charity partnership involving the Ministry of Social Development, leading corporates, institutions and media organisations, the Ramadan initiative is aimed at effectively reaching out to all sections of society and unleashing the culture of donation through active participation by individuals and institutions. The donation campaign is conceived as a simple process, enabling everyone to participate without any financial burden. Donation mechanism The donation mechanism of the Ramadan initiative operates at three levels, namely: Donation SMS: The SMS response will result in donating 500 baisa per SMS. Participants can type the word ‘Donate’ (English) or Tabaara (Arabic) and send to 90899, which will result in donating 500 baisa per SMS. Donation Boxes: These boxes will be placed at corporates and institutions partnering in the initiative, mainly targeted at the staff, customers and visitors to these offices. Donation boxes will be available at all the branches of BankMuscat and Omantel offices. Dedicated Bank Account Number: Individuals or companies can send Ramadan donations to the dedicated BankMuscat Account No: 0331011506820016. The Ministry of Social Development will supervise the collection of donations from all three sources and identify eligible beneficiary children across the Sultanate. Donations will be collected after the first 15 days of Ramadan. Activities The ministry will distribute funds to poor children in different parts of the country from the 16th day of Ramadan till the 20th day. The objective is to provide these families with money at least 10 days before the end of Ramadan so that they can plan ahead and celebrate Eid like others who are more fortunate. Special donation events will be held at corporates and institutions partnering in the project. These campaigns will mainly focus on encouraging respective staff members to generously donate to the cause.