Organisation of Islamic Cooperation
The Collective Voice of The Muslim World
Date: 26/12/2011
On the occasion of the seventh anniversary of the Tsunami, one of the worst natural disasters in modern history, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and the Islamic Development Bank (IDB) reiterated their thanks to all the OIC member States and the philanthropists from the Islamic world who participated actively in the OIC Coalition to Rescue Children Victims of Tsunami. They expressed special thanks to the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz for his generous sponsorship of the project which demonstrated his gracious humanistic spirit and his special interest in the affairs of vulnerable Muslims around the globe. The Tsunami, which hit the coasts of many countries in South and South East Asia on 26 December 2004, caused massive losses in lives and property. The province of Banda Aceh in Sumatra Island in Indonesia was among the areas which suffered most -with over 200 thousand people lost in the devastating Tsunami which reached a height of 30 meters, following the 9.2 magnitude quake that ravaged vast agricultural areas and buildings and left behind around 25 thousand orphaned children. At the time, the leaders of OIC Member States accorded utmost importance to the future of orphans in Banda Aceh. OIC and IDB’s efforts led to the launching of the program of the OIC Coalition to Rescue Children Victims of Tsunami” in Banda Aceh province in Indonesia, at the kind initiative of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques to sponsor one thousand orphaned children over a period of fifteen years or until orphans reach the age of majority (18 years). The program started in July 2006 and the total number of orphans taken in charge by virtue of the sponsorship contracts has reached so far 10,310. In this regard, the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz, received in late June 2011 a group of orphaned children victims of the Tsunami from Banda Aceh province. During this reception, the children expressed their gratitude and appreciation to the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques for sponsoring them and for his overwhelming generosity and gracious care. As a result of OIC and IDB’s joint efforts over the past six years to sponsor these orphans, providing them with sound upbringing and developing their innovation and empowerment opportunities, a number of orphans continued their education to the university level. Others graduated in the field of professional training and joined the workplace, thus preserving the dignity of orphans and their families.
