ARTISTIC: Volunteers paint windows in one of the classrooms being renovated.

More than 80 Rota volunteers and secondary grade level students from the Bangladesh school gathered in the past week to renovate one of the oldest secondary schools in Qatar.  

The project involved scraping the walls, painting, decorating and refurbishing six kindergarten classrooms with 180 chairs and 50 tables. Rota is also working closely with Qatar Foundation’s Facilities Management Directorate who is supporting the construction of a new covered playground area at the school.

This project is part of Rota’s 8th annual Ramadan Project, “Sharing Blessings”, which has become a recognised volunteer effort to support the local community during the Holy Month. Sponsored by Occidental Petroleum Corporation (OXY) Qatar, the renovation of this school aims to provide engaging volunteering opportunities and raise awareness on the values of volunteerism and community service.

“We are delighted to witness the successful renovation of the Bangladesh school by our wonderful team of volunteers. This Ramadan, our aim is to engage our incredible Rota volunteers to continue to give back and share their blessings with people in need in our community. After seeing the ongoing commitment of all our volunteers towards this project, I can say that they have truly made a real impact and an incredible change on the student’s lives,” Rota National Program Director Mohamed al-Saleh said.

Hazem Idriss, Volunteers Outreach Specialist, said, “This was definitely an extraordinary team of volunteers. They were absolutely committed to the project from start to end. The team showed great enthusiasm and bonded very well with one another, they clearly enjoyed every aspect of the project.  It is great to see how much impact this experience had on the volunteers and how their work made a difference on other people’s lives. I’m so proud to be part of all this journey and I’m looking forward to seeing the final outcome of the school this week.”

Steve Kelly, OXY Qatar General Manager, said: “At this very special time of year, Oxy Qatar is honoured to support the renovation of one of Qatar’s oldest secondary schools.  Our partnership with Rota demonstrates our strong commitment to support our youth in Qatar by helping them to improve their lives in every way possible. A number of our volunteers took part in the project, and it was a blessing to see how fully engaged they were in the whole experience. Our sincere thanks to all the volunteers and everyone behind the scenes.”

A student of Doha British School, volunteering at the project, said, “It’s a big difference to what we saw when we first came. Classrooms were drab, windows lacked curtains, and the decor was minimal. The walls had holes and chipped paint, and it didn’t look like a school for young children. It looked abandoned. We stripped the place down and completely changed it up. We’re bringing in new furniture tomorrow to replace the wooden tables that sat five-six children that were here before.”

Sumaia Rahman, a student at the Bangladesh MHM School, said: “It’s our summer vacation and we are renovating our school in a different way, so when the children will come they will see a new class, they will feel extremely happy.”

The school renovation project is an addition to Rota’s wider Ramadan 2014 volunteer effort, which has over the years, engaged many hundreds of volunteers. This year, the support is expected to reach over 1,000 individual in Qatar.

The annual Ramadan Project is being exclusively sponsored by OXY Qatar for the third consecutive year and Rota said it is extremely pleased and proud to continue to work with such a visionary partner in the years to come. In addition, Rota’s Volunteer Program works closely with the Social Development Centre, and Qatar Foundation’s Facilities Management Directorate.

This year, Rota volunteers will serve and support important community partners including Rumailah Hospital’s Children’s Rehabilitation Centre and Residential Care Compound, Hamad Hospital’s Paediatric Leukaemia Unit, and Qatar Foundation for Elderly Care.

Reach Out To Asia is a non-profit organisation launched in December 2005 in Doha, Qatar, by Her Excellency Sheikha al-Mayassa bint Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani. Operating under the auspices of the Qatar Foundation, Rota says it is committed to providing high quality and relevant primary and secondary education, encouraging relationships among communities, creating safe learning environments and restoring education in crisis affected areas across Asia and around the world. Rota envisions a world where all young people have access to the education they need in order for them to realise their full potential and shape the development of their communities.

Founded in 1995 by His Highness Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani and chaired by Her Highness Sheikha Mozah bint Nasser, Qatar Foundation is a private, non-profit organisation committed to the principle that a nation’s greatest natural resource is its people. The headquarters of Qatar Foundation are located within its flagship project, Education City. A fourteen million square-metre campus, Education City is home to numerous progressive learning institutions and centres of research, including branch campuses of six of the world’s leading universities, plus a cutting-edge science and technology park. Qatar Foundation also works to enhance the quality of life in Qatar by “investing in Education, Science and Technology and Community Health and Development”.