Dubai Cares helps 117 million people worldwide, spends AED1.27 billion on education and aid since 2007
Dubai: Dubai Cares has announced that it has reached 117 million people around the world since it started in 2007. The charity said it has spent AED1.27 billion on education, skills training, and humanitarian support over the past 18 years.
Dubai Cares focuses on helping children and young people get good education and learn useful life skills. Its goal is to give every child a fair chance to learn, grow, and build a better future. The organization supports long-term projects so the help continues for many years.
Dr. Tariq Al Gurg, CEO and Vice-Chairman of Dubai Cares, said the organization was created under the leadership of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum at a time when the world was not paying enough attention to the global education crisis. He said this early action showed strong vision and care for children’s futures, especially in developing countries.
Dubai Cares works with 143 partner organizations. Together they have carried out 264 programs, 48 awareness campaigns, and 40 research projects in 60 developing countries. These programs support schools, teachers, and students, and help improve entire education systems.
The charity said its mission is to break the cycle of poverty through education. With support from the UAE community, Dubai Cares expanded its work in 2025 by improving access to learning and skills training. It also continued to provide help in areas affected by conflict and emergencies.
Since it began, Dubai Cares has helped protect the health of more than 61 million children through school deworming programs. It also gave over 4.4 million children access to clean water, sanitation, and hygiene facilities at schools. Nearly 5 million students received healthy school meals to support their learning.
To improve teaching quality, the organization trained more than 5 million teachers. It also provided vocational and job skills training to about 788,000 young people. Early childhood education programs supported over 7 million children.
In addition, more than 779,000 people benefited from better digital access. Over 208,000 children received access to primary and secondary school. During emergencies and long crises, more than 4.6 million children and youth continued their education through special support programs. Programs focused on girls and women helped more than 18.5 million beneficiaries.
In 2025, Dubai Cares increased its humanitarian support in Lebanon and Gaza. The organization provided food, clean water, shelter, winter kits, and mental health support for families and children affected by crisis. Nearly 762,000 people were reached through these emergency efforts.
Dubai Cares also supported school building projects. Two primary schools were built in Nepal and two in Senegal through the Adopt a School program. In India, six libraries were opened in primary schools in Bihar and Jharkhand under the Adopt a Library program. These projects helped more than 19,000 children and teachers by creating better places to read and learn.
Community support inside the UAE also grew in 2025. Through the Volunteer Emirates program, 3,879 volunteers took part in 19 events. They helped repair schools, prepare learning kits, and improve classrooms. The Students for Students program involved 17 schools and more than 2,100 students who donated school supplies to children from low-income families in the UAE.
Dubai Cares also ran the Taste of Giving campaign for the second time. In this campaign, 36 restaurants and food brands joined to support children’s education. The campaign helped provide 250,000 school meals through customer participation.
The organization’s crowdfunding platform also grew. People, schools, and companies launched 55 fundraising campaigns in 2025 to support children’s education through personal challenges and events.
Dubai Cares said it will continue to work with global partners on research and policy ideas, including links between education and climate action. The charity plans to keep expanding its programs and helping more children and youth around the world get quality education and better opportunities.
