His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, has announced that the UAE will now issue golden visas to charity and humanitarian aid workers.
The announcement was made on today, 19 August, which is World Humanitarian Day.
His Highness Sheikh Mohammed said, "On World Humanitarian Day, we pay tribute to the selfless heroes in the UAE, as one of the world’s largest humanitarian hubs, to support charity and aid professionals who have dedicated their lives to improving the welfare of underprivileged. Aid workers are ambassadors of the UAE and role models instilling pride in us all. Giving is embedded in the fabric of Emirati society and culture, and we aspire to be the most vibrant humanitarian destination in the next fifty years. The UAE has always led impactful humanitarian initiatives and empowered those implementing them, and in the year of the UAE’s Golden Jubilee, it aspires to become a world leader of humanitarian efforts in the next five decades."
The visas will be given to humanitarians to honour the work they put in as well as to remember the individuals that lost their lives while working for humanitarian causes.
His Highness Sheikh Mohammed also mentioned, "Having always paid tribute to hope makers, the UAE extends its commitment to global cooperation to include the humanitarian sector’s pioneers, groups, specialists and workers, so that the UAE can become a second home to these individuals. Not only is the UAE an economic hub, it is also a humanitarian one nowadays."