A Scoop of Hope: Meet The Emirati Man Housing 200 Expats During the Pandemic

By Mohamed Rashed On Jun 3, 2020

The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic has immensely affected the economy all around the world. As a result, around 200 expats from Ghana in Dubai were left homeless as they were let go from jobs or unable to secure work; they were left stranded and forced to sleep in a park in Satwa for over a month.

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[UPDATED POST] The homeless #Ghanaians that I posted about earlier have all found a place to stay, thanks to the Dubai Police who’ve offered them a place in Jebel Ali. It’s quite funny: When they were approached, many of them ran away because they thought they were going to be arrested. Thanks to the Dubai Police, they all have a temporary home while they wait for their papers to be sorted and flights arranged. What a beautiful UAE story! Thank you for the community who came together. I am overwhelmed. I will keep you posted. #inthistogether UPDATE Thank you all so much for the beautiful responses. My heart is full. The story has obviously evolved since I last posted about it, but the fact is many of them (not all) are now in a temporary shelter. The most important thing now is to ensure they return safely home. @jolachudy and I are now trying to get registered charities involved to ensure everything is done according to the law, and that all this generosity is used effectively. I will keep you all updated. Again, thank you for the response! UPDATE 2 Valley of Love Dubai, a charity, is helping. Volunteers went to study the situation and were appreciative of the benefactor who has provided an AC tent with bedding, wash facilities and 2 meals a day. They need more food and water. If you would like to help, contact @VoLDubai on Twitter or go to their website thevalleyoflove.blogspot.com UPDATE 3 and CORRECTION: My earlier post (which I sourced from 3 people) named an individual as benefactor. But the Dubai Police has confirmed they were the ones who gave them shelter. Apologies. Still a beautiful UAE story.

A post shared by David Tusing (@davidtusing) on Jun 1, 2020 at 6:17am PDT

A journalist called David Tusing posted pictures of the group online, and the pictures reached a generous Emirati man that anonymously offered to house them in temporary accommodation in Jebel Ali. The group is now waiting safely for their papers to be sorted and for flights home.

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This deserves its own post. To help our friends from Ghana who were homeless and now housed, the Dar Al Ber Society is now involved, and will use their #ZayedHappinessCaravan initiative to help them arrange tickets home. If you’d like to contribute, please go to @juhiyasmeenkhan’s account for details. Dar Al Ber Society has been providing them meals as well. They are also in touch with the Ghana Consulate to ensure all those still stranded are housed, fed and that they all have tickets home as soon as flights open. Thank you to #ValleyOfLove for sending down volunteers and making sure they have all their essentials. To @samiraolfat and her teammates at @soroptimistdubai, thank you for taking care of the 8 pregnant women. And to @gasmarksix who first posted about them and cooked for them, thank you. @jolachudy, thanks for asking the right questions. But above all, thank you to the community for the hundreds of messages I’ve received and to the ones who went above and beyond on your own. You guys are the ones who made all the difference. There is still a lot of work to be done and we need to see this through until the end. But things are slowly falling into place and we’ve really shown the world what the #UAE is all about. (📷 @juhiyasmeenkhan)

A post shared by David Tusing (@davidtusing) on Jun 2, 2020 at 8:48am PDT

“I’m helping by sponsoring tickets to help them get home, if you know anyone who would like to contribute let me know,” said Muna Easa Al Gurg, a businesswoman and philanthropist from Dubai.

WE SAID THIS: Follow our hashtag #AScoopOfHope for more stories that will put a smile on your face and give you hope.