Dignity for Children wins international award

High honour: The DCF founders receiving the award from His Highness Sheikh Dr Sultan bin Muhammed Al-Qasimi (left). – Photo taken from The Big Heart’s Facebook page

PETALING JAYA: Malaysian foundation Dignity for Children (DCF) has won the second Sharjah Inter­national Award for Refugee Advo­cacy and Support.

DCF was selected for its work as a leading humanitarian institution in Asia, providing support and advocacy services to refugees and the displaced.

The award was also given to the group in recognition of its role and commitment towards thousands of refugee families in Sentul, Kuala Lumpur, by providing a safe environment for their children’s education.

DCF received a prize of RM533,000 to support its efforts and was officially honoured at a ceremony in Sharjah, UAE on Thursday.

The award is organised by The Big Heart Foundation, a Sharjah-based global humanitarian charity dedicated to helping refugees around the world and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).

“Education is the building block of any child’s future. Without it, children cannot have a horizon of hope and aspiration,” said Richard Towle, the UNHCR representative in Malaysia.

“In particular for refugee children who have lost so much in their journey to find asylum, education provides an opportunity to regain a semblance of normalcy in their lives and regain hope for their future.”