DUBAI: A Dubai vehicle registration plate carrying the number ‘7’ was sold for a whopping $15 million in an auction that raised $26 million for a Ramadan food appeal.
Rare vehicle number plates and phone numbers went under the hammer at a charity auction in Dubai on Saturday night, surpassing the half billion mark of the UAE’s ‘1 Billion Meals Endowment.’
Plate 7 has become the most expensive in the UAE after breaking a previous record set by Emirati businessman Saeed Khouri, who paid $14.2 million for Abu Dhabi’s number 1 plate at a charity auction in 2008.
Earlier, the Ramadan campaign hit its halfway mark after more than 87,000 major contributors donated a total of $140 million, 15 days after the launch, the Emirates News Agency reported on Saturday.
The UAE’s endowment fund aims to raise AED1 billion ($272 million), with each meal equating AED1.
Last month, the UAE’s Vice President and Prime Minister and Dubai Ruler Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al-Maktoum launched the campaign to establish the largest Ramadan sustainable food aid endowment fund.
“The wide response to the campaign, recording Dh514 million ($140 million) from 87,000 donators, is testament to the UAE community’s commitment to values of giving and solidarity, which represent an integral part of our culture,” said Mohamed bin Abdullah Al-Gergawi, secretary-general of Mohammed bin Rashid Al-Maktoum Global Initiatives.
The sum was donated by individuals, businesses, public and private-sector institutions in a community-wide response that testifies to the culture of giving and generosity in the UAE.
The campaign builds on the achievements of previous food aid drives launched over the past three years.
“10 Million Meals” in Ramadan 2020, was the first and largest show of solidarity of its kind, supporting victims of the COVID-19 pandemic within the UAE. This was followed in Ramadan 2021 by the “100 Million Meals” campaign, which was the largest regional food support campaign spanning 20 countries in the Arab region, Africa and Asia.
Last year’s “1 Billion Meals” was the largest of its kind regionally, providing 1 billion meals in 50 countries and furthering the UAE’s contribution to the global effort to eradicate hunger.
Launching the largest Ramadan sustainable food aid endowment fund reflects the UAE’s long-term vision for charity and aid efforts, and translates its humane philosophy by introducing a new model of charity based on sustainability.
The campaign continues to welcome donations and contributions to the endowment fund from institutions and individuals.
