Air Arabia, the first and largest low-cost carrier (LCC) in the Middle East and North Africa, in collaboration with Sharjah Charity International, today announced the inauguration of its latest Charity Cloud School in the Trissur district of Kerala, India.

The school, built as part of Air Arabia’s Charity Cloud project initiative that is driven by on-board passenger donations, is the company’s first community school project in India and is in line with Air Arabia’s corporate social responsibility (CSR) programme for 2009. The school will offer quality education to children from underprivileged sections of society.

Air Arabia became one of the first companies from the region to introduce a sustainable CSR programme when it launched the “Charity Cloud” project in collaboration with Sharjah Charity International in 2005. The programme is aimed at raising funds for community development initiatives through on-board passenger donations. The fund collections are reviewed annually and invested in health and education projects in impoverished nations through a planned CSR programme.

A senior delegation from Air Arabia and Sharjah Charity International attended the inauguration of the school. “We would like to express our heartfelt gratitude to all Air Arabia passengers and patrons for helping this project achieve its aim through their direct and generous contributions,” said Abdulraoof Al Meer, President of Charity Cloud Committee. “We at Air Arabia believe in a positive and proactive engagement with society on development initiatives, as demonstrated through our Charity Cloud project. With the support of our passengers, we have been successful in growing and expanding the reach of our community initiatives to include different sections of society in various parts of the world. The opening of our latest Charity Cloud School is another accomplishment for us in this regard, and our contribution to the local community here in Trissur and for the people of Kerala.”

“We are pleased to partner with Air Arabia on this community initiative. At a time when communities across the world are struggling to raise funds for development projects, Air Arabia’s sustained effort in proactively engaging with local communities is indeed commendable," said Mohamed Hamdan Al Zeri, Board Member of Sharjah Charity International. "Sharjah Charity International has successfully worked with Air Arabia in executing similar initiatives in the past, and we look forward to further extending this partnership in strengthening local communities across the developing world.”

Air Arabia is not only committed to providing affordable air travel but also aims to actively engage with local communities to achieve better health and education for the underprivileged. Taking on a proactive role in facilitating the development needs of local and international communities is at the heart of Air Arabia’s success in achieving its CSR goals.

Last year, Air Arabia sponsored a new school in Warkabola, Sri Lanka, through its Charity Cloud project initiative. The company also sponsored the first phase of renovations of the Shree Shagyodaya Secondary School in Kathmandu, Nepal, in the same year, funds for which were raised mainly through on-board passenger donations. Full adoption of the school renovation will commence as phase two of this project.

In 2007, Air Arabia and Sharjah Charity International inaugurated the Charity Cloud Medical Centre, the first free medical clinic in the Jallas area of Sudan. Jallas is a desert area roughly 450 kilometres from the national capital, Khartoum, and has a population of over 20,000. The clinic, which is constantly being upgraded to provide better facilities, currently includes an operation and examination room, maternity room as well as a fully equipped laboratory and pharmacy.