14 March 2005

Bonn, Germany: Members of Emirates Airline’s frequent flyer loyalty scheme, Skywards, can now donate their Miles to fly UN Volunteers to assist relief efforts in the countries affected by the 26 December tsunamis.

In conjunction with Emirates’ partner airline SriLankan, Skywards members can allot their Miles via a special account on the Skywards website, www.skywards.com. Nearly 10 million Skywards Miles have already been generously donated by Skywards members.

The Dubai-based international airline is also contributing one million Skywards Miles to enable the UNV programme to immediately send UN Volunteers to India, Indonesia, the Maldives and Sri Lanka.

“Like the rest of the world, we in Skywards felt compelled to help the unfortunate victims of this terrible disaster and thought that our members would also like to contribute,” says Brian LaBelle, Skywards’ Vice President. “Emirates and SriLankan Airlines operate numerous flights to the affected areas, which are proving to be a vital and speedy lifeline for aid agencies’ volunteers and medical teams, and we are very happy to be able to help.”

In addition to the UNV programme, Oxfam International and Islamic Relief are part of Emirates’ campaign encouraging its customers to support the global tsunami relief effort.

UNV’s role in tsunami relief
Immediately following last December’s Indian Ocean earthquake, the UNV programme deployed UN Volunteers to support the initial relief response in the affected countries. To date, some 40 UN Volunteers are engaged in intermediate and long-term recovery and reconstruction efforts. The UN Volunteers work with other UN agencies to provide technical expertise in the reconstruction of infrastructure, skills training to restore livelihoods, and building local capacity of communities in disaster preparedness and response.

About Emirates
Since its launch in 1985, Emirates has become one of the fastest growing airlines in the world. Through its Skywards programme, members have supported several charity appeals. The programme recently celebrated the addition of its one-millionth member by donating one million Skywards Miles to both UNICEF and CARE International and also inviting members to do likewise. The initiative raised 6.9 million Miles for UNICEF, 4.9 million for CARE International and 1.6 million for Beit Al Kheir, a Dubai-based charity that provides humanitarian assistance to underprivileged people in the United Arab Emirates.