The Omani Forum for Partnership and Social Responsibility, which was held recently in Salalah, is considered one of the most successful forums in terms of the quality of the presenters who participated in the event. It focused on the principles of the United Nations Global Compact and issues of responsibility and sustainable development. The conference was attended by many officials representing various Gulf, Arab and international economic and social organizations in the fields of development and partnership in social responsibility and sustainability.
Among the working papers presented was a presentation titled “Nimaati” (meaning ‘My Grace’) delivered by Hadeel Ahmed al Sabti, an advisor at the International Islamic Charitable Organization in Kuwait.
The paper talks about food waste in the State of Kuwait and other countries in the region, amid widespread evidence of poor families desperate for food in the same region.
Launched in 2021, the Nimaati initiative aims to achieve one of the Sustainable Development Goals to reduce the per capita share of global food waste at the retail and consumer levels by half, and slash nutritional losses.
The Kuwaiti initiative also carries a religious slogan entitled “Preserve it from disappearing,” as grace shies away from those who manipulate and squander it.
The aim of the initiative is to meet the needs of poor families in the State of Kuwait by preparing and distributing hampers containing a variety of food items catering to the diverse food requirements of these recipients.
The ‘My Nimmati’ initiative aims to divert an estimated 100,000 tonnes of perfectly good food away from dumpsters in Kuwait annually and channel these supplies to families that need them. Environmental health and hygiene issues linked to the disposal of food waste are preempted as well.
In its most recent campaign, the “Nimaati” initiative helped salvage around 1,000 tonnes of food waste, which was channeled to some 1,376 needy family. A total of 34,410 food hampers were distributed during this campaign. The total cost of salvaged foodstuff amounted to 1.654 million Kuwaiti dinars. An estimated 1,500 volunteers, supported by a number of specialist food companies, participated in the drive as part of their CSR commitments.
A total of over 100 companies and restaurants took part in the Nimmati initiative as well.
Guided by the success of the Nimmati initiative in Kuwait, the Sultanate of Oman could also consider launching a similar project to help reduce food waste, especially in the holy month of Ramadhan, when the amounts of wasted foodstuff almost double.
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