Malaysia’s Dr Jemilah Mahmood, founder of the Malaysian Medical Relief Society (Mercy Malaysia), today received Bahrain’s prestigious Isa Award for Service to Humanity.

 

His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al-Khalifa presented the award to Dr Mahmood at a ceremony held at the Isa Cultural Center in Juffair.

 

The Isa Award for Service to Humanity was established in 2009 to honour individuals and organisations around the globe that have served humanity in a profound way.  This award is an initiative to honour the memory of the late Amir of Bahrain, Shaikh Isa bin Salman Al-Khalifa.  

 

The laureate, selected by a committee of distinguished scholars, experts, and public figures, receives a prize of $1 million and a gold medal.

 

Dr Mahmood won the award for her efforts in disaster prevention and relief, education, community service, environment protection, climate change and poverty alleviation.  

 

The official award ceremony was held under the patronage of His Majesty King Hamad and His Royal Highness the Prime Minister, Prince Khalifa bin Salman Al-Khalifa.

 

During the ceremony, attendees were shown an exclusive Isa Award documentary on the life and legacy of Sheikh Isa, whom the award is named after, and a unique film on the life and achievements of Dr Jemilah Mahmood, both of which will be aired on Bahrain TV in the upcoming days, said a statement. 

 

Dr Mahmood was selected as the laureate of the first edition of the award due to her continuous humanitarian work, which has included the establishment of a maternity and health centre for women in Darfur, Sudan, in 2004. 

 

Under her leadership, Mercy Malaysia also rebuilt 13 health centres in cooperation with the Health Ministry in Myanmar, after Cyclone Nargis in 2008. After the tsunami disaster in December 2004 and the destructive earthquake that ensued in March 2005, Dr Mahmood also helped the people of Banda Aceh, one of the poorest communities in Indonesia. She drew up a plan to provide the necessary healthcare, helped rebuild two health centres, and renovated the island’s Gunung Sitoli Hospital.

 

Following the award ceremony, Ali Abdullah Khalifa, the Award's Secretary General, said: “The honouring of Dr Jemilah in today’s event is the culmination of two years of continuous work that included intensive coordination among the award's General Secretariat, the Nomination Committee, the Jury, and other parties involved in humanitarian activities throughout the world. Today, Bahrain was able to meet Dr. Jemilah in person, and she showed what she has shown us before, her limitless passion for serving humanity, her consistent vision for empowering societies in the short-term as well as the long-term and her willingness to put her life on the line to make the world a better place.” 

 

The biennial award covers 11 categories including disaster prevention and relief, education, and human tolerance. – TradeArabia News Service