Ikea UAE, a member of Al-Futtaim group, is donating 1 euro ($1.32) for every soft toy Ikea stores in Dubai and Abu Dhabi during the upcoming annual Soft Toy Campaign to help Unicef’s education programme.

The Soft Toy Campaign will be held from the first week of November this year in UAE stores.

“Ikea Soft Toy Campaign is an opportunity for both Ikea customers in the UAE and our employees to get involved in working for children. Ikea is proud to be a part of this wonderful global campaign,” said John Kersten, managing director, Ikea – UAE, Qatar, Egypt.

“Our vision is a world where children living in poverty have more opportunities to create a better future for themselves and their families,” explained Per Heggenes, CEO of Ikea Foundation.

“Profits give us the resources to reach for that vision, and we are grateful for the dedication of Ikea co-workers and loyal customers around the globe who enabled us to increase our giving so dramatically, despite the global recession and economic uncertainties.”

The Foundation funds a wide range of long term programmes to address the basic needs for children and families, helping them break the cycle of poverty and take control of their own future.

For the past 10 years, Ikea and UNICEF have been working together in India to end child labour and create a better future for India’s children.

The Ikea Foundation, which manages Ikea’s investments to benefit children in the developing world, donated 65 million euros ($86 million) to 47 charitable programmes in 2011, marking a 44 per cent over the previous year.

Funds were allocated to 15 different organisations including UNHCR (the UN refugee agency), Half the Sky, UNDP, Save the Children and Unicef, reaching children in more than 30 countries. – TradeArabia News Service