A core operation of TRA, Corporate Social Responsibility reflects the Authority’s business processes in producing an overall positive impact on the UAE community. TRA’s CSR programs cover a wide range of themes, from the environment, to encouraging innovation in the ICT sector; supporting long life learning in ICT and sciences; availing the latest technologies to support individuals with special needs; and supporting arts in serving cultural and humanitarian values. The range of initiatives and projects that fall under the CSR program is a reflection of the core values of TRA and its principles of responsible business ethics.

The motivation behind the development of TRA’s initiatives remains focused, amongst other issues, on realizing TRA’s vision to move the ICT sector forward, while at the same time producing visible and real benefits to the UAE community.

Corporate Social Responsibility

Visit to Abu Dhabi Rehabilitation & Care Center

A delegation from the TRA visited the Abu Dhabi Rehabilitation & Care Center and the Abu Dhabi Autism Center in Al Mafraq. The purpose of the visit was to take a note of the conditions of the patients and individuals with special needs. The delegation was briefed about the services provided by “Zayed Higher Organization for Humanitarian Care,” whether it is for education, rehabilitation, psychological special needs, or for social services.

Visit to Thalassemia Center

A team of TRA's staff paid a visit to the Thalassemia Center at Al Wasl Hospital in Dubai. The team was briefed about the technical equipment at the center, the disease and its means of spreading, and possible precautions. They also met the patients and gave out gifts to the children, in addition to a souvenir to the center in appreciation of the staff's efforts in providing services and care to the patients.

Echo of Silence

The TRA continued its contributions to the “Echo of Silence”, which is one of the Social Responsibility Fund projects of the Ministry of Social Affairs, aiming at ensuring the inclusion of individuals with special needs in society. The TRA seeks through this program to enable individuals with hearing and speaking disabilities to interact with others, and integrate them in society. The TRA received the Emirates Social Award granted by the Ministry of Social Affairs in May 2010 for the “Echo of Silence” project.

Blood Donation Campaigns

The TRA remains keen to participate in blood donation campaigns. Its contribution to these activities is not limited to participation; it can also encompass event organization such as the Donation Campaign organized in cooperation with Blood Bank in Abu Dhabi last January and the blood donation in cooperation with Al Wasl Hospital in Dubai last February. The TRA also participated in the World Blood Donor Day, on June 2011, during which it received an award from the Abu Dhabi Blood Bank for its active annual participation in the blood donation campaign.

Visit to Al Barzah Elderly Nursing Home

The TRA continued its visits where recently paid a visit to Al Barzah Elderly Nursing Homes in Al Mamzar-Dubai. The visit aimed at assessing the conditions of the senior citizen residents and the services provided to them at the center.  The nursing home aims to provide a high quality of care and create a ‘home away from home’ for the residents. The visit aims at making them feel happy and recognized and to make sure that their situation and needs are being met. The TRA considers such visits a responsibility that we have to uphold, rather than seeing it as just a mere social contribution.

The UAE National Telecom Recycling Campaign:

“The UAE National Telecom Recycling Campaign” is a TRA initiative in conjunction with the UAE Ministry of Environment and Water and the national telecoms providers. It aims at reducing the environmental damage caused by toxins in mobile phones and accessories through depositing unwanted mobile phones in designated drop boxes for recycling.

Cheer Your Life:

The TRA launched “Cheer Your Life” to support the socio-humanitarian initiative of the national “Al Mawaheb Photography Team” through sponsoring the team’s shooting of 100 cultural and artistic photos and placing them at the Ajman Elderly Nursing Home.

36 Abstract Paintings:

TRA purchased 36 Abstract Paintings from the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Community Development, done by 13 talented national artists, to serve the UAE cultural movement and support National artwork. Those paintings now decorate the walls of the TRA head office.

Sponsorships

3rd Mobile Application Contest

The TRA sponsored the “3rd Mobile Application Contest (MAC’08)” in May 2011. The participants consisted of 20 teams from 12 UAE universities and colleges, where they competed in developing new mobile phone solutions and applications that meet the various requirements of regional consumers. Participating teams contributed with a number of innovative mobile applications that are relevant to the Arabic and Islamic cultures. The first winner was the team from the American University of Sharjah with the project “Two Factor Authentication using Mobile Phones.”

Abu Dhabi Innovation Forum

The TRA sponsored the 2nd edition of the Abu Dhabi Innovation Week held at the Fairmont Bab Al Bahr hotel from 24-25 January 2011. The event brought international experts and leading innovators to Abu Dhabi to discuss promoting innovation. The forum addressed numerous topics including the implementation of change initiatives, facilitating innovation, and developing business in the region. The speakers touched on several important topics, and presented ideas suitable for the UAE.

Education without Borders

Under the patronage of H.H. Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the UAE, the TRA sponsored the “Education Without Borders Conference (EWB) 2011” in Abu Dhabi from the 28th to 31st March 2011. The conference aimed at providing a forum of mutual respect and understanding, building a network of high profile colleges, businesses, and governmental leaders from around the globe to share solutions on some of the world’s most pressing social challenges. Participants gathered from six continents for this conference and inspired a commitment to social change for each country and community represented.

Information and Communication Technology Research 2011

On 15th May 2011, the TRA co-hosted the UAE Forum in Information and Communication Technology Research 2011 (ICTRF2011) held in Abu Dhabi. The 2011 forum was themed: “Creating impact through ICT Research and Innovation.” It included sessions on: Initiating Research and Innovation through Network Enabled Applications, Achieving and Measuring Impact through Research Funding, and Emerging Research Areas in ICT. The main topics in these sessions was presented and discussed by prominent international speaker-guests.

Zayed University IT competition

The TRA sponsored the Zayed University IT competition organized by the College of Information Technology, Zayed University- Abu Dhabi on 28th April 2011. The 166 applications received by the TRA represented  Jordan, Palestine, Syria, Lebanon, Egypt, Iraq, KSA, Morocco, Algeria, Sudan, Qatar, Kuwait, India, Oman, Bahrain, Pakistan, and the UAE. The participants competed in three categories. The sponsorship is in-line with the TRA strategy to develop the telecommunications sector in the UAE by encouraging investment, innovation, development, and education.

Environmental Thought Forum:

TRA sponsored “The Environmental Thought Forum” that was organized by the Federal Environmental Agency. The purpose of that Forum was to discuss environmental issues, including Echo-Media and the challenges of Media and Communications in relation to the Environment.

The UAE Educational IT Challenge:

TRA sponsored the competition “The UAE Educational IT Challenge”, designed to recognize and harness the best IT ideas and practices from the classrooms of secondary schools, colleges and Universities of the UAE and GCC.