GlobalSadaqah, a Malaysia-based philanthropic fundraising platform, is set to disburse its first round of fundraising for its Turkiye and Syria earthquake relief campaign this week, Ifran Tarmizi, CEO of GlobalSadaqah, told ISFI.
“Our first disbursement to our partner on the ground will be transferred this week itself. We will continue our efforts to raise more funds and continue disbursing as frequently as possible,” Ifran shared.
As of the time of writing, the platform has raised over RM120,000 (US$27,822), receiving contributions from individuals globally. Ifran noted that GlobalSadaqah has yet to receive contributions for the campaign from Islamic financial institutions.
According to Ifran, leveraging its partners, GlobalSadaqah is able to promptly list emergency fundraising campaigns. “Fundraising for emergency campaigns like this is listed within 24 hours after the tragedy on our platform as long as we have the right existing partners in [the] countries affected.”
Moreover, while it is generally the case that reaching Syria is a challenge due to the ongoing civil war, the platform’s regional partners are able to channel the funding raised to both countries affected, according to Ifran.
On the 6th February this year, a 7.8 magnitude earthquake struck southern Turkiye and northwest Syria. The earthquake was followed by a 7.5 magnitude aftershock. The current confirmed death toll as of the 10th February 2023 from both countries is in excess of 21,000, with the majority of confirmed victims being from Turkiye.
The earthquake is one of the largest recorded in recent history. According to the United States Geological Survey, only three earthquakes of magnitude 6 or larger have been registered in the region since 1970.
In a statement on the 9th February 2023, the president of Turkiye, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, confirmed the total number of injured citizens from the 10 earthquake-stricken provinces at over 66,000.
In addition to the lives affected and infrastructure damaged, Borsa Istanbul was suspended on the 8th February 2023 for five days as a result of increased stock price volatility and extraordinary price movements.
“In order to ensure the reliable, transparent, efficient, stable, fair and competitive functioning of the markets, Equity Market and Equity & Index Derivatives in Derivatives Market have been closed at 11:00 am on February 8, 2023 for five business days,” a statement from the stock exchange read.