ISLAMABAD: The queen on Saturday announced Commonwealth Points of Light Award for two “outstanding” volunteers during a phone call hosted by British High Commissioner Dr Christian Turner.

The award to Huzaifa Ahmad, who is co-founder and chief executive officer of Rizq, and Syed Hassaan Irfan, the executive director of Rizq, recognised their work in providing food security to local communities, especially during the coronavirus pandemic.

In a statement, the British High Commission said the call with the queen also marked National Volunteering Week in the UK, an annual celebration of the power and contribution of volunteering.

Huzaifa Ahmad and Hassaan Irfan run the social enterprise which started as a university project in 2015. It aims at ensuring a hunger-free Pakistan by distributing excess food to the most vulnerable.

During the coronavirus pandemic and in Ramazan, the two volunteers mobilised a network of over 3,000 volunteers to distribute over 2.2 million meal packs across 23 cities.

Huzaifa Ahmad said: “Food is a fundamental need. For every human to reach his or her true potential it is important for this basic right to be accessible, affordable and available. I want to thank the Commonwealth for recognising our efforts and honouring us with this award. I would like to dedicate it to our amazing volunteers and Rizq heroes.”

In his statement, Syed Hassaan Irfan remarked: ‘We have more food than ever before, yet more people than ever go hungry every day. We all have an individual responsibility to eliminate hunger. No one should go without a daily meal. This award is a tribute to the people of Pakistan, the work of volunteers in Pakistan, and our strong tradition of helping each other.”

British High Commissioner Dr Christian Turner said: “It was an honour to hear Her Majesty recognise Rizq’s remarkable work to tackle food insecurity. Moments like this are examples of the profoundly positive relations between the UK, Pakistan and Commonwealth.”

Published in Dawn, June 7th, 2020