JEDDAH — Two hundred laptops were donated to orphan and underprivileged students on Wednesday here to help with home learning. The initiative “Their Education Their Dream” which was launched by Al Oula charity, focuses on providing orphan and needy students with computers to enable them to follow the e-learning system (distance education). Alia Abusulayman, public relation manager of Al Oula Charity, said the initiative addresses the pressing need of students who are deprived of necessary tools to help them cope with distance learning amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the project aims to provide equal opportunity for students to access educational resources. “Most students depend on computers to have access to their studies. Some rely on smartphones and those who do not have the means for either of these gadgets were left out of education in the new norm,”she said. Abusulayman said that Muvi Cinema, the Saudi company was the first to respond to their call. Muvi Cinemas KSA, the first home-grown cinema brand in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia made the first donation in response to the recent initiative by the Jeddah-based women’s charity Al-Oula — whose goal is to provide 2,000 laptops to local low-income students over the course of the pandemic. In a special ceremony held at Muvi Cinema in Arab Mall with the attendance of 80 orphan students who were able to watch and enjoy the new “The Croods: A New Age,” movie. “Recent studies have shown that 60 percent of low-income students could lose up to a year of schooling due to lack of access to proper technology,” said Mahmoud Mirza, the marketing director at Muvi Cinemas. “Al-Oula, which has an incredible tradition of helping children maximize their academic potential, was keen on setting an ambitious goal of thousands of donated laptop computers to area children. “Muvi Cinemas was delighted to participate in this effort with a gift of 200 devices, to help local students and families cope better with the unforeseen shift to online learning wrought by COVID-19. “We strongly encourage other businesses, charities, and citizens in the region to partake in Al-Oula’s laptop donation initiative at this critical time.” “Muvi’s donation means that we’re not only a cinema,” explained Mirza, “But also an active member of the communities in which we operate. The laptop activation is a milestone for our corporate-social-responsibility goals this year as we expand steadily across the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.” — SG