Majid Al Futtaim Properties, the leader in ownership, development and management of shopping malls together with hotels and ýcommunities in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), announced that it will be contributing EGP1m, which equates to 20,000 blankets, to the underprivileged citizens of Upper Egypt (Al Sa'id), as part of the recently launched 'One Million Blankets' initiative.

Additionally, Majid Al Futtaim is encouraging public participation by setting up collection points in both of its shopping centres, Maadi City Centre and Alexandria City Centre, with a pledge to double any donation presented by the mall visitors.

Abdalla El Nockrashy, Egypt's Country Head, at Majid Al Futtaim Properties, said: "We have been in Egypt for over a decade, and we deem ourselves as an integral part of the local community. Our EGP1m contribution to the 'One Million Blankets' campaign comes as part of a broader CSR programme through which we translate our commitment toward the Egyptian society. We are also hoping to facilitate donations from more than 67,000 shoppers who visit our Maadi and Alexandria City Centres daily through the collection points of the Egyptian Food Bank Charity Foundation that will be available at our malls starting Monday, December 31st, 2012." 

Majid Al Futtaim plays a fundamental role in developing the national economy of Egypt. The company has created more than 3,500 local job opportunities so far, and is currently planning to start construction of Mall of Egypt. 

"We have constantly reiterated our commitment to Egypt's economic growth, a responsibility we take seriously as evident in our efforts to boost local employment. Our upcoming project Mall of Egypt will provide 9,000 jobs during construction and 7,000 permanent jobs following completion," El Nockrashy added.

The 'One Million Blankets' campaign was launched on 26 December, and has since garnered wide attention of individuals, celebrities, media institutions and governments, as well as private and public organisations. The campaign aims to provide one million blankets to the impoverished citizens of Al Sa'id. 

Majid Al Futtaim's direct investments in Egypt amount to EGP2.5bn ($410m) to date. Majid Al Futtaim opened its first mall in Egypt in 2002. Maadi City Centre offers 31,351 square metres of gross leasable area ("GLA") and has 97 retailers. The company then opened Alexandria City Centre in 2003, which accommodates 211 retailers in over 61,774 square metres of GLA. 

Majid Al Futtaim currently operates six Carrefour hypermarkets and eight supermarkets in Egypt across Cairo, Alexandria and Sharm El-Sheikh. It plans to grow these operations to 16 hypermarkets and 38 Supermarkets over the next five years.