Asif Rangoonwala CBE received the honour for services to Charity and Philanthropy. As a prominent business leader and philanthropist, Asif has been a driving force in the philanthropic landscape for many years, with a focus on creating positive change within communities both in the UK and South Asia. Through the Rangoonwala Foundation, he has championed numerous projects aimed at improving the quality of life for disadvantaged individuals. The Foundation's work includes providing scholarships for underprivileged students, funding medical research and facilities and supporting community development programmes. He spoke to Asian Voice about it:
Congratulations on receiving the King's Honour, Asif. Can you share with us what this recognition means to you personally and how it reflects the work of the Rangoonwala Foundation?
I am extremely honoured to receive this accolade from His Majesty King Charles III. What this means to me personally is approval of the work I have been doing in the UK for marginalised communities, mainly in the disability and community service sectors. Of course, all of this would not have been possible without the support I have received from the Rangoonwala Foundation.
The Rangoonwala Foundation has been instrumental in improving the quality of life for disadvantaged individuals in both the UK and South Asia. What has been the most challenging project you've undertaken, and how did you overcome those challenges?
Working with disadvantaged individuals has been a lifelong mission from the early days when the Rangoonwala Foundation was holding four annual gatherings for disadvantaged people at the Rangoonwala Community Centre in Pakistan. Since then in the UK we have worked closely with the Whitefield Development School, where I am still a Governor. With the support from Whitefield and other organisations i.e. Sense, Coram, Leonard Cheshire and so many others, we established MAITS. We have done a huge amount of work on a global basis and the biggest challenge that we found at MAITS is fundraising. We can manage the small stuff but there is so much out there to be done, it would be a big boost to our professional team as well as our volunteer team if we could secure the big pot required for so many young children who have various issues ranging from physical and mental disabilities but also behavioural and nutritional issues.
Your work spans various areas such as education, medical research, and community development. How do you prioritise which projects to support, and what criteria do you use to ensure they align with the Foundation’s mission?
The Foundation’s mission and how we prioritise projects are based on an application and in-depth vetting system created by Meheen Dalamal at the Rangoonwala Foundation, who spends most of her time going through hundreds of applications and coming up with a list of credible and needy organisations that fit he Rangoonwala Foundation's criteria.
Looking ahead, what are your future goals for the Rangoonwala Foundation, and how do you envision continuing to make a positive impact in the communities you serve?
The future goals of the Foundation are to continue the existing work we are already doing, however, there are new areas ie. environment and conservation that are being looked at for future collaboration. We also believe that the Rangoonwala Foundation has reached a stage where as the projects become larger there is a need to collaborate with others to address the issues affecting public needs in the medical, disability and environmental sectors.
