Cape Town - Founder of the humanitarian organisation Gift of the Givers and philanthropist Dr Imtiaz Sooliman was awarded a lifetime achievement award.
The ceremony, which took place in Cape Town on Thursday, saw Sooliman being conferred the Titanium Lifetime Achiever Award 2022 by the Board of Healthcare Funders (BHF).
The BHF Titanium Lifetime Achiever Award acknowledges and celebrates an individual who has, over several years, made outstanding and exceptional contributions to the health-care industry to promote, grow, improve and advance the health-care sector and the well-being of the society it serves.
The award was presented to Sooliman in recognition of his work across communities.
Gift of the Givers was founded 30 years ago and has been at the forefront of aiding communities affected by disasters, those in need of resources and bringing back dignity to people in more than 44 countries to the tune of over R3.8 billion.
Gift of the Givers has aided thousands of people in South Africa with food and medical supplies since the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic and has played a pivotal role in supporting those affected by the devastating floods which hit KwaZulu-Natal earlier this year.
“The outstanding work that the Gift of the Givers Foundation and Dr Sooliman have done speaks for itself.
“The Gift of the Givers Foundation has become a beacon of hope for millions of people during the most turbulent and difficult times. As the BHF, the honour is ours to present this richly deserved accolade to Dr Sooliman.
“He is an embodiment of ubuntu and has consistently offered a lifeline to many communities in need. Through his work with the Gift of the Givers Foundation, the world is indeed a better place.
“We are honoured to recognise Dr Sooliman for the extraordinary contribution he has made through the foundation to humanitarian aid in South Africa and various countries in Africa for the past 30 years,” said BHF managing director Dr Katlego Mothudi.
The award presented to Sooliman comes with a R50 000 prize and can be donated to any charity of his choice.