- Fun-filled Day Out with Family and Friends
- Free Glucose Level Testing, Healthy Living Tips at Venue
- Fitness Zone and Sports Zone to encourage families to Get Active
Dubai-UAE: Landmark Group, the region’s leading retail and hospitality conglomerate, is gearing up to host its eighth Beat Diabetes Walk on Friday, 18 November, 2016 at Zabeel Park in Dubai. Joining hands to support the walk and educate the community about the condition are Government partners Dubai Municipality, Dubai Sports Council, Hamdan Bin Mohammed Community Sports Initiative and Dubai Health Authority (DHA), and strategic partners, Emirates Diabetes Society and Al Jalila Foundation.
According to International Diabetes Foundation, 415 million people worldwide have diabetes, with the MENA region alone accounting for 35.4 million. It is of particular concern that the UAE has more than one million diagnosed cases of diabetes, and over 387,000 cases as yet undiagnosed. Unmanaged diabetes can affect the heart and blood vessels, eyes, kidneys, nerves and teeth. In addition, people with diabetes also have a higher risk of developing infections, and can potentially develop cardiovascular disease, blindness, kidney failure, and lower limb amputation.
For almost a decade, Landmark Group has been keenly involved in educating the public about diabetes and healthy living, besides raising funds towards supporting diabetes research, awareness and education through its outlets. Nisha Jagtiani, Executive Director of Landmark Group said: “At Landmark Group, we are always looking at ways to create a better life for the community. Diabetes is one of the priority areas of national concern, and we believe that as a leading retailer in the region, we have a contributory role to play in helping to better manage this lifestyle condition. Landmark Group has raised AED 4 million through its stores across the board for diabetes management and contributed a further AED10 million to fund diabetes research.”
“Through our year-round community outreach programmes and social media activations, we reach out to 12 million people in the region, including five million in the UAE. We have so far engaged with 35,000 people via the walk, and encouraged more than 250,000 people to undergo blood glucose testing for diabetes. In addition, we are partnering with 70 corporates and 50 schools, involving them in spreading the important message of leading a healthy lifestyle,” she added.
Join the fundraising drive which is taking place at Landmark Group’s retail outlets across the UAE. Customers have the option of donating to the cause by adding AED5 or multiples of five to their total shopping bill, which will be recorded through an internal barcode mechanism to tabulate each contribution. Funds will be donated to Al Jalila Foundation to raise funds for diabetes research and healthcare in the UAE.
The eighth edition of the Beat Diabetes Walk, held on 18 November, will start at Gate 3, Zabeel Park. Walkers can look forward to a fun-filled day out with families and friends, while supporting a noble initiative.
A host of community-centric fitness and sports activities will await the participants, including zumba, yoga, throw-ball, bubble soccer and archery, conducted by Home Centre, Fitness First, Jump Boxx, Allied Transport Services, Max, Mashreq, Super Care, Kibsons, Janssen, Sunblast, Fun City, NAB Middle East, iCare, Dubai Health Authority (DHA) and Supercare. In addition, there will be a photo booth and balloon release, with a Kids Zone that boasts of bouncy castles, rodeo bull, wall climbing and other exciting activities.
From 9:30am to 4:00 pm, participants will be able to avail of free glucose testing facilities provided at the venue, while DHA, the event’s health partner, takes them through the various aspects of diabetes management. Cooking sessions hosted by experts will also offer practical and healthy alternatives to popular food items.
The walk is further supported by Standard Chartered Bank, GBM, Cisco, Mashreq Bank, Aramex, ATC, Cognizant and BVM and in partnership with Centrepoint, Home Centre, Max, Fun City, Splash and Fitness First.
Snapshot of Beat Diabetes Walk 2016:
| Event name + description | Landmark Group’s Beat Diabetes Walk |
| Date | Friday, 18 November |
| Venue | Zabeel Park, Dubai |
| Time | 7:00am – 7:30 am – On Ground Registration
8:00am – Walk begins 9:00am – 4:00 p.m. – Family entertainment, games and free blood glucose screening |
| Registration fee | AED20 per head for participants older than 14 years
AED10 per head for children between 8-14 years Free of charge for children under 8 years |
Landmark Group – ‘Beat Diabetes’ initiative
Landmark Group launched the ‘Beat Diabetes’ initiative in 2009, with a focused view to spread awareness on the prevention and management of diabetes across GCC and India. 20% of the people diagnosed with the condition live in these regions and the number is growing exponentially.
The Beat Diabetes initiative conducts year-round programs, community events and media campaigns, to manage and prevent diabetes and reaches over 20 million people annually. Key yearly activities include Take the Test – free blood glucose testing, Get Active- community centric fitness events, Eat Healthy- cooking sessions and Super Kidz Program amongst others. Since its inception the initiative has also raised over USD 1 million for diabetes care and research. The initiative’s activities culminate with the Beat Diabetes Walk organized across five territories in November – World Diabetes Month.
About Landmark Group:
Founded in 1973 in Bahrain, the Landmark Group has successfully grown into one of the largest and most successful retail organizations in the Middle East and India. An international, diversified retail and hospitality conglomerate that encourages entrepreneurship to consistently deliver exceptional value, the Group operates over 2200 outlets encompassing over 30 million square feet across the Middle East, North Africa and the Indian sub-continent.
Landmark Group has a strong workforce of over 58,000 employees and provides a value-driven product range for the family through its retail concepts: Centrepoint, Babyshop, Splash, Shoe Mart, Lifestyle, Iconic, SportsOne, Max, Shoexpress, Home Centre, Home Box, Emax, and LandmarkShops.com. In addition to the brands developed in-house, the Group also holds the franchise rights for some of the world’s leading fashion and footwear brands in the countries where it operates.
The Group has also diversified in the leisure, food, hospitality and healthcare segments with Landmark Leisure, Balance Spa & Salon, Citymax Hotels, Fitness First and Foodmark, the restaurant division, which operates the Group’s own and franchise food outlets and iCARE Clinics, primary healthcare clinics for the family.
