TEHRAN – Barekat Charity Foundation, affiliated with the Headquarters for Executing the Order of the Imam, is implementing plans to provide drinking water to 2,700 rural areas across the country.

So far, 1,980 villages have been covered by the foundation's water supply activities, Mohammad Torkamaneh, the CEO of Barekat Foundation, said.

Currently, water supply operations are underway in 740 rural points, and the residents of these areas will soon have access to drinking water, he noted, IRNA reported on Sunday.

Building 8,000 houses, 200 schools, 200 mosques, cultural and religious centers, and 30 health centers are on the agenda. Rural areas of eight provinces with high water stress including Khuzestan, Hormozgan, Sistan-Baluchestan, Kerman, South Khorasan, and Yazd are among the priorities of Barekat Foundation water supply projects.

Construction and completion of 10,000 projects, including more than 8,000 housing units for the deprived, 200 schools, 200 mosques, and cultural and religious centers, 700 water supply projects, revitalization of 600 qanats, and 30 health centers are on the agenda, he explained.

These projects are implemented in 31 provinces of the country and 4,500 villages are covered by the foundation’s construction and infrastructure activities, he added.

Headquarters for Executing the Order of the Imam was founded in 1989. In the Iranian calendar year, 1386 (March 2017-March 2018) Barekat Charity Foundation- the social arm of the organization- with the aim of promoting social justice was established.

Socio-economic empowerment of communities by encouraging entrepreneurship prioritizing breadwinner women, developing infrastructures such as water supply and power grids, building roads, constructing schools and increasing educational spaces, promoting health for all, and granting non-repayable loans and insurance, especially in less developed areas and regions most affected by 1980s war and natural disasters are of the priorities of the charity foundation.

The Foundation plans to open up 300,000 job opportunities for those residing in rural and deprived areas over the next [Iranian calendar] year.

FB/MG