Rizq, a campaign founded by Huzaifa Ahmed, Musa Aamir and Qasim Javaid, sophomores from LUMS makes use of surplus food by collecting it from households and events such as weddings and parties and distributes it to those in need. The idea behind Rizq was really simple.
Co-founder Musa Aamir explained the idea behind Rizq, “On average, around 40% of food produced in Pakistan is wasted. Food prepared for lavish dinners and weddings leads to a huge surplus, while on the other hand much of Pakistan’s population goes to sleep hungry. Rizq wants to bridge this gap by channelising excess food to the needy.”
Riqz began from the LUMS Pepsi Dining Centre (PDC) by collecting change in coins discarded by people. They approached the LUMS administration to create a fund for the excess change received at PDC, which could then be used for various purposes. The proposal was approved and now every student has the option to share their change that is being returned to them with Rizq. They use this money to help provide government primary schools with healthy and nutritious lunches. In this way, the LUMS community sustains the School Lunch Programme, just by choosing to give away a few insignificant coins.
Sharing how LUMS helped them, the founders said, “The LUMS community has been especially supportive by believing in us and secondly, by spreading the word. The Social Innovation Lab (SIL) at LUMS incubated us; we were mentored and trained, given access to networks and helped in every possible manner. Although we have graduated from SIL, the SIL’s doors are always open for us and we are thankful for the continuous support.
Be it innovation and new ideas in the labs or a CSR project that helps ordinary people, LUMS gives every idea a chance to prove itself. Rizq also started as an idea and through hard work, effort and proper guidance, it is now helping change the lives of many people by helping to eradicate hunger, albeit slowly but surely. LUMS is proud of the innovative young minds that are helping change the world in new ways, every day.”
