Al Maktoum Foundation commenced its philanthropy and humanitarian journey back in 1997 via the Cultural Centre in Dublin, Ireland. This served as the nucleus for the history of bounty and charity initiated by His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum. In a span of two years, the Foundation expanded its circle to cover more than sixty countries of the Arab and Muslim world and the West.

Thanks to the instructions and directives of His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum, two years later, the headquarters of the Foundation was inaugurated in Dubai with the end of 1999. The Foundation set its activities in the country to be as follows:

• To provide financial and in-kind aids to needy citizen families in the country.
• To support charitable projects, such as the "School Bag".
• To provide assistance to schools in Dubai in the form of computers and electronic devices, and educative audio and visual tools to help improving its educational role.
• To organize Hajj and Umrah trips.
• To offer a number of scholarships and aids to school boys.
• To establish charitable projects in the sectors of education and health.
• To provide aids to the management of school health in Dubai.
• To provide annual subsidies, and to support charitable projects sponsored by charitable centers foundations.

Thanks to the similarity between the Foundation and Beit Al Khair Society, be in terms of visions or the goals set for their charitable cause in the country, Beit the foundation considers Beit Al Khair Society as its charitable body locally, assigning to it to look after the orphans it sponsored within the orphan sponsorship. This includes the sponsor of over 410 orphans by Beit Al Khair Society in line with the directives of His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum, as part of its sponsorships.

Al Maktoum Foundation is very keen to organize and sponsor many recreational activities for orphans that it sponsors, and to arrange forums and open days, organizing safaris to fill leisure time and bring joy and happiness to their hearts, and to inspire happiness and tranquility to them, and entertaining them. The aim is to crowd out there and deprivation and rather feel the joy and the warmth of the community which embraces them via these activities.

The Foundation signed a partnership agreement with Beit Al Khair to look after people of special needs. It has built four charitable centers in Dubai reporting to the Foundation to receive requests for support and assistance from citizens in those areas, which include: Aweer, Allisilay, Hatta, Al Barsha, The aim of setting it is to be closer to people of social circumstances and needy fellows to sense their needs in their residences. It assigned to Beit Al Khair to manage it.

Following the inauguration of these branches, Beit Al Khair has worked on the process of selection and training the people it hired, and to implement the administrative standards adopted by the Society in the distribution of Zakat and alms, as well as applying all projects and schemes through these windows as branches of Beit Al Khair in Dubai.

In collaboration with the Al Maktoum Foundation and with the initiative of His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Deputy Ruler of Dubai and Minister of Finance, Beit Al Khair also launched the project of His Highness Sheikh Hamdan Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, to care for people of special needs. The project is about the allocation of AED 800 per month to every disabled person registered at Beit Al Khair Society. The prerequisites of families that receive aids from the Society apply also to his family.

The Society provides special assistance to the above, in the forms of tools and devices designated for them, such as wheelchairs, shower chairs, car lifts and other devices.

On a semi-annual basis, the Society follow-up and collaborate with the Al Maktoum Foundation the state of people with special needs eligible for assistance according to the systems of Beit Al Khair .

Al Maktoum Foundation is a rare and unique charitable edifice, both internally and externally. The bounty of His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid, Deputy Ruler of Dubai and Minister of Finance - may Allah look after him – is well-known worldwide.

Al Maktoum Foundation and Beit Al Khair Society converge on charity work –they share the same cause, that is, bounty to the people of the UAE. Hence, His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum entrusted to Beit Al Khair the management of four centers of Al Maktoum Foundation. Through them and other branches, Beit Al Khair managed to reach many needy families across the UAE.

At the local society, the projects of Al Maktoum Foundation are numerous. This is in addition to its annual support to a number of charities operating in the country. Add also the cultural centers in European countries, and secondary schools in Africa, which demonstrate the far-reaching vision of His Highness to eradicate poverty, namely by focusing on modern education. This was vividly shown by the construction of several schools in African countries to act as knowledge centers to the children of the continent beside teachers and educative instruments.

The initiative of establishing Islamic cultural centers in Europe was aimed to marry between the Arab and Western civilizations, allowing people to closely learn more about Islam as represented by its superb principles of humanity. Add to this the Al-Maktoum Institute for Arabic and Islamic Studies set to help defining the vision of His Highness Sheikh Hamdan Bin Rashid in cultural understanding between civilizations.