Reach Out To Asia is a Qatari-based non-profit organization that empowers local communities by providing access to quality primary and secondary education to children affected by crisis across Asia. It was launched in December 2005 under the patronage of His Excellency the Crown Prince Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad bin Khalifa Al- Thani and chaired by Her Excellency Sheikha Al-Mayassa bint Hamad bin Khalifa Al-Thani.. ROTA envisions a world in which all young people have access to the education they need in order to realize their full potential and shape the development of their communities. Together with partners, volunteers, and local communities Reach Out To Asia works to ensure that people affected by crisis across Asia and around the world have continuous access to relevant and high-quality primary and secondary education.

Working under the auspices of the Qatar Foundation

Qatar Foundation

Qatar Foundation for Education, Science and Community Development is a government-funded, chartered, non-profit organization in the state of Qatar, founded in 1995 by decree of Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, Emir of Qatar and chaired by Sheikha Mozah bint Nasser Al Missned...

 for Education, Science, and Community Development – a private, chartered, non-profit organization

Non-profit organization

Nonprofit organization is neither a legal nor technical definition but generally refers to an organization that uses surplus revenues to achieve its goals, rather than distributing them as profit or dividends...

, ROTA pursues its objectives through ROTAQ – which handles activities within Qatar

Qatar

Qatar , also known as the State of Qatar or locally Dawlat Qaṭar, is a sovereign Arab state, located in the Middle East, occupying the small Qatar Peninsula on the northeasterly coast of the much larger Arabian Peninsula. Its sole land border is with Saudi Arabia to the south, with the rest of its...

 - and ROTAsia -- responsible for programs across Asia and the Middle East. In its effort to promote education, ROTA implements educational projects in countries where immediate action is needed. Ten countries have been identified as ROTA’s priorities: Afghanistan

Afghanistan

Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...

, Bangladesh

Bangladesh

Bangladesh , officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh is a sovereign state located in South Asia. It is bordered by India on all sides except for a small border with Burma to the far southeast and by the Bay of Bengal to the south...

, Cambodia

Cambodia

Cambodia , officially known as the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia...

, Indonesia

Indonesia

Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...

, Iraq

Iraq

Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....

, Lebanon

Lebanon

Lebanon , officially the Republic of LebanonRepublic of Lebanon is the most common term used by Lebanese government agencies. The term Lebanese Republic, a literal translation of the official Arabic and French names that is not used in today's world. Arabic is the most common language spoken among...

, Nepal

Nepal

Nepal , officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked sovereign state located in South Asia. It is located in the Himalayas and bordered to the north by the People's Republic of China, and to the south, east, and west by the Republic of India...

, Pakistan

Pakistan

Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...

, Palestine

Palestine

Palestine is a conventional name, among others, used to describe the geographic region between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River, and various adjoining lands....

 and Yemen

Yemen

The Republic of Yemen , commonly known as Yemen , is a country located in the Middle East, occupying the southwestern to southern end of the Arabian Peninsula. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to the north, the Red Sea to the west, and Oman to the east....

. Some of them are among the world’s poorest countries, while others have suffered war or natural disasters during the last years.

In June 2011, ROTA in collaboration with the Inter-Agency Network for Education in Emergencies (INEE) began the process of translating the agency communications and training tools into Arabic. The programme, ‘INEE Arabic Language Community: Supporting Quality Education in Emergency Preparedness, Response, and Recover in the Arabic-Speaking World’ was established to ensure that the communities in the Middle East have access to and benefit from INEE’s useful tools and resources.