Under the patronage of Her Highness Sheikha Fatima Bent Mubarak "The Mother The Nation", President of the General Women’s Union, Supreme Head of the Family Development Foundation and President’s Supreme Council of Motherhood and Childhood, and supported by du as the Official Telecom Partner, the third Emirates and Gulf Volunteer Conference takes place in The UAE’s Capital, Abu Dhabi, on 31 January 2011 under the theme “Social Cohesion and Volunteering National Responsibility’’. The conference aims to foster a culture of volunteerism in various segments of society, from individuals and institutions, as well as to find a mechanism of joint action to adopt voluntary initiatives in the areas of health, education, environment and humanitarian work.
The conference comes in harmony with the directives of His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the UAE and Ruler of Abu Dhabi, aiming to support development initiatives as a sustainable translation of the vision of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, and reflecting the importance of consolidating humanitarian work within society. The Conference is supported by HH Sheikh Hamdan bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister of the UAE, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, the President’s representative in the Western region and Chairman of the UAE Red Crescent Authority, along with official sponsor du.
Wishing continued success for the Conference, now in its third year, Hala Badri, Executive Vice President, Brand and Communications, du, said: "It is a pleasure for us to support Zayed Giving in organising the UAE Volunteering Conference, as the Official Telecom Partner for the second year running. du is committed to supporting the local community in which it operates, and we recognise that volunteerism is an important pillar of social responsibility, a role close to our heart. We are continuously developing sustainable programmes and initiatives for community development in the UAE, and hence we are delighted to contribute in promoting volunteering work in the region and country.”
Since its inception, du has placed a strong emphasis on Corporate Social Responsibility by establishing a clear strategy and outlining a detailed program with the aim of contributing to the enrichment of the UAE society, while celebrating its heritage and diversity.
The event is being organised by "Zayed Giving " Initiative, for the third consecutive year, in partnership with the “Ataa Campaign” for the medical treatment of a million children, the General Women’s Union, the Emirates Center for Strategic Studies and Research and UAE National Program ‘Volunteering’ of the Emirates Center for Volunteering, and in co-operation with the UAE Association of Volunteering under the umbrella of the Arab Union for Volunteering and the institutions of the State, government and private non-profit organizations.
Senior officials and leaders in community work, both locally and globally, together with the representatives of ministries, government agencies and a group of thinkers, intellectuals and representatives of a number of organizations within and outside the country, will attend the events at the Emirates Center for Strategic Studies and Research in Abu Dhabi, in the hall of Sheikh Zayed.
The Director of General Women’s Union, Noura Al Suwaidi, confirmed the importance of partnership among various institutions to adopt initiatives of Volunteering awareness and sustainable community in the field of economic and community development, reflecting the initiatives of HH Sheikha Fatima Bent Mubarak on social cohesion by creating a platform for exchange of experiences and developing a fertile environment for community-based initiatives, thereby reinforcing all humanitarian and community work.Al Suwaidi explained that the UAE is interested in instilling the concept of volunteerism and social work in the younger generations through the school curriculum, focusing on the importance of humanitarian and social work through lectures and sessions. The aim is to address the various sectors in the country, in particular the women’s sector, who are interested in participating in volunteerism, and to emphasise its role in improving lives within society.
Dr Adel Alshamry, Chief Executive of ZAYED GIVING, said the UAE had substantial experience in the volunteerism field and is considered one of the leading countries at the global level in the implementation of volunteer work in various parts of the world. He pointed out that the conference sessions will review the experience of the UAE in this field, which is based on realizing the importance of volunteerism in the lives of individuals, organizations and institutions and bodies in catering to the needs of the community as well as providing charitable services.
He explained that the conference will be attended by officials from the UAE and GCC countries and it will be an opportunity to discuss issues related to volunteerism and proposals that will develop volunteering awareness programs in the various fields of health, environment, education and humanitarian work. It will also provide an opportunity to review the obstacles which are faced by volunteerism programs around the world and therefore propose appropriate solutions to overcome them in order to facilitate humanitarian access as quickly as possible.
His Excellency Yousef AlKazim , General Secretary of the Arab Union for volunteering said that the UAE, through the support of its wise leadership, has provided featured models in volunteerism and humanitarian work, notably the adoption of the initiative of the Arab Academy for Volunteerism and the launch of the Campaign for One Million Volunteers, under the patronage of HH Sheikha Fatima Bent Mubarak, "The Mother of The Nation", and more recently of starting a campaign for treatment of a million children around the world through Emirates International Humanitarian Mobile Hospitals.
He confirmed that the convening of the Emirates & Gulf volunteer Conference comes after achieving success during the previous two years in coordination with the Arab Union for Volunteering, which had a role in promoting the volunteerism work in the various sectors and encouraging members of the community, noting that the Conference targets senior officials involved in the activation of volunteering programs, executives in government institutions and civil institutions, non-profit institutions and students supported by national and private associations.
The conference program includes three workshops supervised by the Emirates Academy of Volunteerism under the umbrella of the Arab Union for volunteers. These workshops focused on voluntary action in terms of concept, its importance, its effects, the success factors and obstacles to voluntary work, and aimed to build a strategy to support volunteering and the culture of volunteerism, and the review of different experiences in the field of volunteerism, as well as focusing on the mechanics of the involvement of members of the community in volunteer work.
Executive Director of the Emirates Volunteer Center Ms. Amal AlAboudi, said: ‘’ The goals of the Conference are awareness in the community and effective partnership between the institutions of State government and private institutions in promoting volunteer work and societal awareness ,, activating the role of community members and institutions in leisure time and deepening voluntary work awareness among young people and future generations.
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