Need ideas to help you get involved in the Year of Giving? Look no further…
We recently brought you news that Emirati women have given 600,000 hours of their time to charitable causes.
However volunteering in the UAE just got even easier to take part in, thanks to a new initiative by HH Sheikha Fatima bint Mubarak.
The Mother of the Nation, and Chairwoman of the General Women’s Union, has this week launched the Fatima bint Mubarak Volunteering Programme, which helps women and children get more involved with giving back to the community.
Read:
8 Emirati experts-in-their-fields shining a light on the UAE
This is how many hours Emirati women give back to the community
The first-of-its-kind scheme hopes to attract and train women and children in volunteering, and has been launched to coincide with the UAE’s Year of Giving.
(The 2017 theme was announced last December by HH Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the UAE, to promote a culture of giving back).
The Fatima bint Mubarak Volunteering Programme will focus on “the four pillars of thought, ability, empowerment and giving”, according to state news agency WAM, and help develop the skills needed to effectively volunteer.
The programme will also hold summits in the future, and will launch an award to honour women and children who best contribute their time and efforts.
The scheme was launched by HH Sheikha Fatima “based on her belief that volunteer work supports and strengthens social solidarity”, Noura Al Suwaidi, Director-General of the General Women’s Union, told WAM.
Read:
10 Emirati women shaping the future of the UAE
‘I could not manage my work without women’: Sheikh Mohammed
There doesn’t yet seem to be a dedicated website where hopeful volunteers can sign up or learn more, but we’ll keep you updated.
If you want to get more involved in the meantime, you could sign up to national volunteer platform volunteers.ae, which launched earlier this year
You might always get to mingle with the scheme’s first two volunteers, HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum and HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan (it’s unlikely but hey, we can dream).
Image: HH Sheikh Mohammed/Instagram
