Nama Centre, one of Qatar Foundation for Social Work (QFSW)’s affiliated
centres, has participated in the 2017 International Volunteer Day
celebrations.
The participation comes within the framework of its “ongoing
encouragement of voluntary work and the promotion of community
participation, while reaffirming the importance of volunteering as a
noble humanitarian value and the need to support volunteers for their
pivotal role in achieving comprehensive development in their
communities”, Nama has said in a press statement.
The centre’s first voluntary work forum was launched in 1998, organised
by its volunteers, to encourage individuals and institutions to
contribute to volunteerism and instil the meaning and value of voluntary
work in the hearts of citizens and residents.
In 1999, the Volunteer Award was launched and has been celebrated
annually ever since on International Volunteer Day, which falls on
December 5 every year.
The Volunteer Award aims to promote a culture of giving and nurturing
voluntary and humanitarian efforts of individuals, groups and
institutions, in recognition and honour of their work, in addition to
raising awareness of the role of volunteering in the development of
society and motivating individuals and institutions to nurture it.
Other key initiatives include the National Campaign to Promote Volunteerism and the Qatar Volunteers Network initiative.
The strategic directions of the centre, 2017-2022, include an integrated
strategy to promote youth participation in community service and allow
them to develop and interact within Nama’s project for the development
of social entrepreneurs. The project is implemented through two
channels: the ‘Moqbeleen’ and ‘Sama Nama’ projects.
Maryam bint Abdullatif al-Mannai, acting executive manager of Nama
Centre, said: “The celebration of this day is a great opportunity to
continue efforts to expand the voluntary work framework through the
launch of new voluntary social development projects and developing
existing ones, as well as the dissemination of volunteerism on a larger
scale and the recruitment of more young people.”
Dignitaries at a Nama event.