Dubai: The Community Development Authority (CDA) in Dubai recorded a 29 per cent increase in the number of volunteers who registered in its Dubai Volunteering Program during the first half of 2021. The growth, which was higher than the figures recorded during the same period in 2020, translates to a total of 33,300 individuals since the launch of the program. 

The CDA program also posted an 88.6 per cent surge in the number of organizations in need of volunteers, resulting in more diverse and higher volunteering opportunities for the members of the communities. The volunteering hours recorded by the program during the first half of this year amounted to 172,974 volunteer hours, which achieved financial savings estimated at 13,491,972 dirhams.

Huraiz Al Mur Bin Huraiz, CEO of Development and Social Care Sector, CDA, said that a significant rise in the volunteering activities under the Dubai Volunteering Program provided more opportunities for people to share their skills and talents for the benefit of the underprivileged. According to Bin Huraiz, this will help bring greater public awareness on the importance of volunteering, which is seen to become one of the main drivers of Dubai’s economic and social development in the near future.

Bin Huraiz also noted that the volunteers mostly comprised young people who did not hesitate to lend a hand during the COVID-19 pandemic. The remote-work system, distance learning, and the dramatic change in people’s everyday lives had made the young realize as well the importance of directing their energies and free time towards worthwhile activities, in which they could gain new experiences and serve the community and its institutions. 

The Dubai Volunteering Program made a significant impact on volunteer participation from January to June 2021. This reliable platform is designed not only to connect volunteer organizations with individuals who are willing to help but also to measure the impact of their contribution to the initiatives. 

CDA said that the number of activities recorded by the program reached a total of 454 during the same period. The Nabdh Alemarat Volunteering Team and the Ataa Hamdan Volunteering Team initiated the most events, while Dubai Ambulance offered relevant skills development and rapid response training programs for the volunteers. The participants of the Dubai Ambulance training courses may apply their learning to various volunteering initiatives arising from Expo 2020 Dubai.

CDA is confident that the Dubai Volunteering Program will reach new milestones in the second half of this year. Driving these accomplishments are the young people’s enthusiasm to participate and gain extensive global experience and exposure at the upcoming Expo.