Saudi Gazette report

RIYADH — Minister of Human Resources and Social Development Eng. Ahmed Al-Rajhi announced that as many as 454,000 male and female volunteers have registered in the national volunteer work portal since its launching in April this year.

“This is an increase of 151 percent compared with the targeted number of registration to reach 300,000 by the end of 2020,” he said while inaugurating the activities of the Saudi International Volunteer Day on Monday.

Al-Rajhi launched the Kingdom’s volunteer work strategy, which is titled “An active voluntary sector that contributes to sustainable development in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.”

The strategy includes five main objectives: consolidating and strengthening the concepts of volunteer work; empowering and supporting organizations and individuals to activate volunteer work and practicing it in accordance with international best practices; developing procedural regulations governing, enabling and encouraging volunteer work; achieving integration and coordination between various stakeholders to develop and activate the volunteer work system; and monitoring and highlighting the achievements of the Kingdom’s volunteer work in the local and international forums.

The strategy also contained 15 initiatives, in addition to five values — motivation, development, solidarity, responsibility, and giving.

Al-Rajhi pointed out that the ministry would continue its tireless work in establishing and activating departments of volunteering in the non-profit sector by institutionalizing volunteer work, in order to reach the target of one million volunteers by 2030.

It is noteworthy that Al-Rajhi launched the ministry’s volunteer work portal on April 1 this year at a time when Saudi Arabia and other countries of the world were engaged in a struggle to confront the threat of coronavirus pandemic.

The minister noted then that the portal would contribute to meeting the Kingdom’s requirements in the current phase that requires everyone to work together wholeheartedly to serve the country and the society.

The volunteer work portal is linked to the National Information Center. Hours of volunteer work, the number of times volunteer work carried out, and the agencies involved in volunteer work will be documented in the Ministry of Interior’s Absher portal.

The portal aims to support efforts to achieve the Kingdom’s Vision 2030 with accomplishing sustainable development in all fields. It also contributes to organize and empower volunteer work by establishing a link between providers of volunteer work and volunteers, in addition to documentation of voluntary work.

The portal boasts of several features that make it easier for willing men and women to join volunteer work. It also helps governmental and non-profit organizations to attract volunteers and empower them to practice volunteer work in accordance with their skills in the current circumstances.