Abu Dhabi: In the presence of His Highness Sheikh Theyab Bin Mohamed Bin Zayed, Chairman of the Office of Development and Martyrs Families Affairs at the Presidential Court, the Authority of Social Contribution – Ma’an (Ma’an), has launched its We Volunteer strategic initiative. Aiming to enhance community engagement by developing a volunteering eco-system in Abu Dhabi, the initiative will roll out with an awareness campaign on the benefits of volunteering, providing a variety of opportunities to cater to all categories of those who offer their time and expertise to serve the community.

The initiative empowers various sectors, including the public, private and Third sectors, in addition to individuals and volunteer groups, to address pressing priorities and provide necessary services to achieve sustainable social impact. Ma’an is working towards mobilising volunteers across various categories and priorities within the community, which reinforces its mission towards achieving a positive social impact.

The We Volunteer initiative is an integrated journey to empower volunteers and enhance their continued participation through an array of community activations, promoting the volunteer ladder for progression, developing the volunteer ranking for evaluation and driving volunteer incentive packages, all aimed at raising the level of responsibility and encouraging a sense of belonging.

Her Excellency Salama Al Ameemi, Director-General of Ma’an, said: “The Authority of Social Contribution – Ma’an was established under the Department of Community Development in Abu Dhabi to activate community engagement and empower the Third Sector in line with the visionary directives of the UAE leadership and the Government of Abu Dhabi to achieve sustainable social development and a cohesive community.

“In line with the social priorities set by the Department of Community Development, Ma’an is keen to activate initiatives that enhance effective community engagement, ultimately serving the diverse needs of the community. This endeavour is particularly significant to individuals within the Abu Dhabi community as it encompasses various target groups including senior citizens, people of determination, and other segments of the community with volunteer service opportunities that benefit them directly.

“Volunteer programmes provide beneficiaries with the necessary support to enhance their lifestyle, while giving volunteers a sense of belonging and contribution, which cements the ability of volunteer work to benefit all parties involved.”

Ma’an provides a variety of specialised, general, and service volunteer opportunities to suit all categories of volunteers who offer their time and expertise to achieve social impact and create a cooperative and active community.

New Community Engagement Volunteering Programme (CEVP) operators are being announced as part of Abu Dhabi Serves, including Regional Sports, Haraka, Dental Experts Centre, Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Awal School, Al Nahda National School, Rabdan, Reloop, Scholarship Consultancy, The Climate Tribe, Indian Social Centre, Microchipped FZ and The Food Engineer.

Earlier in 2023, Ma’an activated 12 operators of volunteer programs that work to serve more than one community group, including senior citizens and residents, youth, juveniles, people of determination, and others, and provided around 20 different programmes that benefited more than 150,000 beneficiaries in the regions of Abu Dhabi, Al Ain, and Al Dhafra. In addition to activating 5,430 volunteers from more than 78 nationalities who provided around 98,000 volunteer hours, saving the equivalent of AED 5.4 million.

Ma’an also succeeded in activating 67 volunteering opportunities, including 47 volunteering opportunities that contributed to various existing programmes and projects. It also supported 20 different programmes through its Community Engagement and Volunteering Platform (CEVP), designed and implemented by the 18 new operators across different sectors, which contributes to creating a positive, sustainable social impact. 

Ma'an encourages all individuals of all ages and all areas of society to volunteer and participate through programs and initiatives designed to create a sense of belonging among volunteers, improve their skills, and inspire them to become active and active members of society.

During the launch event, Ma’an showcased the list of volunteer programmes and opened registration to participate in them. The list of programmes included:

FitFam by Regional Sports: Social inclusion programme, which enables People of Determination to receive football training from volunteers.

Healthy School Leaders by Haraka: A 10-week course targeted at students aged 12-18 to gear them to becoming healthy volunteer ambassadors within their school community.

Active Parks by Haraka: Utilising outdoor spaces in Abu Dhabi for a programme of weekly activations for the community to engage in physical activity.

Smiling Together by Dental Experts Centre: Dental screening and preventive services to be offered to children aged 6-18 with special needs.

My Money and My Investments by Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Awal School: A programme to educate students on financial literacy in three phases.

Sustainable Urban Farm by Al Nahda International School: Establishment of a sustainable garden on the school roof, and actively engaging volunteers towards the development and maintenance of the garden.

Journey of Generation by Rabdan: Engaging senior citizens and residents on ongoing activations to share with them their special occasions and build a solid relationship with volunteers.

From Food to Food by Reloop: Aimed at reducing food waste and carbon emissions, volunteers gather food waste from schools and convert into soil, which can be used to develop a food garden on site.

Tatweer Competency Creator Program by Scholarship Consultancy: A digital programme to give youth access to career opportunities through a series of workshops and interactive training sessions.

Convoy of Hope by Rabdan: Hosting workshops and activities for long-term patients in hospitals to reduce their psychological pressure.

The Climate Tribe UAE Drive by The Climate Tribe: A clean-up initiative hosted on International Volunteer Day on 5 December 2023, which contributed to the preservation of the UAE's most valuable beaches, deserts and parks.

Seniors Happiness by the Indian Social Centre: Aims to help host the elderly from the community and engage them in various activities.​

Community Animal Care Programme by Microchipped FZ: A programme aimed at rescuing stray animals in the city and eventually finding new homes for them.

Installation of the Food Towers by The Food Engineer: Installation of Aeroponic Towers in 4 Schools in Abu Dhabi and train teacher and student volunteers on how to teach their fellow students to grow and harvest vegetables and of the importance of reducing food waste.

Signing up for volunteer programmes is quick and easy at maan.gov.ae, or via Ma’an’s dedicated mobile app, which is available to download on both Apple and Android devices.

About Ma’an

Founded in February 2019 by the Department of Community Development Abu Dhabi, the Authority of Social Contribution – Ma’an, generates genuine social impact by enabling the growth of a thriving Third Sector, including social enterprises, and voluntary groups – and creating collaboration with public and private organisations to drive social innovation.

Ma’an brings together the Government, private sector and civil society with the objective of supporting innovative solutions and contributing to the development of strong, active, collaborative and inclusive communities.

As the Government of Abu Dhabi’s official channel to receive contributions for social priorities, the Authority of Social Contribution – Ma’an ensures fundraising is distributed to causes across the entire Abu Dhabi community in sectors including health, education, environment, the social sector and infrastructure.

Ma’an provides resources and support to seed and grow community-based organisations, raise and allocate funds towards community-based groups and social initiatives, and promote community engagement and a culture of volunteering.