CDA Launches Volunteerism Project To Empower Dubai Society

Photo: Dubai Government Media Office 

The Community Development Authority (CDA) in Dubai has started a new project called ‘Volunteerism Awareness and Engagement’. This project wants to help people understand why volunteering is important. It also wants to encourage everyone in Dubai, from children to older people, to take part in making the city a better place for all.

This project is part of Dubai’s ‘Year of Community’. It shows how the city cares about kindness, togetherness, and building strong bonds between people.

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Why Is This Project Important?

Volunteering means giving your time and effort to help others without asking for money. The CDA wants more people to volunteer because it makes the community stronger. When people help each other, they build friendships, learn new skills, and make their city happy and peaceful.

The new project will teach people about:

• The real meaning of volunteering

• How the volunteering system works in Dubai

• The rights and responsibilities of volunteers

It will also create chances for people to volunteer in many areas, like hospitals, schools, environmental projects, and cultural programmes.

Record-Breaking Volunteer Hours in Dubai

In 2024, Dubai recorded more than one million volunteer hours. This is a big achievement because it shows that many people in Dubai are now choosing to spend their time helping others.

According to CDA’s Volunteerism Department:

• Nearly 59,000 volunteers are registered on the CDA platform.

• In the first three months of 2025, over 18,000 people volunteered.

• Together, these volunteers gave more than 500,000 hours of service.

• The work they did is worth around AED40 million if calculated in economic terms.

This means that people’s efforts are making a huge difference in the community, not only by helping but also by saving money that can be used for other community projects.

Rise in Skilled Volunteering

Specialised volunteering is also becoming popular. In the first quarter of 2025:

• Around 500 volunteers completed more than 100 skilled tasks.

• These tasks included 8,000 hours of expert work.

Skilled volunteering is when people use their special knowledge, like in medicine, teaching, technology, or management, to help others. This type of volunteering is very useful because it brings professional support to the community.

Bringing People Together – The Ideation Workshop

To make this project strong and meaningful, CDA organised a special workshop. This workshop brought together:

• Volunteer groups

• Government departments

• Charity organisations

• Senior citizens

• People of determination (people with disabilities)

In the workshop, everyone shared their ideas about how to make volunteer programmes better. They discussed how to create activities that include everyone and make each person feel valued.

Key Outcomes of the Workshop

The workshop led to many wonderful outcomes:

1. First Volunteer Team of People of Determination
   For the first time, a volunteer team was created with people of determination. This team will show that everyone can help the community, no matter their challenges.

2. First Senior Citizens’ Volunteer Team
   Dubai also created a special volunteer team for senior citizens from the Thukher Club. This team honours older people’s wisdom and life experiences by giving them roles to help society.

New Volunteer Initiatives Launched

Several new volunteer projects were introduced to make the community stronger:

• Mothers and Daughters Visits
  Mothers and daughters will visit hospital patients to make them happy and give them emotional support.

• A Day with Senior Citizens
  This programme will connect young people with senior citizens to share stories and spend quality time together.

• Agriculture Zones
  Students and older people will work together in gardening projects to learn about farming and share experiences.

• Recycling Awareness
  This initiative will teach people the importance of recycling and how to take care of the environment.

• Volunteer Leadership Hub
  A new training programme will prepare people to become certified volunteer leaders to guide other volunteers.

• Cultural Programmes
  Programmes like ‘Sana’a’ sessions will teach cultural etiquette, and storytelling sessions will help people learn about the UAE’s national identity.

Why Are These Initiatives Special?

These new programmes will:

• Help people learn new skills

• Build understanding between different age groups

• Teach children and youth the value of kindness and service

• Create leadership skills in volunteers

• Promote the UAE’s culture and values

Making Sure The Project Succeeds

CDA said that these initiatives are part of a bigger plan to make volunteering a normal part of life in Dubai. They will:

• Follow a structured roadmap to ensure each programme is implemented properly

• Work closely with government departments, private companies, and community organisations

• Make sure the programmes are sustainable and continue for a long time

• Focus on creating real and measurable impact in society

This new volunteerism project by CDA shows that Dubai wants to become a city where everyone cares for each other. By creating many opportunities to volunteer and including people of all ages and abilities, Dubai is building a community full of kindness, respect, and cooperation1.

When people volunteer, they not only help others but also become better, kinder, and stronger human beings. Dubai’s vision is to create such citizens who lead by example and inspire others to join hands for the betterment of society.