Abu Dhabi to increase number of NGOs to tackle social issues

Third Sector Awards launched to help boost the number of community organisations in the emirate

The initiative wants more voluntary organisations to help the emirate address issues including elderly care, getting more people to exercise regularly and family stability. Khushnum Bhandari / The NatShow more

Abu Dhabi is planning an expansion of non-governmental organisations (NGOs) to help tackle social challenges, a senior official has said.

An increase in the number of voluntary organisations will help the emirate address issues such as elderly care, getting more people to exercise regularly and family stability, said Helal Al Balooshi, executive director of the Community Engagement and Sports Sector at the Department of Community Development (DCD).

He was speaking at the launch of the Abu Dhabi Third Sector Awards on Monday morning.

The awards recognise and celebrate outstanding individuals, groups and initiatives that have made a significant impact on the community and society as a whole.

“We want more NGOs. We want more social enterprises and we want more people involved in solving social priorities, using different models," said Mr Al Balooshi.

"People need to understand that they can make a difference and there are channels through which they can make a difference.

"They just need to identify a social challenge that is close to their heart and then the challenges are there and we're more than happy to support them."

There are currently 94 licensed NGOs in Abu Dhabi, 49 social enterprises and 52 volunteer teams, said Mr Al Balooshi, who added there is room for more.

"We have a lot of room to grow but we need to make sure this growth aligns with the social priorities that matter," he said.

“We want to grow the number of NGOs and social enterprises, but also support and enable them to deliver programmes that have an impact.

"The main idea is that social development cannot be achieved by the government alone.

"Delivering services requires the community as a whole to mobilise itself to deliver social services or initiatives to tackle social challenges.

"To do that, you need the right framework for them to operate in."

Community involvement is essential in a number of sectors if issues are be tackled effectively, he added.

“We have issues such as elderly loneliness, physical activity, family stability and divorce," said Mr Al Balooshi.

"There are a lot of social priorities that we, as DCD, have identified.

"So, any entity that comes and delivers a service or programme addressing a social priority will get our support, including financial support and access to funding from the private sector.”

The third sector, he said, were organisations or groups whose main purpose was social development rather than profit.

There are a range of categories in the awards including Social Enterprise of the Year, Volunteer Team of the Year and Corporate Social Responsibility Initiative of the Year.

The DCD is rolling out a number of workshops for those entering the awards.

Registration began on Monday and will close on August 30.