Dubai: A two-hour interactive dialogue was held on Monday on Twitter with the #YearOfGiving hashtag with an aim to collect ideas and suggestions from residents in preparation for the Giving Retreat scheduled on Wednesday.
Two ministers spearheaded two separate dialogue sessions on each of their Twitter accounts in the afternoon, engaging hundreds of users who proposed initiatives that could be developed to serve the aim of the Year of Giving.
Spearheading the first virtual session on Twitter was Ohoud Al Roumi, the UAE Minister of State for Happiness, from 1pm to 2pm followed by Shamma Al Mazroui, UAE Minister of State for Youth Affairs from 3pm to 4pm.
The sessions saw suggestions on how organisations should encourage their employees to volunteer in charity works and how the youth can play a huge role in contributing to the Year of Giving by serving those in need. Both ministers replied to tweets that carried good suggestions, and also responded to questions addressed to them.
“The ‘Year of Giving’ is not just a title, it encompasses plans and programmes. It’s more of a style of thought … It begins with the vision of our leadership and also includes ideas and initiatives from people. It spreads goodness and achieves miracles,” Al Roumi tweeted at the start of the session.
A suggestion from @SuhairMahfood came in a tweet to Al Roomi saying: “I suggest that government and private sector companies establish a programme for donations where employees can voluntarily donate a small amount from their salary.”
Al Roumi also retweeted a suggestion from @lewaabukhait, which said: “Volunteering for charity works is key to achieve the ambitions of the Year of Giving. I suggest launching initiatives on a national scale that encourages the private sector to allow their employees to volunteer.”
Another user interacting with Al Roumi, @abdullahka, tweeted: “You should include community service classes as a mandatory course or hours in school’s/university curriculums.”
Al Roumi tweeted that “the private sector is a part of the retreat and that she has personally noticed huge interaction from private sector organisations.
“The UAE’s humanitarian work is very advanced and diverse, and in the Year of Giving we hope we can focus on developmental initiatives,” she said.
Starting the second online discussion on her account, Al Mazroui said: “Engaging our young people and society as a whole in an open dialogue about finding ways to serve those in need, both within our nation and beyond our borders, is an important step in our preparation for the Giving Retreat.”
Users, young and old, quickly began interacting with Al Mazroui, sending out their suggestions.
A tweet from @3dullah said: “I suggest focusing more on students in schools, since we have enough time to volunteer and we can put our energy to serve the country and humanity.”
User @alisalemuae suggested “including university and school students in humanitarian campaigns that the nation carries outside the UAE.”
Responding to questions on how youth can contribute: Al Mazroui said: “The youth can contribute with their ideas, energy and skills … It is open for everyone to make a difference in the community.”
“The goal of the Year of Giving is to put a permanent institutional framework to activate the role of youth in volunteer work to serve society. With you, we will achieve this goal,” she said.
She also said that they were developing a mechanism to record the efforts of youth volunteers in the UAE, which will create a competitive spirit between them.
The virtual dialogue is being held in the run-up to the Giving Retreat scheduled on Wednesday under the directive of His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai.
The discussions sought to take note of ideas and suggestions to be shared with government officials and retreat participants who can shape them into actionable programmes and initiatives that serve the strategic goals of the retreat and the wider UAE Year of Giving.
