On Sunday Jordan participates in The Celebration Of The Volunteers international Day for Economic & Social Development which fell on December 5th each year commissioned by the General United Nation association in 1985, It provides an opportunity for volunteer organizations and individuals to promote volunteerism, encourage Governments to support volunteer efforts and recognize volunteer contributions to achieving sustainable development goals(SDGs) on local and national and International level, it is also of huge importance to create opportunities for individuals to enhance their lives and build their communities and invest their time skills and strengthening volunteerism and the inclusion of communities all over the world.
Volunteering is defined as the effort that Human do willingly and choose to do it without being forced, often without material compensation, its importance lies in the fact that it is the highest way to serve the nation, contributes to the building of society and the strengthening of relations among its members, and is one of the forms of good work based on the teachings of the various divine religions in the relief of the theologians, cooperation on good and the well-being of societies.
Abla Amawi - Secretary-General of the Higher Population Council emphasized in a press release that the Council's attention on this event was due to its concern for the population dimension of the development and well-being of Jordanian society, including young people implying that teamwork, participation, excellence, creativity and community responsibility were fundamental values to which the Council was committed within its scope and which were at the core of the values of volunteerism and community service.
Amawi added that the Council's attention also comes in view of its interest in achieving the goals of sustainable development, justice and equal opportunities, she pointed out that the Council is interested in World Volunteer Day, which is a new opportunity to recall the importance of volunteering by expanding the choices and opportunities available to local communities as they prepare to respond to crises, and by consolidating individual actions under the umbrella of a common goal.
Amwi stated that in Jordan, there are many national and international institutions and organizations involved in volunteering by facilitating all obstacles to the volunteer movement, also there are official efforts in this area, namely, the Ministry of Youth, which is the largest and most extensive umbrella for the embrace of volunteers in Jordan.
The "نحن" platform - the National Platform for Youth Volunteer and Participation - on its website, launched in partnership with NUWA and UNICEF, in partnership with the Crown Prince Foundation and in collaboration with the Ministry of Youth, to promote volunteerism and youth participation to bring about positive change in society, reported that 76,440 volunteers were registered on the platform. (By the end of November 2001), however, at the general level there are no official statistics on the numbers of volunteers in Jordan.
According to the United Nations Volunteers Programme's State of Volunteering in the World 2018 report, the global volunteer workforce was estimated at 109 million full-time workers, a figure that exceeds the number of workers in many major global industries, and 30% of the 109 million workers officially volunteer to organizations, societies and groups, the majority of global volunteer activity (70%) occurs directly through informal participation among individuals because it is sometimes difficult or unclear to monitor development actors.
Amawi explained that the geographical environment, gender, age and other social, economic and political factors affect people's ability to volunteer, because volunteering itself is a social behavior, and in general women volunteer more than men worldwide, in a ratio of (57% to 43%), showing that, although formal volunteering is relatively evenly distributed between males and females, women represent a larger proportion of informal volunteering at about (60%) world wide.
The Council noted that today comes in the light of the spread of the Corona virus pandemic in Jordan and the world, which requires an emphasis on strengthening the spirit of volunteerism, dedication and the values of cooperation in helping, supporting to control and build capacity to overcome the difficulties and challenges posed by the pandemic implying that despite the anxiety and challenges posed by the pandemic, young people in Jordan had moved towards the front lines to bring about positive changes in their societies. They had begun to address the spread of misguided news and to reach families and marginalized areas in order to ensure their access to food during the global lockdown imposed by the pandemic; their dedication and collective responsibility have demonstrated enormous potential in the area of volunteering.
The Higher Population Council showed that voluntary work faces many challenges and obstacles that prevent it from being fully utilized. Some of these challenges are due to the nature of this work, which is often free of material pay also the lack of job opportunities and the need for job seekers to unload their skills and abilities in the labor market may lead them to resort to volunteering, but it quickly fades if the volunteer feels unwelcome in the workplace or if his efforts are lost therefore a sense of frustration is generated by what might drive him to withdraw, but a lack of commitment is also a challenge to this kind of work because it makes it easier for a volunteer to withdraw and not take this work seriously.
The Council indicated that the passion and love of the volunteer for his or her work must be maintained in order to demonstrate the best of his or her ability, which may be achieved through the certification of the volunteer, the involvement of the volunteer in training workshops and the transfer of his or her skills to the benefit of both the volunteer parties and the employers, as well as the importance of providing valuable employment opportunities for young people.
