The legal framework for volunteer work in Iraq

The Iraqi Al-Amal Association, in partnership with Al-Nidal Association for Human Rights, organized a dialogue session entitled “The Legal Framework for Volunteer Work in Iraq,” which discusses issues of volunteering, including policies that facilitate volunteer work and challenges in Iraq. This session comes within the activities of the Democracy Promotion Program implemented by the Association in partnership with the Maaadat Organization. Norwegian People NPA.
The session was held in the hall of the Iraqi Al-Amal Society on Saturday, September 10, 2022. The session was attended by 34 participants, and a representative of the Department of Non-Governmental Organizations, the director of the Voluntary Work Center in the Ministry of Youth and Sports, and representatives of the Ministry of Labor and Interior, were present, as well as the presence of an advisor from the Council of Iraqi representatives and the presence of interested parties, activists, organizations, volunteer teams, and owners of initiatives and festivals.
The session was opened by the Executive Director of the Association, Mr. Jamal Al-Jawahiri, with a welcoming speech. He also spoke about the importance of volunteer work for countries and reviewed some of the world’s experiences in the field of volunteer work and the economic contribution of this work to the economy and in investing the energies of young people and even the elderly in performing useful work for society.
Major interventions were made in the session, as Mr. Ali Al-Ani, President of the Struggle Society for Human Rights, gave an intervention and a presentation in which he focused on the experiences of the UAE and Tunisia in issuing laws for volunteer work and addressed the content of the laws and the most prominent issues that these laws focused on.
Mr. Maher Aziz, representative of the Department of Non-Governmental Organizations in the General Secretariat of the Council of Ministers, also gave an intervention in which he focused on the importance of volunteer work, and the importance of encouraging volunteerism in Iraq. Mr. Zain Al-Abidin, a member of the Board of Trustees of the Association, also gave an intervention and a presentation in which he talked about the importance of having a work policy. Volunteering in Iraq organizes this work, encourages it, and facilitates volunteer work, as well as protecting the rights of volunteers. Mr. Ali Fahim, Director of the National Center for Volunteer Work at the Ministry of Youth and Sports, gave an intervention in which he spoke about volunteer work and the role of the Center in supporting and facilitating the mission of volunteer teams in Iraq. All interventions mentioned the challenges and problems facing volunteer work and the ways and means of reducing them.
A discussion was also held by the attendees, and the importance of legislating a law or policy for volunteer work in Iraq was studied, and a set of questions and problems were raised about the subject, including whether the proposed volunteer work policy or law deals with individual volunteers, volunteer teams, or organizations that incubate volunteering, and with which party it is regulated. Is this process with an executive body such as the Ministry of Youth and Sports, or a body independent of the executive authority and linked to the General Secretariat of the Council of Ministers, for example? A number of opinions were also presented on the subject. Some did not support the idea of legislating a law, but rather with a policy for volunteer work and with the aim of contributing to facilitating volunteer work in the country. Iraq avoids the complexity of procedures and approvals.
As a conclusion to the discussion, it was agreed to study this topic in future sessions, which may be limited to a team of specialists, and to make recommendations that will be presented later for discussion and agreement. The session was concluded and the attendees were thanked for their active participation.