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Al-Ahram Weekly 3 - 9 June 1999 Issue No. 432 
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Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Al-Ahram Weekly 3 - 9 June 1999 Issue No. 432
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| Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Egypt Region International Economy Opinion Culture Profile Interview Travel Sports People Time Out Chronicles Cartoons Letters Volunteerism modernised
By Rania Khallaf
"We are not merely celebrating the inauguration of the new premises, but are also giving the starting-signal for voluntary work in its modern form," Mrs Suzanne Mubarak said.
Mrs Suzanne Mubarak during her visit to the new premises of the General Union of NGOs on Sunday and
Addressing a meeting of the Union's new board of directors, Mrs Mubarak said that the NGO law passed by the People's Assembly last week aims to help cope with the requirements of social and economic development. "The existence of the Union is a supporting tool of NGO power," she said. "There is no need to affirm that the Union's task is not to exercise any type of censorship on the free activities of NGOs. On the contrary, the Union should act as a pioneer, and also as an assistant, especially for the newly-established NGOs, which are lacking in experience."
Mrs Mubarak said that the opening marked a new and promising stage in the history of voluntary work in Egypt. "Our country has a heritage of social hegemony and integration, which is the essence of social development in the modern world," she said. "We are proud that we are keen on enshrining these values into a legal framework, such as the latest legislation, into sustainable schemes, underlined by the establishment of this Union, and into working plans, which are the recommendations of the last NGO general conference."
The legislation, she said, marks a leap forward for voluntary action because it allows NGOs to work more easily in the implementation of their programmes, achieving their targets and coping with an open-market economy and the comprehensive social development process.
Mrs Mubarak described the government-NGO dialogue that took place while the law was being drafted as an "honest expression of the NGO position, reflecting an awareness of their responsibilities and a true desire to play their role in the best possible way." The dialogue also reflected the government's flexible attitude and its readiness to listen to the viewpoint of the other side and underlined the importance of transparency in all activities, she said.
"We all work for the welfare of our society and cooperate to conserve financial resources," Mrs Mubarak went on. "I am convinced that most NGOs believe that a correct legal framework is a tool that would facilitate their work, by showing respect for rights and clarifying duties. Our aim is to raise a new generation of social workers, who believe that voluntary work should benefit all our people."
She argued that the Union has the double responsibility of boosting the administrative capabilities of NGOs and also developing the resources of the voluntary sector. Noting that many NGOs in Upper Egypt complain of limited financial resources, Mrs Mubarak said: "We do not expect miracles from the new board. However, it should coordinate the roles and programmes of various societies, provide support to societies in Upper Egypt and provincial areas, promote awareness of the importance of voluntary work, especially among young people, and establish priorities for voluntary work, corresponding to society's requirements."
Declaring that the "picture is now clearer than at any time before", Mrs Mubarak said that the time was ripe for addressing the priorities set out by the Union and for drawing up plans and programmes of action and assessing them regularly.
Omar Abdel-Akher, chairman of the 31-member Union, noted increased cooperation between it and the government. As an example, he said that the Cairo Water Authority had asked the Union to help in promoting public awareness of the importance of rationalising water consumption. Another important development, he added, is that the foreign donor organisations are promoting relations with the Union, which would have positive implications for NGO activity.
Social Affairs Minister Mervat Tellawi underlined the importance of coordination between her ministry and the Union in information-gathering. She also suggested that the Union should act as an intermediary between the ministry and the 14,000-15,000 NGOs registered in the country.
