Some of the ROTA volunteers with special needs children.
DOHA: Reach Out To Asia (ROTA) recently hosted a workshop to train volunteers on how to work better with adults and children with special needs.
Twenty-five volunteers recently attended ROTA’s ‘Understanding People with Special Needs’ workshop which was part of ROTA’s Volunteer Training Programme.
Explaining ROTA’s approach to supporting people with special needs, ROTA Volunteer Programme Specialist Hazem Idriss said: “Having consulted with our Community Based partners, ROTA identified the need to increase the number of volunteers who have the specific knowledge required to effectively support adults and children with special needs.”
“Our Volunteer Training Programme is building the capacity of volunteers who wish to contribute to their communities with the skills they need to communicate with people with special needs,” he added.
The ‘Understanding People with Special Needs’ gave volunteers a general overview of how to approach and react in the presence of people with special needs.
After completing ROTA’s ‘Understanding People with Special Needs’ workshop, trained volunteers will be eligible to take part in a local community based program to weekly institutes to various institutes that work with adults and children with special needs.
“The ROTA Volunteer Programme aims to train and develop a substantial number of registered volunteers to serve the needs of the community,” said National Programs Director, Mohammed Abdulla Saleh.
“Following the ‘Understanding People with Special Needs’ workshop, volunteers will have the opportunity to regularly volunteer at Community Based Organisations’ to assist with different tasks.”
Inspired by the Heir Apparent H H Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani’s call for strong and active organisations to develop a just and caring Qatari society, ROTA’s Volunteer Programme has grown from strength to strength in recent years, recruited over 800 volunteers who continue to sign up via the www.reachouttoasia.org website. The Peninsula
