In Erbil...
Erbil Volunteering Summit 2025 Held

Today, Tuesday, December 16, 2025, under the patronage of Omed Khoshnaw, Governor of Erbil, and in the presence of Bayan Sami Abdul Rahman, Advisor to the Prime Minister of the Kurdistan Regional Government, Dr. Hemn Mirani, Director General of the Ministry of Interior's Diwan, Musa Ahmed, President of the Barzani Charity Foundation, and a number of other Director Generals from departments within Erbil Governorate, as well as representatives of international organizations and volunteer and charitable organizations, the Erbil Volunteering Summit 2025 was held in the capital, Erbil, under the slogan "Volunteers are the Main Pillar of Any Strong Society." The summit was organized by the Erbil Governorate's Crisis Management Directorate in partnership with UN Volunteers, the Haji Idris Surchi Charity Foundation, and the Health Peace Organization.
 

In his speech at the event, on the occasion of International Volunteer Day, the Governor of Erbil congratulated volunteers in Kurdistan in general and in the capital Erbil in particular.
He commended the Governorate's Crisis Management and its partners for organizing the event. To further encourage and support volunteer work, he emphasized that Erbil Governorate would provide all possible support and assistance, expressing hope that they would continue with the same spirit and that their examples of volunteer work would multiply, as it is a great humanitarian endeavor whose opportunity is not available to everyone.
 

He also noted that volunteering is a great title, and one should always speak about this topic and title, which has a deep meaning, and discuss the names and titles clearly, beautifully, and appropriately.
 

Furthermore, the Governor of Erbil thanked and commended the volunteers who carried out their duties and volunteer work amidst crises and challenges. He stated that volunteer work has deep historical roots among Kurds, existing in Kurdish culture through collective work, helping hands, and mutual cooperation, and has been further developed in this era.
 

He also added that volunteer work is connected to ethics, humanity, and faith. He also highly valued the work and activities of all organizations that carry out volunteer work in humanitarian, economic, social, and environmental fields. He indicated that Erbil Governorate has provided and will continue to provide all facilities to enable them to carry out their work freely.
 

Finally, a number of charitable organizations and volunteers were honored.