The practicing of volunteer work and its challenges in

The practicing of volunteer

work and its challenges

in educational institutions by

using

SWOT analysis Approach

in Oman

Dr. Rashid Al-Fahdi

[email protected]

Dr. Wajeha Al-Ani

[email protected]

Dr. Mohammed Lashin

[email protected]

Research Team Department of Educational Foundations and Administration

College of Education, Sultan Qaboos University

Sultanate of Oman

In recent years, the concept

of voluntarism has changed

to be a corner stone in the

overall development process

of the society; and nowadays

all organizations participate

in volunteer work in different

ways and activities in its

society.

Omanis enjoy volunteerism. Many people

in Oman strive to identify, recruit and orient

volunteers each year. They are committed to

stimulate volunteers engagement among

their friends, colleagues and adults as well.

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The practicing of volunteer work

and its challenges using SWOT

In order to build a new strategy in volunteer

work, many researchers used SWOT

approach to identify the: Strengths,

Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats of

the organization.

The SWOT analysis helps in understanding

how best to use volunteers within

organizations for maximum effectiveness.

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The four factors of SWOT analysis

Helpful Challenges

Internal

Strengths

Weaknesses

External

Opportunities

Threats

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Research findings indicated weak youth participation in voluntary work in

Oman.

It is also found that youth are not aware of the return and benefits of

voluntary work.

However, voluntary sector in Oman witnessed remarkable growth over

the last few years.

The aim of this study was to identify the current practices of the

voluntary sectors in Oman and analyze its challenges by the using a

SWOT analysis approach.

1- What is the reality practicing of voluntary

work practice in Oman?

2- What are the elements of strengths,

weakness, opportunities and challenges in the

actual practices of volunteer work in Oman?

The study aims to:

Identify the strength, weakness, opportunities,

threatening and challenges facing volunteering

work in Oman.

Suggest some recommendations to develop

voluntary work in Oman.

Study Methodology ◦ Data were collected through interviews with 89

experts.

◦ The study sample included directors and the

executive directors of NGOs and some scholar

who are interested in volunteer work.

◦ Collected data were analyzed by using N- Vivo

package which dealing with qualitative data.

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and its challenges using SWOT 10

The opening

workshop of the

project

5/4/2017 The Added Value of Volunteerism 11

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Some of the field visits, observations & interviewing

Gender Distribution. Governorates Location of Volunteering

Indicators of volunteer work in Oman

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Gender Distribution

70%

30%

Females

Males

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Governorates:

Muscat 19%

Dhofar 10%

Musandam 0%

Buraimi 3%

Dakhiliah 17%

North Batinah

14%

Sourth Batinah

11%

North Eastern

9%

South Eastern

8%

Thahirah 9%

Wusta 0%

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Location of Volunteering:

82%

18% Volunteers in gov

Volunteers out of gov

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Results and discussions The study results indicated that the current

situation of volunteer work and educational

institutions in the Sultanate of Oman faced

many challenges as shown in the table 1.

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Table 1. The SWOT analysis from specialist focus group about

volunteer situation in NGOs in Oman

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Strength Weaknesses

-Highly committed, dedicated and Enthusiastic toward volunteering -Depth of expertise and models -Some highly recognized in community -Diversity of experience in volunteering

-Uneven participation -Lack of clarity regarding roles -No orientation or ongoing training -Insufficient supervision and direction -Lack of adequate recognition -There are no clear-cut strategic plans or directions.

Opportunities Threats

-Conducting free training sessions in the field of volunteerism. - Conducting recreational vocations for participants in volunteer projects - Providing certificates and prizes for volunteers - Establishing training courses for developing youth IT skills

-More demands by volunteers for short term -Increased competition for volunteers -Increased liability concerns/litigation -Less time from jobs to volunteer -highly focused opportunities - The economy crisis can affect volunteerism

Economic Opportunities Indicators:

The study sample are not aware

of the value of economic

returns for volunteer work.

It is difficult to identified and

measure economic value "value

added" for volunteer work.

Social Opportunities Indicators:

Opportunities of identifying youths’ talents

Educational programs for youth.

Development of sense of social

responsibility

Prevalence of voluntary work culture

Workshops for increasing voluntary work

awareness

Training youth on technology use

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

Dhofar Musandam Aldakhlea South

alsharkea

Muscat South

Batinah

North

Batinah

Opportunities

Strength

Strengths and opportunities by geographic area

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

Economic returns

Returns are linked to community

development

Returns accruing to association

Returns to classes in the community

Returns linked to youth

Types of voluntary returns by geographic area

Challenges facing the volunteers

The value of volunteers depends on the sector itself.

It is difficult to define the added value of volunteerism since the pattern of volunteer practice is unstructured in nature.

Current data on volunteering is scare.

The lack of data on volunteering lead to numerous consequences such as decreased visible economic value of volunteers.

Difficulties in management of volunteers.

Lower perceived benefits of volunteers by the society and unenthusiastic and discouraged volunteers

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Increase in the number of affiliated youth with

voluntary work

variety of voluntary work activities to fulfill the

needs of the society

increase the competition among universities in

voluntary work

Implementation of voluntary work ideas

Restriction of anti-social behavior of youth

Empowering youth of self-help and self-

provision

Social Returns:

1. Introducing the concept of volunteerism in the

school curriculum from the first stages to

increase social return .

2. Activating communication with education

institutions in the region through participation in

educational activities to promote a culture of

volunteerism among members of the educational

community

Economic Returns

1. Provide support services and development

projects undertaken by the government.

2. Develop new places for youth volunteering which

offering services to the local community

26 T

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The practicing of volunteer work and its challenges in