By Nawara Fattahova

KUWAIT: People in Kuwait like to perform charity and help others especially during crises. In the current pandemic, thousands of people have volunteered to help the community in different ways. Some volunteered with the Civil Defense, others with the Kuwait Red Crescent Society, and so on. They were distributed in different locations around Kuwait.

Many organizations and businesses took the initiative to provide different services including putting their hospitals, aircrafts and other facilities at the disposal of the government to use in case of need. Also telecom companies provided free calls and 5 gigabytes of internet for all users during this crisis. A few landlords have reduced rents or excused tenants to pay rent this month.

At the same time, some people are trying to do good deeds that can have adverse results. In one recent example, a group of volunteers wanted to distribute meals for the working laborers in one of the areas, which caused the gathering of people, exactly what the government wants to prevent at the current time.

One of the most recent volunteering activities that are very useful is having volunteers who are delivering important stuff from the co-ops including food and other necessary items to consumers at their home and free of charge. According to the Ministry of Social Affairs, this service is available even during curfew hours, though it is not yet clear how it will work.

Citizens can volunteer with Kuwait Red Crescent Society through the official website: www.krcs.org.kw. People also can volunteer with the civil defense through the website www.moi.gov.kw/civildefense. The volunteers will be distributed in different sectors including hospitals, quarantine resorts, coops, and other locations.

Even outside Kuwait, many Kuwaiti students abroad, especially in the UK, volunteered with their union to deliver important items to thousands of Kuwaiti students especially after many supermarkets ran out of stock of important items. Kuwait Times will update with more opportunities for volunteering as they are announced.