"Social Reform" Launches Its Virtual Conference "Beyond Giving"
The Al-Islah Social Association will launch its virtual conference, “Beyond Giving,” on September 9, coinciding with the anniversary of Kuwait’s designation as a center for humanitarian action. The event commemorates Kuwait’s humanitarian standing and its long-standing experience in supporting charitable and humanitarian efforts, while underscoring the importance of continuing to develop this sector and elevate its practices and tools. The conference aims to present a vision that transcends the traditional concept of giving, moving toward a more institutionalized and efficient charitable model based on knowledge, governance, planning, financing, and impact measurement. It will bring together leaders, decision-makers, board members, program, financing, and development managers, researchers, and those interested in humanitarian work.
In this context, Hamad Al-Ali, Secretary-General of the Al-Islah Social Association, emphasized that the “Beyond Giving” conference represents a significant step in the evolution of charitable work, by shifting the focus from the volume of giving and the number of initiatives to strengthening institutional knowledge, governance, planning, financing, and impact measurement. This approach enhances the efficiency of charitable institutions and improves the quality of their decisions.
Al-Ali stated that choosing September 9 as the conference date, coinciding with the anniversary of Kuwait’s designation as a humanitarian center, carries special significance. The conference extends Kuwait’s established humanitarian role and offers an opportunity to reaffirm the importance of developing charitable tools and enhancing their capacity to create sustainable impact, in line with Kuwait’s esteemed position in the humanitarian field.
He added that the conference’s importance stems from its focus on transforming knowledge into practical, usable tools within charitable and humanitarian institutions. Through guidelines and methodologies, it helps leaders and staff understand humanitarian contexts, develop governance frameworks, shape financing strategies, and evaluate project performance on clearer and more objective bases. This ensures that knowledge becomes an integral part of the decision-making process rather than remaining merely theoretical content.
Al-Ali clarified that the Al-Islah Social Association views the development of the charitable sector as an institutional responsibility that requires investment in capacity building, improving practices, and enhancing transparency and accountability. He noted that the conference aligns with the association’s approach to human development and societal progress through an integrated institutional development system, local, regional, and international partnerships, and a commitment to professionalism and ethical values.
He further pointed out that the conference will yield several important knowledge-based and practical outcomes, including specialized publications on the localization of charitable work and its governance.
