Field work is a critical component of humanitarian organizations’ work because it enables them to learn about the actual needs of communities through assessments and direct communication with their care groups.
The Iraqi Red Crescent Society, in collaboration with the Danish Red Cross, has organized a training workshop for the Iraqi Red Crescent staff and volunteers on how to interact with responsible local communities and improve communication and participation in all of the Red Crescent’s activities.
According to Mr. Krustfer, one of the workshop’s organizers and trainers from the Danish Red Cross, the workshop aims to provide “training on community participation, which is about the Red Cross and Red Crescent participating in and being a part of the community, as well as how to obtain information from them that is useful for their work.”
“The purpose of the training is to foster mutual trust with community members so that we can be certain of their reaction to any project, and if they have a complaint, we will be notified directly,” he explained.
(26) Iraqi Red Crescent staff and volunteers from the governorates of (Baghdad, Nineveh, Salah al-Din, Erbil, Dohuk, and Kirkuk have received extensive training on how to interact and work with members of society in all of their forms, whether they are displaced, refugees, or members of the local community, and utilize their capabilities to ensure the success of the Red Crescent’s humanitarian projects and activities.
The two-day workshop focused on establishing communication channels with all groups that benefit from the Iraqi Red Crescent’s services, which include psychosocial, health, and material assistance.
“The workshop included lectures on how to participate in a responsible community, leverage the community’s capabilities, integrate and engage the community in the programs and activities we plan,” said Dr. Ali Al-Moussawi, director of the Iraqi Red Crescent’s health department.
He emphasized “the importance of protecting and preserving social diversity, the importance of conducting field surveys as part of the Red Crescent’s activities, and the importance of planning before embarking on any project.”