Health volunteering in Saudi Arabia: Two million working hours and 84 million riyals
Exceptional achievements in the health volunteering sector in Saudi Arabia for the year 2025
In 2025, the Saudi Ministry of Health achieved exceptional and unprecedented milestones in community engagement and health volunteering. This achievement was demonstrated by the completion of two million volunteer hours, with the broad and effective participation of 32,000 volunteers from various disciplines. The success was not limited to human effort alone, but also extended to the financial aspect, with donations exceeding 84 million Saudi Riyals through the “Shifa” platform, reflecting the community's solidarity and ongoing support for the health sector.
Rapid growth in non-profit organizations and the number of volunteers
Recent statistics from relevant authorities reveal that the number of volunteers in non-profit health organizations has tripled compared to 2023. The number jumped from 8,800 to over 32,500 by the end of this year. In a related development, indicators show a significant increase in the number of non-profit organizations under the supervision of the Ministry of Health, reaching 360 organizations, representing a growth rate of 80%. This substantial expansion underscores the growing pivotal role of the third sector in providing health and preventative initiatives and alleviating the burden on government hospitals and centers.
A surge in blood donations and female participation
Medical records show a significant achievement in blood donation culture, with voluntary blood donation reaching 99%, an 8% increase from last year. One of the most notable figures is the surge in female donor participation, which jumped by 72%, bringing women's share of blood donations to 17.2%. This reflects the growing health awareness among Saudi women and their active participation in saving lives and supporting the strategic blood bank reserves.
The “Shifa” platform and the promotion of health endowments
On the financial and endowment front, official figures show that the health endowment through the “Shifa” platform has achieved steady growth of 23%, exceeding 84 million riyals. This surge in direct community support effectively contributes to providing treatment services for needy patients, securing medical equipment, and covering the costs of complex surgeries, thus embodying the highest form of social solidarity.
Historical context and the link between the achievement and Saudi Vision 2030
These figures cannot be viewed in isolation from the broader context of the transformations taking place in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Since the launch of Vision 2030, the wise leadership has set a strategic goal of reaching one million volunteers in the non-profit sector by 2030. To achieve this in the health sector, the Ministry of Health established the “Health Volunteer Center” in 2019, which has played a pivotal role in institutionalizing volunteer work, training personnel, and organizing initiatives professionally to ensure their sustainability. The importance of this establishment became evident during the COVID-19 pandemic, as volunteers formed the first line of defense, thus solidifying the culture of health volunteering in society and making it a fundamental pillar of the modern healthcare system.
Importance and expected impact at the local and regional levels
Locally, this massive scale of health volunteering contributes to improving quality of life, reducing operational costs for the state budget, and accelerating emergency response. Regionally, the Kingdom offers a model to be emulated in the Middle East for integrating technology and reliable digital platforms with the community's desire to give back. This institutional model opens the door for neighboring countries to benefit from the Saudi experience in managing large numbers of volunteers and directing financial and human resources to serve the health sector with high efficiency and transparency.
