A shared vision for change
Transforming social care in the Middle East
From the opportunities offered by technological advancements to new models for social services, the future looks bright for the social care sector in the Middle East.
However, attracting people with the right skills and creating opportunities for cross-sector collaboration and innovation was proving challenging.
“We helped in two ways. One was using our network to make connections, and the other was using our knowledge about the sector and topics to shape the event.”
Alicia Song, Senior Manager, Technology and Transformation, Deloitte Middle East
Hosted in Abu Dhabi, the Social Care Forum 2024 was designed to help tackle those challenges. In doing so, it set a new benchmark for collaboration in the social sector.
It was created by the Abu Dhabi Department of Community Development (DCD), working closely with Deloitte Middle East, to foster innovation, policy development and professional networking.
“The United Arab Emirates (UAE) is very focused on their residents' quality of life and wellbeing and has been investing heavily in it,” says Alicia Song, Senior Manager in Deloitte Middle East. “The challenge was to develop a place where professionals could connect and learn from each other.”
Shaping the Social Care Forum
Alongside DCD, our team helped to organise the first ever forum.
“Deloitte was an official knowledge partner ,” Alicia explains. “In addition to designing and refining the forum’s theme and agenda, we also selected and invited prominent speakers, developed and advanced the contents and helped draw out quality insights through active discussions.”
By fostering cross-sector cooperation, the teams hoped to create opportunities to develop stronger regulations, skills programmes and support networks, and build a more resilient, mature sector. From technology advancement in the social sector, attracting and developing the social care workforce and developing new models of social services, the forum addressed the topics that matter in the sector today.
The event featured 44 speakers and moderators from 15 countries across five continents, as well as interactive presentations, policy discussions and real-world case studies. More than 1,000 people attended, including government officials, academics and social care professionals.
A ground-breaking impact
The forum has strengthened cooperation not only between regional governments, but governments and organisations across the globe. Many continue to share insights and best practices, encouraging the development of more robust social care policies.
“Singapore and the UAE government have become partners in knowledge-sharing, expertise exchange and social and family development research, but the forum expanded that spirit of collaboration on a global scale,” adds Alicia.
Importantly, the forum has elevated the visibility and recognition of social care professionals and reinforced the importance of their contributions.
Alicia says: “Authorities from multiple sectors came together, including health and education. However, these issues cannot be solved just by social sector entities. This forum enabled cross-sector collaboration, which is now happening throughout the region.”
Laying a strong foundation
The event brought multiple perspectives together to tackle social care challenges in practical ways.
Mr. Mubarak Alamri, Licensing & Social Control Sector Executive Director, DCD comments that the forum shows what happens when global know-how meets current policy challenges. “Working with Deloitte, we built an agenda that went straight to the heart of the big issues in social care, mixing important policy talks with real examples which people could put to use right away."
The event’s success and impact have created demand for a second Social Care Forum, which will take place in late 2025.
Plans include deep-dive interviews, real-life case studies with global experts, focus group discussions for social care professionals and continued collaboration between regional and international entities.
This project has been recognised through the Deloitte NSE Impact Awards, an internal recognition programme which celebrates the impact our people and teams make on clients, people and society.
