TEHRAN – The 6th International Conference on Social Work and Social Capital is scheduled to be held in Tehran on January 6, 2026.

Co-organized by the Asia-Pacific International Federation of Social Workers and the Asian and Pacific Association for Social Work Education, the event will be held in collaboration with 50 bodies, associations,  universities, and at least 10 countries, both in person and online, bringing together domestic and international experts and professors, IRNA reported.

World Social Work Day will be celebrated on March 17, 2026. The day is a global call to heal divisions, to strengthen resilience, and to shape a fairer and more sustainable future.

The theme for this year, ‘Co-Building Hope and Harmony: A Harambee Call to Unite a Divided Society’, highlights the vital role of social work in bringing people together across communities, cultures, and systems to shape a more inclusive and sustainable tomorrow.

The choice of Harambee is deliberate and symbolic, literally meaning “pulling together” or “all for one. It draws inspiration from the African philosophy of Harambee; a collective call for unity, mutual support, and shared responsibility. In a world increasingly fractured by conflict, inequality, displacement, and ecological crises, the theme is both a reminder and a challenge: that the only sustainable way forward is through cooperation, solidarity, and co-creation.

The 2026 theme calls on social workers, governments, institutions, and communities worldwide to join hands in co-building spaces of hope and harmony. It challenges us to move beyond charity towards genuine solidarity, beyond service delivery towards systems change, and beyond divisions towards unity. It reminds us that peace is not merely the absence of violence, but the presence of justice, inclusion, and opportunity.

UNDP commends Welfare Organization’s services

Addressing a ceremony for the deployment of harm reduction mobile centers in Tehran in July, the resident representative ad interim for the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) in Iran, Ayshanie Medagangoda-Labé,  commended the Welfare Organization’s services, which have materialized commitment, inclusiveness, and hope over the past 45 years.

The relentless efforts of the organization are based on Article 29, which guarantees the right to social security for all citizens, she noted. Article 29 specifies that everyone is entitled to social security benefits related to retirement, unemployment, old age, disability, lack of a guardian, accidents, and the need for healthcare and treatment, and that the government is responsible for providing these services and financial support, using national revenues and public contributions, as outlined by law.

The organization has brought dignity and care to those facing deprivation and social exclusion by providing services such as mobile clinics, harm reduction centers, and conducting programs for women, children, and those in need of special services, Medagangoda-Labé added.

MT/MG