Stronger partnerships through volunteering
Volunteering needs to be better recognised. That’s the message at the heart of today’s parallel event titled “Stronger Partnership through Volunteering in SIDS” co-hosted by VSA and UN Volunteers.
Participants were keen to hear about the future development of volunteering and how it plays an integral part in the SIDS sustainable development programme.
VSA CEO Gill Greer chaired the event and says most countries see the Pacific and other areas like the Caribbean as idyllic places with beautiful scenery, white sandy beaches and palm trees, but they don’t see the fragility of these islands. “Behind what we see every day there is extreme vulnerability, which is a formidable barrier. There are pressing issues like poverty, climate change and gender equality.
“All of this illustrates the value of, and the need for, volunteers to make a difference and show that people working together can build livelihoods and create a better future for all. Volunteering is not just about addressing the needs of host countries by building capacity and skills transfer – it is also about active citizenship and developing a voice of advocacy so people can fully participate in society and the decisions that affect their lives,” says Gill.
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he panel talked about their own experiences and outlined some development goals. Volunteering was emphasised as central to delivering successes to small island developing nations. The panel also highlighted the importance of people-to-people relationships.
Ulla Gronlund, United Nations Volunteers Programme Officer in Fiji, argued that although volunteers are the backbone of society, this is still not fully recognised globally. Ulla believes that the work of volunteers does not replace the social service of each nation, but does strengthen or complement some of those services. “Volunteers do so many things in society but it doesn’t help the ‘V word’ recognition, which we need for action moving forward. Our work is central to people connectedness.”
Tagaloa Eddie Wilson, President of Samoa Association of Manufacturers and Exporters said the way to strengthen volunteers and partnerships is through commitment, and ensuring impacts are sustainable and benefitting the right people.
Maiava Visekota Peteru, President of YWCA Samoa, talked about their history in Samoa and the possible need for an overseas volunteer to support their work and build on this. Maiava strongly believes that good mentoring is essential so that the young women of Samoa can learn about sexual and reproductive rights, family violence and sexual abuse. “Volunteering is at the heart of YWCA of Samoa.”
Junior Ulu takes the floorJunior Ulu takes the floor.
Junior Ulu, International Programme Manager for VSA, elaborated on the impact of Kiwi volunteers and spoke of the value of funding from the New Zealand Aid Programme. He also provided case studies on how volunteers can be an effective avenue for creating constructive relationships between nations, communities and individuals, and across cultures. “We cannot work in isolation anymore; we need to engage with the private sector and civil society and that triangular relationship is key.”
Some members of the panel talked about how volunteering changes the lives of volunteers, the host country and recipients. This triple win is founded on volunteers acting as catalysts for sustainable, people-centred development. The event also highlighted how critical volunteering is to achieving development results. However, a question was raised on how the service and value of volunteering can be measured and recognised.
Gill said, “We should not be focusing on measures and recognition alone. We should be focussing on the impact of volunteers and their assignments and the extraordinary achievements that come out of volunteering, even beyond their assignments. It is worth exploring how we work with governments and private organisations to recognise the value of volunteering, so people start to take it seriously and engage with it. This is all part of the conversation for economic development in the SIDS Conference.”
Although the event explored how volunteering is supported and integrated into small island states’ practices and policies, it also empowers people and communities to directly engage in their own development and to have an impact on the global goals.
VSA and our partners had strongly advocated for volunteering to be visible in the Major Groups and other Stakeholders Outcome Statement, and encourage others to keep volunteering front and centre as the world continues to discuss climate change and the new Sustainable Development Goals in future months.
The event was hosted by UNV and facilitated by Dr Gillian Greer (CEO VSA) and the panel included:
- Le Tagaloa Junior Ulu – International Programme Manager, Volunteer Service Abroad (New Zealand)
- Tagaloa Eddie Wilson – President, Samoa Association of Manufacturers and Exporters Samoa (Samoa)
- Rachel Nunn – volunteer and young professional, Pacific Emerging Environment Leaders (Hawai’i)
- Giles Romulus – National Co-ordinator Global Environment Fund, UNDP (St Lucia)
- Maiava Visekota Peteru – President, YWCA Samoa (Samoa)
- Ulla Gronlund – UNV Programme Officer, United Nations Volunteers Programme (Finland)
- Luke Daunivalu – Deputy Secretary (Policy), Ministry of Foreign Affairs & International Cooperation/ Fiji Volunteer Service (Fiji)