VOLUNTEERISM AND PROMOTING VOLUNTARY SERVICES

VOLUNTEERISM AND PROMOTING VOLUNTARY SERVICES

Lalita C. Thapa

Uttam N. Malla

(The contributors are both returned UNVs. Ms. Lalita C. Thapa is at present an ARR at UNDP Nepal and Mr. Uttam N. Mall is with the Nepal Bureau of Statistics.)

Volunteerism

The spirit of volunteerism is an expression of an enlightened self-interest to serve others. It comes from the compassion for humanity, having a magnanimous heart to be of help to others. Therefore, it is not so much of an intellectual or academic exercise of mind but of heart and soul. However, a formal definition of volunteerism may vary over time, between individuals, among nations and even within cultures. Despite its many expressions, there are few key core elements that can be attributed to voluntary activity in its many forms. First, it is not undertaken for financial gain. Second, it is carried out freely and without compulsion. Third, it benefits both volunteers and the persons or the party for whom their action is meant.

Volunteering: An Evolving Paradigm Volunteerism continues to evolve in response to the emerging needs and priorities of communities. Many voluntary activities are rooted in ancient customs of caring and sharing. Whenever there is a need in society, such as in funerals, natural calamities, and any other emergencies, human beings have the impulse to work together. Thus, in most societies, volunteering is a fundamental part of people’s lives and most languages have terms to describe it. For instance “Shramadan” and “Paropakar” in South Asia, “Harambee” in East Africa, “Mingu” in Latin America and “al taawun wal tawasul” in many Arab States. The act is very familiar, even if the word “volunteer” is not. For example, Nepal has a tradition of protecting and conserving temples through Guthis. Bhutanese traditions for managing common natural resources such as firewood collection, fire control and prevention, and wildlife protection continue to influence country’s culture of environmental volunteerism. Volunteerism is both a source and a reflection of social capital. It is part of the nformal web of solidarity that binds societies together and that provides social safety nets. Volunteering is not only a form of social capital, but also an effective social network of the community. It is also reciprocal within the norms in the community. By nurturing trust and establishing a pattern of generalised reciprocity, volunteerism binds societies together. Characteristics of Volunteerism Certain key basic criteria can be identified to distinguish volunteering from other types of human activity. It is not undertaken primarily for financial gain. Some even argue that only purely altruistic behavior should be counted as volunteering. Others

contend that there is no such thing as pure altruism and that all volunteering contains an element of exchange and reciprocity. A volunteer is for twenty-four hours a day. It is not a time-bound occupation, but a widespread form of social behavior. Volunteering is undertaken by one’s own free will.

Types of Voluntary Services

Within the broad conceptual framework, voluntary services can be grouped into at least four categories: mutual aid or self-help; philanthropy or service to others; participation or civic engagement; and advocacy or campaigning. Each of these types occurs in all parts of the world. However, the forms may differ from country to country and from community to community. The nature of volunteering is influenced by the economic, social and political make-up of the country and its stage of development. Mutual Aid or Self-Help: In many parts of the developing world mutual aid or self-help constitutes the main system of social and economic support. Even in the countries of the industrialised North, contributions from self-help are significant, particularly in the field of health and social welfare. These voluntary groups are often organized around a particular disease or illness. Philanthropy: Philanthropy or service to others primarily was meant for external parties but not for the members of his or her own groups. This type of volunteering takes place typically within voluntary or community organisations. The long-standing tradition of volunteers being sent from one country to another to offer developmental and humanitarian assistance, both from the North to the South and from the South to the South is increasing.

Awareness Building: Volunteers play a crucial role in advocacy or campaigning and act as activists to bring changes in legislation affecting the lives of vulnerable groups. They have been instrumental in raising public consciousness about abuses of human rights and environmental destruction, gender equality and women’s empowerment movement as well as democratic governance in many parts of the world.

Participation: Participation has been recognised as an essential component of good governance. It has become the watchword of development in recent years and there are many good examples in Nepal. There is, however, strong criticism, too, which argues that, much of what has passed for participation has been little more than token involvement and a means of legitimising outsiders’ decisions.

Voluntary Services in Nepal

Volunteerism is a part of Nepalese culture. Most of the problems of the communities are solved through voluntary services. Public goods such as trail-roads, temples, inns, water taps, and wells used to be built on a voluntary basis. In fact, relief work at the time of disasters (flood, earthquake, famine, epidemic etc.) are mostly done on a voluntary basis. Guthi, Dharma Bhakari (food reserves), are examples of traditional voluntary works in the Nepalese society, guided mainly by religious, social, and cultural factors. Traditional voluntary organizations are functioning under the traditional norms mostly without being registered with any of the government offices. Modern voluntary services were initiated in Nepal after the establishment of Paropakar Sanstha, by the late Dayabir Singh Kansakar, and Gandhi Charkha Pracharak Sangh, by the late Tulsi Mehar. Other voluntary organisations include clubs, trusts, non-governmental organisations (NGOs), and community-based organisations (CBOs). The number of NGOs, which are registered with the Social Welfare Council (SWC), is more than 11,000 and the number of NGOs registered in CDOs in the districts is even bigger. According to a survey of NGOs, conducted by the Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS) in 2000, only one-fourth of the NGOs registered are found to be active.

In the present context, voluntary services in Nepal are mobilised in at least three different ways and at different levels: local, national, and international. Local Voluntary Organizations: His Majesty’s Government of Nepal allocates budget for the local governments, e.g., Village Development Committees

(VDCs) and District Development Committees under different community development programmes for which local communities have to meet a certain part of resources through people’s participation. Many District Development Committees (DDCs) have similar programs of their own as well. A survey conducted by the Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS) on village development expenditures and their resources showed that local development works equivalent to Rs. 3 billion were carried out in the year 1999, and one-third of this was estimated to be met through people’s voluntary services. Likewise, it is estimated that DDCs also mobilised about the same amount of services in that particular year. Many municipalities are also conducting similar programs. A number of local NGOs and informal community-

based organizations (CBOs) are also playing a crucial role in their development efforts at the community level. Thus, the local government was able to build up roads, tracks, drinking water supplies, health posts, and other social capitals worth more than Rs. 3.5 billion.

National Voluntary Organizations: There are many voluntary organizations at the national level who are active in Nepal, e.g., Paropakar Sansthan, Nepal Red Cross, Marwadi Sewa Simithi, Bal Mandir etc. After the restoration of democracy in 1990, a large number of NGOs both at the national and local levels have been formed and are providing voluntary services in different areas. Some of them are quite active such as Samuhik Abhiyan, Maiti Nepal, Sathi etc. These leading national NGOs are providing voluntary services in the areas of health, education, and relief work. It is estimated that the amount of contribution made by the major national NGO’s amounted to equivalent of Rs. 1 billion in 1999/2000.

International Voluntary Organizations: Nepal is considered to be a favourite country for many international voluntary organisations. Almost all the well-known international voluntary organizations provide voluntary services to Nepal. Among them the major Volunteer Sending Agencies (VSAs) are: Peace Corps (US), Volunteer Service Overseas (VSO-UK), MS Nepal (Denmark), German Develop -

ment Service (GTZ- GDS), SNV (Netherlands), JOCV (Japan), SPW (UK), and UNV (United Nations). The services of these international volunteers are mostly in the areas of basic and primary education, primary health, and other areas like HIV and AIDS, local governance (including social mobilisation), income generation activities (saving and credit schemes), empowerment (particularly of women, socially disadvantaged groups, and physically handicapped). A very brief information on some of the leading international VSAs in Nepal is given below:

Peace Corps: Peace Corps (US) volunteers have been serving in Nepal since 1962 and over 4000 volunteers have served in Nepal so far. Currently, 120 volunteers are serving in different parts of the country. The number of districts being served has been reduced to 28 at present from 58 in the past due to security reasons. Major areas of services are Education, Agriculture etc. JOCV: JOCV (Japan) started its activities in Nepal in 1965. Forty-two volunteers including 12 senior volunteers are currently serving in Nepal. JOCV is serving mainly in education, health community development etc. VSO: VSO (UK) is also one of the oldest VSAs in Nepal. It initiated its activities in 1964 and VSO volunteers are engaged mainly in education, health, natural resource management etc. The number of volunteers serving at present is 45.

DED (German Development Service): DED started its work in Nepal in 1965. There are 18 volunteers currently working in natural resource management, local govern-ments etc.

UNV: Nepal has been cooperating with the UNV Program since 1974. Nepal is a recipient as well as a sender of UNVs. Currently, there are nearly 100 Nepalese, serving in more than 20 different countries as UNVs. Meanwhile, 19 International UNV Specialists, 11 National UNV Specialists, and 5 National UNV field workers are serving in Nepal.

All the voluntary service organizations together (local governments, major national NGO, and 8 VSAs and UNVs in Nepal) produced work with value equivalent to Rs.5.5 billion in 1999/2000, which is 1.52% of the GDP of Nepal in that year. The estimated value does not include the work of traditional voluntary organizations, local politician’s contributions, and voluntary contributions of other INGOs. Therefore, it can be assumed that the monetary value of voluntary services may accrue to about 4 to 5 % of the GDP of Nepal.

Benefits: a Win-Win Situation Volunteering brings benefits to individuals and society at large as well as the volunteers themselves. The significant benefits they bring are:

Spiritual Connection: Volunteerism helps foster compassion, social responsibility, and spiritual and emotional bond between the provider and recipient of voluntary services. This further helps develop norms of solidarity amongst the members of a society.

Economic Benefits: Volunteering makes an important economic contribution to society. A survey in UK in 1997 suggested that the voluntary work contributed a total of Sterling Pound 40 billion. Another survey in Canada indicated that over 5 million adults volunteered adding about $16 billion to its GDP. Similarly, another survey in eight European countries in 1994 found the average participation in volunteering across the continent is 23%, which is equivalent to the work of almost $10.5 million full-time employees. Given the impact of its contribution in the economic sphere of a nation, if a system to assess the value of voluntary services in monetary terms is developed, it would help in promoting a favorable environment for volunteering in all sectors and by all citizens.

Social integration: Volunteering helps in social integration, particularly for those who are excluded or marginalized. Likewise, volunteering by the young people offers opportunities for self-development and provides a valuable grounding in the practice of citizenship. For the older people, volunteering contributes positively to the process of ‘active aging’ by helping them to adjust their lives without the structure of the workplace. Political stability and economic progress is also linked with social interaction. Thus, volunteers have been very effective in social mobilization, thereby forming social capital and facilitating participation of communities in all stages of development activities.

Employment Opportunity: Volunteering plays an important role in promoting employment by enhancing the employability of unemployed people, especially the young generation. For those in search of paid employment, volunteering can boost self-confidence, provide access to workplace networks and an opportunity for the development of specific marketable skills. Volunteering also leads to the creation of new jobs by developing services, which are later taken over by the state and the market and turned into paid jobs. For example, the innovative response from volunteers worldwide to the HIV/AIDS epidemic has led to the creation of thousands of paid jobs in the public and private sectors.

Participation: Participation has long been seen as an essential element of good governance and for sustainable development. Volunteering is a key means by which individuals articulate their engagement as citizens, and build trust and reciprocity among citizens. The social capital generated by voluntary action is vital to the development of efforts of people living in poverty.

Goodwill Ambassadors: International volunteers working in developing countries often play a very important role as promoters of the countries they have served. They act as natural goodwill ambassadors in introducing the countries to the developed world.

Issues and Challenges

Social Values: Volunteering is under pressure from the forces of globalisation and industrialisation, fuelled by a reduction in religious attachment, the break-up of traditional communities, and an increase in individualism. The Human Development Report for 1999 singled out caring labor as an essential facet of economic sustainability. The Report states that this often overlooked and little studied but essential part of human development is being squeezed by globalisation. In Nepal also traditional voluntary organisations are disappearing or not functioning as they used to do in the past. Funds of traditional Guthis and Trusts are being depleted. Changes in social patterns such as increasingly materialistic thinking and depreciated social and cultural values have contributed to defunct traditional voluntary organisations. Since 2000, the number of international volunteers has also depreciated due to security reasons.

Policies and Strategies: Lack of clear policies and strategies to promote volunteerism by the Government by the private sector as well as by voluntary organisations themselves also poses a serious challenge to sustaining voluntary services.

Recognition: The value added by voluntary services is not adequately recognised and the contribution made in the nation’s economy has not yet been estimated. In many countries including Nepal, the failure of governments to measure the contribution of volunteering to GDP is a sign of the low status in which it is held.

Coordination: Lack of coordination among the recipient institutions, VSAs, and government agencies affects the efficiency and effectiveness of volunteers’ services. This may lead to duplication of efforts in certain areas with no activities in others.

Recruitment Process: In the case of international volunteers, it is reported by many VSAs that the recruitment process takes six months to one year. Due to such an ordinate delay in recruitment, many times they lose appropriate candidates. Commitment and Ownership: In many cases voluntary services are considered as free and do not receive adequate commitment and ownership of the recipient agencies. On the other hand, volunteers services are not used at the optimum level. In some cases, volunteers are used only for attracting external funding.

Absence of a Focal Agency: This makes it difficult for the VSA to deal with any issues related to voluntary services. Career-Oriented Volunteers: In some cases, voluntary services are also consi-dered as salaried jobs and volunteers continue to remain volunteers for a longer period of time. NDVS Volunteers, in some cases, are being treated as government servants, which therefore restrains them from participating in community activities.

Measures for Promoting Volunteerism

Volunteering is a cost-effective way of providing a range of social and welfare services, but it is not cost-free. In order to flourish, volunteerism requires an effective infrastructure, both at the national and local level, to help mobilise support and match the volunteers to appropriate host organisations and tasks. The government has a role to play in funding this infrastructure and in ensuring the requisite legal and fiscal framework. Given the diversity of volunteering, it is not possible to put forward universal models for its development. Volunteering is a product of its environment and a government scheme for promoting volunteerism in Western Europe or North America may not be appropriate for Latin America or southern Africa. This is not, however, to say that lessons cannot be learned and practices exchanged.

Government’s Response on Volunteering

Government support for volunteering can take several forms which can be summarised under the following six headings.

Creating an Enabling Environment:

•Policies & Strategies: Governments should develop policies and strategies to promote, mobilize, and support volunteering in accordance with the human resource needs of the country. In developing its policies and strategies, the government should work in partnership with the key stakeholders, including the voluntary and private sectors. The policy should also include an establishment of budget lines within the Government structure for funding effective infrastructure to facilitate volunteering initiatives.

•Legal Protection: For the establishment and funding of non-profit and voluntary groups, a legal provision to ensure due protection for individuals who wish to volunteer their time as is the case for paid labor is essential.

•Tax Incentives: Provision of tax incentives would encourage the setting up and funding of volunteer schemes in all sectors of the society.

•Focal Unit: A focal unit with overall responsibilities for promoting, managing and coordinating voluntary services and liasing with voluntary organisations, government agencies, and the private sector would greatly enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of voluntary services. This will also facilitate recruitment processes for both national and international volunteers, processing of visa etc. This unit could also be responsible for evaluating the effectiveness and relevance of volunteers’ services. For this purpose, an agency like the NDVS could be designated as the focal agency.

•Special Provisions: Creating provisions for civil servants to take time off for voluntary service, for a short period of time, with recognition for the services with a points system for their promotion would be helpful.

Promoting Youth Volunteering

Demographic changes in some regions are resulting in an alienation of young people with concomitant social problems. Such situations drive the youth to anti-social movements. In Nepal, it has been reported that most of the youth from the remote areas are involved in Maoist Insurgency, as they have no other options. Engaging in voluntary activities could divert their minds towards more productive activities. This will also be a vehicle for the youth to acquire both technical and life skills. Moreover, evidence suggests that people who start to volunteer at a young age continue to do so throughout their lives. Governments should therefore take thisopportunity by promoting volunteering among young people through:

•Promoting volunteering within the education and youth services by developing specific programs to encourage youth volunteering. The policy should be to recruit fresh graduates for volunteers’ services.

•Including volunteerism within the curriculum of social studies in schools. Camping can be organized for students during vacations for practical experience.

•Developing systems to recognise and accredit volunteering, which can be used for their future studies or career.

•Working with the media and other stakeholders to present a more attractive, up-to-date image of volunteering.

•Establishment of an information system on voluntary services.

•Establishment of a desk in the Nepalese Embassies of certain countries would help tap expatriate volunteers.

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Raising Public Awareness

Governments can help raise public awareness about the value of volunteering and the opportunities to volunteer by:

•Carrying out or funding basic research on the level of volunteering and its contribution to society in social and in economic terms.

•Publicising volunteers’ activities and contributions in the development field, as well as profiles of voluntary organisations.

•Working with the broadcast and print media to promote a positive image of volunteering and the opportunities for involvement.

•Harnessing the power of information technology to signpost available volunteering opportunities for people.

•Recognising the contribution of volunteers through an awards system applicable to the society concerned.

•Organising high profile events or ‘days’ to publicise the work of volunteers.

Private Sector’s Role in Volunteering

In recent years the private sector has begun to take an interest in volunteering. Both as part of a broader community investment strategy and as a means of staff development, businesses have been developing schemes to support their staff in voluntary activities in the community. Such schemes take on a variety of forms, such as, time off with pay for their staff to volunteer; financial support or assistance in kind; a

company-volunteering scheme; and recognizing and supporting existing staff involvement with non-profit organisations. Whatever the model, evidence suggests that employer-supported volunteering increases staff skills, morale, and loyalty towards the company and enhances the standing of business within the local community.

Influencing Organizations

Governments should encourage volunteer sending bilateral governments, international organizations such as the United Nations and the World Bank to develop their own strategies on volunteering, which might cover:

•interaction with organisations with a large volunteer component

•involvement of volunteers in carrying out their own programs

•development of schemes to encourage their staff to volunteer