11 July 2008

Kiev, Ukraine: Building civil society in the former Eastern bloc countries presents some unique challenges. Along with local partners, UNV and UNDP are working together to boost the role of volunteerism there.

There are already many success stories. In Croatia, the International Year of Volunteers in 2001 was instrumental in setting up a network of volunteer centres and developing national legislation on volunteerism. A programme to introduce vocational skills to unemployed Serbian youth via volunteer social enterprises has shown promise too.

And in Ukraine, UNV's youth social inclusion programme will bridge the gap between rural and urban and help close the 'digital divide' by introducing youth to information technology. The project will run in partnership with UNDP, NGOs such as Ukraine 3000 and Alternative-V, electronics company Intel and the Ukraine Government.

UNV programme officers and headquarters staff therefore met with UNDP and civil society colleagues in Kiev in early July to discuss youth and volunteerism in Eastern Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), and to lay the foundations for future cooperation. Proceedings were introduced by Francis O'Donnell, himself a former UNV volunteer and now Resident Representative of UNDP in Ukraine.

Probably Ukraine's largest gathering to date of UNV personnel, the workshop titled 'Advancing youth inclusion, civic engagement and volunteerism towards the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals', was co-funded by the European Union (EU). Mr. O'Donnell noted that volunteerism had "phenomenal scope for enlivening people at the grassroots", and that the community-based approach to local development in Ukraine, funded by the EU and implemented by UNV and UNDP, was the EU's largest activity there.

The discussions were enhanced by representatives from civil society and the private sector. Tatiana Nanaieva from Intel presented on the company's volunteer teaching scheme for youth in Ukraine; Agnes Uherecczky, director at the Association of Volunteer Service Organisations in Brussels led another discussion on youth inclusion and voluntary action.

With a willingness to be proactive, UNV and UNDP delegates agreed that much could be done at the grassroots by working alongside civil society organizations and 'non-traditional' partners. It was crucial, however, to foster local ownership and understand local conditions.

Another area of discussion was the problem of countries becoming too dependent on donor funding. As international donors began to wind down their commitments in the region, sustaining the momentum of volunteering initiatives would again require special efforts and innovative solutions.

The Kiev workshop concluded with recommendations for broader cooperation, such as using coordinated UNV and UNDP research while negotiating with governments, and strengthening joint advocacy projects. Delegates also agreed to form a UNDP-UNV online community of practice to enhance their joint efforts towards common goals.