REGIONAL CONSULTATIONON THE INTEGRATION OF

VOLUNTEERISM AS APOWERFUL MEANS

FOR THE ACHIEVEMENT OFTHE SDGS IN LATINAMERICA AND THE

CARIBBEAN

F I N A L R E P O R T O N T H E R E S U L T SO F T H E C O N S U L T A T I O N

A P R I L 2 5 T H , 2 0 1 9

I N T R O D U C T I O N

On April 25, 2019, the side event"Regional Consultation on theIntegration of Volunteerism as apowerful means for theachievement of the SDGs in LatinAmerica and the Caribbean” washeld in Santiago, Chile during theForum of the Countries of LatinAmerica and the Caribbean onSustainable Development[1],organized by the United NationsVolunteers (UNV) program withthe support of the EconomicCommission for Latin America andthe Caribbean (ECLAC). The 2030 Agenda for SustainableDevelopment explicitly recognizesvolunteer groups as key actors toachieve the seventeen SustainableDevelopment Goals (SDGs).Following the launch of the 2030Agenda in 2015, the GeneralAssembly of the United Nationsadopted the Plan of Action forIntegrating Volunteerism into the2030 Agenda, through ResolutionA/RES/70/129[2] "Integratingvolunteering into peace anddevelopment: the plan of actionfor the next decade and beyond".

The United Nations Volunteers(UNV) programme, in its role asSecretariat of the Action Plan, hasorganized the regionalconsultation on volunteering withthe aim of providing a space forinterested parties to discussevidence, data and approaches onvolunteering in the region ofLatin America and the Caribbean,and share good practices in termsof promotion and integration ofvolunteering into the 2030Agenda. The results of theregional consultation will feed theGlobal Synthesis Report for theGlobal Technical Meeting (GTM)on Volunteering that will takeplace during the High-levelPolitical Forum on SustainableDevelopment (HLPF) in July 2020in New York. During the regional consultation,about fifty representatives fromcivil society, public sector, privatesector, academia and the UnitedNations participated. A high-levelpanel was held, made up ofrepresentatives from differentsectors and moderated  by UNVLAC Regional Manager LitaPaparoni.

[1] https://foroalc2030.cepal.org/2019/es/informacion-evento[2] https://undocs.org/es/A/RES/70/129

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PANEL DISCUSSION: “UNLOCKING VOLUNTEERISM’S GREATPOTENTIAL TO ACCELERATE SDGS PROGRESS IN LATIN

AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN”

Ms. Emma MorleyO P E N I N G R E M A R K S

Chief of Volunteer Advisory Services Section,United Nations Volunteers Programme HQ

In her opening speech, Emma explained theimportance of the Resolution of the UN GeneralAssembly of December 2018 on "Volunteeringfor the 2030 Agenda for SustainableDevelopment"[3], co-sponsored by 124 MemberStates, out of which 22 are from the region ofLatin America and the Caribbean. She explainedthat the Plan of Action to integratevolunteering in the areas of peace,development and the SDGs is a collaborativeeffort between various stakeholders interestedin volunteering, not exclusively among MemberStates. Working together with the privatesector, academia, civil society and volunteerorganizations allows to join efforts in producingevidence, best practices and research thatcontribute to improve the recognition ofvolunteering and maximize the potentialimpact of volunteering for sustainabledevelopment. In this context, Emma pointed out thatstakeholders will meet in New York during theHigh-level Political Forum in 2020 in a globaltechnical meeting that aims to reimaginevolunteering for the 2030 Agenda. [3] https://undocs.org/es/A/RES/73/140

Emma clarified, that the 2030 Agendaexplicitly mentions volunteer groups as ameans of implementation to reach the SDGs.Nevertheless, it is important to ask ourselvesif we are maximizing the potential ofvolunteering. Reference is made to thepersisting stereotypes that dominatevolunteering (for example, considering it anact of charity), which does not allow us torecognize its potential as a complementingforce to development efforts.  In Latin America and the Caribbean, Emmaadded, most of the volunteering is informaland many times invisible, without access toresources, organizations and benefits. Thereis no clear evidence on how the potential ofvolunteering for inclusion is being harnessedand as an integral mechanism to help achievethe SDGs.

The 2030 Agenda explicitly mentionsvolunteer groups as a means of

implementation to reach the SDGs;nevertheless, it is important to askourselves if we are maximizing the

potential of volunteering.

SUMMARIES OF THE INTERVENTIONS

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Ms. Piera Zuccherin

Regional Programme Analyst for Volunteer Advisory Services Section,UNV LAC Regional Office

The regional report has been prepared based on sevendifferent analysis on the state of volunteering in theworld along with other official sources; although theinformation is very limited and therefore the analysisis not exhaustive, it is a good starting point to fuel thediscussion. According to UNV, volunteers worldwide correspondto 109 million full-time workers, of which 13.3 millionare based in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC).More than 60% corresponds to informal volunteeringand women represent the majority of volunteers in theregion. Piera presented several examples on how volunteeringcontributed to the SDGs in LAC. Regarding theintegration of volunteering in national strategies andpolicies, Piera mentioned that 16 countries in theregion have frameworks that regulate, promote andprotect volunteerism. Regarding the measurement ofvolunteering, she mentioned that in the region,according to the ILO, only 16 countries of the 33 LACcountries measured voluntary work in officialstatistics since 2007 and 2017.

The conclusions of the report recommendincorporating volunteering in all national and

regional policies and strategies that address youthissues. In addition, the report endorses protecting

and supporting the millions of people who volunteer,especially at the local level. One final challenge is toclose the data gap on volunteering, along with the

generation of evidence and analysis on the powerfulcontributions and impact of volunteers towards the

SDGs.

Presentation of the Regional Synthesis Report of the Planof Action to Integrate Volunteering into the 2030 Agenda

in Latin America and the Caribbean

The Government of Paraguay was represented byMinister Pereira, who commented on how thelaw-making process initiated in 2001 at theinitiative of a group of civil society organizations(CSOs), and ended with the enactment of theNational Volunteering Law in 2018. This newregulation has authorized the constitution of theNational Volunteer Council, which facilitatescoordination between different institutions, suchas the Technical Secretariat of the Presidency,the National Youth Secretariat, the NationalEmergency Secretariat, the Ministry of SocialHealth, the Office of the First Lady and sevenCSOs. He also shared the experience of Paraguay andthe professional volunteering program called"Arovia", which implements an innovativemethodology connecting public policies withvoluntary work. It mobilizes professionals todistricts prioritized by the needs established inthe National Development Plan, creating spacesfor interaction and social inclusion amongvolunteers and municipal, departmental anddistrict councils. This interconnectivityempowers the communities of the mostvulnerable sectors of the country, and throughvolunteering, the gaps and inequalities resultingfrom the lack of access to goods and services inthese prioritized areas, were successfullyreduced.

Mr. Carlos AlbertoPereira Olmedo

Ministry-Executive Secretary for the TechnicalSecretariat for Economic and Social Development

Planning, Government of Paraguay.

Through volunteering, the gaps and inequalitiesresulting from the lack of access to goods and

services in these prioritized areas, weresuccessfully reduced.

He states that volunteering humanizes and transforms people into more committed and competent citizens; ii) Inaddition to individual benefits, volunteering is good for the society as a whole as it gives a sense of belonging,generates links and spaces for social innovation, reaction and resolution of collective problems, and above all socialcohesion. In short, it generates more resilient and more capable societies. Therefore, the INJUV generates initiatives that support volunteering and a volunteer culture in Chile. Through theprogramme "Live your parks", young people from Chile are mobilized and are part of transformative and educationalexperiences, where networks are generated, and a series of projects are conducted in favor of environmentalprotection. The experience of the Pacific Alliance has been exchanged with the countries that represent it, with theregional dream of installing a transboundary program of young people working in unprotected wilderness areas. It hasbeen extended to other topics, such as violence prevention, cultural heritage, mass events and this year COP25, inwhich volunteerism opens up significant spaces for participation, not for charity, but as a civic heritage of all citizens. Among the future challenges of Chile is the measurement and creation of a national volunteer map, the approval of aspecial law, and the certification of skills acquired through volunteering.

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Mr. Arnaud Peral

Resident Coordinator of theUnited Nations System in Ecuador

Arnaud started reflecting that, even when volunteering is recognized as animportant medium in the 2030 Agenda and as an instrument of cooperation,the volunteering work on the national scale is still insufficient. In addition, hestates that it is still difficult to have a common understanding of volunteering,transcending its perception as a charity or a contract that underestimates thevolunteer's work. Furthermore, he highlighted the importance of recognizingvolunteering as a mechanism for building resilience to environmental,economic and social shocks as reflected in the 2030 Agenda. In the context of current transformation processes, where the future of work,populations, and climate change is discussed, volunteering plays an importantrole. In addition, he pointed out the importance of incorporating mutuallearning processes into volunteer programs, to enhance the development ofmutual skills and the acquisition of technical knowledge for professional work,taking advantage of the different views on the forms of work that give rise toinnovation.

The role of volunteering inlocalizing SDGs and in thepromotion of citizenparticipation at acommunity level.

Mr. Mirko Salfate

Director of the National Instituteof Youth, Government of Chile.

Mirko presented a thorough analysis of the Chilean youth, which, accordingto his intervention, lives in a paradox. Despite being the generation that hasreceived the most benefits from the State in economic terms along withaccess to services, it is the generation that values democracy or institutionsthe least, and that participates least in democratic processes. It is ageneration that has faced good indicators of quality of life and humandevelopment, but at the same time presents mental health problems andsuicides, high rates of alcohol and drug consumption, disarticulation andindividualism. Despite this, he says that certain social causes mobilize youngpeople, such as the gender equality agenda and climate change, where manyyoung people have contributed to change the country's political scene.

Experience of volunteeringfrom the Pacific Alliance, andthe importance of theinclusion of volunteeringfrom the South-SouthCooperation and TriangularCooperation.

From his perspective, the region must advance in the construction of a greaterand better social fabric, with a stronger, empowered civil society, from which a

more resilient, cohesive and happier society can be built.

He stressed that volunteering becomes a fundamental part of the harmoniousdevelopment of societies, by two essential elements: i) Volunteering is goodfor those who practice it, by giving them transformative experiences thatredirect vocation and reaffirm convictions. Volunteering offers spaces ofawareness and develops soft skills such as leadership, teamwork and problemsolving, so valued now in the labour markets.

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Mr. Arturo TorresGutiérrez

Secretary of Human and SocialDevelopment of the MunicipalGovernment of Querétaro, Mexico

In Querétaro, the Law of Volunteering has been promoted to facilitate workwith vulnerable groups since 2006. They currently work with 20universities, mainly in programs for the rehabilitation of public spaces,access to education and improvement of housing conditions. From hisexperience, volunteering is a link that allows social cohesion and thereconstruction of the social fabric. The presentation highlighted how his local government promoted programswith a focus on social equality and inclusion to leave no one behind,guaranteeing the participation of many young people, including vulnerablepeople in contexts with few resources or opportunities. From his experience, the role of volunteering is evident as a link that allowssocial cohesion and the reconstruction of the social fabric. He explainedhow the lives of many people were improved through volunteering, reachingmany families in situations of high vulnerability. Currently, they work in 50 communities and contribute with all theresources to facilitate this space for young volunteers. Through federalagencies, they signed agreements that allow local authorities to carry outtraining courses, for example, for elderly adults who did not have theopportunity to complete their basic education. Arturo reaffirmed theenormous potential of volunteering to include certain groups and ensuresocial inclusion. Volunteer programs provide a motivating energy, andtherefore, more and more volunteers join this initiative.

Engagement of people at a locallevel, especially youth, throughvolunteer work.

Ms. Alessandra ScalioniBrito

Researcher on Work andPerformance. IBGE, Brasil.

To share Brazil's experience, Alessandra joined the panel explaining that itwas in 2012 when the measurement of work in its broadest form began to bediscussed, and the measurement of volunteer work was integrated into theHousehold Survey, following the recommendations of the InternationalLabor Organization (ILO). According to the definition of the ILO,volunteering is an activity of at least one hour a week, which is notcompulsory, without remuneration and which is not carried out within afamily context, i.e. where the service is provided towards third parties. Alessandra concluded by stating that there are still aspects to improve in thesurvey, and that it will be important to be able to capture the data ofinformal volunteering, to obtain data that reflect an accurate picture ofreality. In Brazil, said Alessandra, there is an erroneous tendency to consideronly the type of volunteerism that is carried out through formalorganizations.

The measurement of volunteeringas a key issue to demonstrate thegreat impact of volunteeringtowards the achievement of the2030 Agenda and its 17 SDGs.

The survey results of 2017 show that there were 7.4 million volunteersover the age of 14 in Brazil. Most of these people were women aged 50years and older, with higher education. 90% of these people worked asvolunteers through formal organizations, which means that informal

volunteer work is still not being measured.

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Ms. Isabel Ramos

Vice-Rector of the University ofthe Latin American Faculty ofSocial Sciences in Ecuador

Isabel Ramos affirmed that when looking for references aboutvolunteering, there is the challenge for social sciences and research, as itis important to position volunteers within the context of the 2030Agenda, linking systematic thinking with volunteering, development,citizenship and participation. In addition, it is important to conceptualizevolunteerism due to the differences that exist in our understanding ofvolunteering and to link the notions to the different cultural contexts andorganizational tissues. The academia, and above all the social sciences, should work to providedata that allows for an initial analysis. It is important to advance incomparing different experiences and types of participation that aredemanded from the society and are legislated from the States. Therecognition of good practices can support the development of indicators,which which are useful for the development of a methodology to measurethe impact of volunteering. The presentation concluded by pointing out the need to form technicalteams for the management of volunteering in different areas, andreaffirmed the importance of reflecting in the generation of data so thatvolunteering can be promoted as a set of valuable experiences tocontribute to a more just and equal world, where nobody is left behind.

How academia can support theimprovement of information onvolunteering, recognizingvolunteering towards theachievement of the SDGs, inparticular with the elaborationof evidence in the countries ofthe South

Mr. Jesús AndrésZarate

Coordinator of InstitutionalIncidence, Center for Action ofCorporate Social Responsibility inGuatemala

Jesús offered the perspective of the private sector on the involvement ofvolunteering in the implementation of the 2030 Agenda. CentraRSE'sstrategy is aligned to the SDGs and is made up by more than 120 companiesin different sectors, where volunteering plays an important part. CentraRSE invites their allied companies to have less assistance practicesand be more strategic for incidence. To move forward with this issue,CentraRSE has teamed up with academia to generate alliances of the privatesector with other stakeholders in advancing the SDGs. In addition, theyswitched to a decentralized training model to create volunteer programswithin local communities. He also reaffirmed the importance ofcommunication, to make the contribution of the private sector visiblethrough good practices that also include volunteering. Among the challenges, Jesús stressed that the fluctuation of governmentsand the different levels of their collaboration with the private sector, make itdifficult to implement long-term strategies. This challenge needs to besolved by working together with different allies to leave no one behind.

The role of the private sector toachieve the 2030 Agenda, and thesolutions it offers for thepromotion of corporatevolunteering for sustainabledevelopment.

There is a need to recognize the efforts of volunteers through the promotionof certificates or some type of official validation that verifies the learning,

improvement of skills and experience acquired by volunteers while providingtheir valuable services.

What is not measured, does not exist

C O N T R I B U T I O N S F R O M T H E P A R T I C I P A N T S I N T H E A U D I E N C E

TECHO shared their experience onmeasuring the impact of theirvolunteers' contributions.According to their data, 94% of thepeople interviewed (TECHOvolunteers) consider that theymake a concrete contribution tothe SDGs. It was emphasized thatit is important to create a spacewhere the volunteer not onlyimplements, in a utilitarian vision,but can furthermore participate inidentifying challenges, as well asnew indicators and goals.It is important that CVs do notonly reflect formal professionalwork, but also volunteerexperiences, providing services tosociety.

We must take into account thedouble-triple working days whenwe analyze volunteering from agender perspective.The importance of making visiblethe situation of volunteering in theCaribbean -which was notpresented in the panel- waspointed out, along with existingstudies that allow a broaderrepresentation of volunteering inthe region.Online platforms are considered acritical tool to extend commitmentand keep people inspired andmotivated.

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F I N A L R E F L E C T I O N S F R O M T H E P A N E L I S T S

Volunteer programs implementedby the government (AROVIAprogram) allow the interactionbetween the real needs ofcommunities and young peoplewho have the chance to offeringtheir talents. The legislativeframework is important to protectvolunteering and voluntaryorganizations.Volunteering is an activity of thecivil society and for the civilsociety; therefore, public policiesshould provide a space for youthparticipation and the role ofvolunteering.

The importance of finding aresearch line on volunteering anddevelopment, where the differentdata that has already beengenerated in different ways can besystematized.It is important to know the causesfor volunteerism and worktogether from different sectors inLatin America, where more womenthan men graduate from secondaryeducation; nevertheless, women donot have the same opportunities asmen in paid work and hence, mightbe forced to volunteer for thisreason. 

C O N C L U S I O N S

After reaffirming, on behalf of the Executive Secretary, the commitment of ECLAC to volunteering,Cielo acknowledges that we are in the process of recognizing the contribution of volunteering inbuilding a stronger social fabric. The different ways in which volunteers can contribute to the 2030Agenda are mentioned. On her closing remarks, the Director highlighted the key role of volunteering as a powerfulaccelerator of the SDGs, generating solutions for the region's main development challenges, suchas inequality, exclusion, poverty, violence and climate change - among others.Cielo mentions the closure of the democratic space in the Latin American and Caribbean region:according to the last Latinobarómetro of 2018, trust among citizens in the LAC region is at thelowest point in its history. This is a negative result when building democratic and peacefulsocieties, which are fundamental for the SDGs. In this context, communication, measurement and compilation of evidence about the powerful roleof volunteering for the implementation of the 2030 Agenda is substantial. Volunteers are alsoessential data collectors, as they can get to remote areas to support efforts on monitoring andevaluating local agendas. It is important to achieve a common definition of volunteering andconvene a standardized way of measuring volunteering, for example, by developing mapping toolsand collaborating with different networks, such as the private sector. This is relevant forimproving the acceptance of volunteering and strengthening its contribution. From her point of view, the gender approach in volunteering is key. An important challenge is tounderstand the challenges at the regional level and that volunteering can make excellentcontributions, always taking into account the characteristics of the region. In a middle-incomeregion, volunteering must strengthen alliances, for example, between corporate, communityvolunteering, and academia through networks. There are many options to promote volunteering,including: the best use of technology, the creation of alliances, social innovation, citizenparticipation, leadership training, and a comprehensive inclusion strategy. She concluded by reaffirming the importance of integrating volunteer groups and mentioning theimportance of discussing this important issue, due to the key role of volunteering as an acceleratorto achieve the 2030 Agenda.

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"Volunteers can, and they actually do, build more and better citizenship,which finally deals with co-creating to solve public problems, problems

that affect us all"

Ms. Cielo Morales

Director of the Latin American and Caribbean Institute forEconomic and Social Planning (ILPES) of ECLAC

This report is an input to regional Plan of Action as requested by UnitedNations General Assembly Resolution A/RES/73/140, and was prepared by theUnited Nations Volunteers programme Regional Office for Latin America and

the Caribbean. For further information on the side event, visithttps://foroalc2030.cepal.org/2019/es/programa/consulta-regional-la-integracion-voluntariado-como-un-medio-poderoso-logro-ods-america.

For more information on the Plan of Action for Latin America and the

Caribbean contact piera.zuccherin@unv.org.