PNVSCA convenes
first batch of LGU volunteerism focal persons’ coordination meeting
Press Release
September 16, 2020
QUEZON CITY – Aimed
at increasing the awareness and appreciation on the importance of
volunteerism as a cross-cutting strategy and as a tool to achieve
local and national development goals, the Philippine National
Volunteer Service Coordinating Agency (PNVSCA) convened more than
110 Volunteerism Focal Persons (VFPs) and technical staff from 76
LGUs across the country in a virtual meeting on 28 August 2020.
In his welcome statement,
PNVSCA Executive Director Donald James D. Gawe expressed gratitude
to the participants and emphasized the importance of the gathering
specifically at this time of the COVID 19 pandemic which needs the
cooperation and participation of everyone to address the various
problems brought about by the pandemic. ED Gawe also mentioned the
common observation that in the Philippines, volunteerism is seen
more as a crisis management and not as a development strategy. Thus,
he hopes that all agencies and institutions will realize the need to
harness the potential role of volunteerism as an alternative
approach to achieve local and national development goals and include
it in their development plans.
To increase the
appreciation of the participants’ appreciation on volunteerism as a
strategy in local development, the following topics were presented
and discussed by PNVSCA volunteer service officers: (1) Volunteerism
101 which provided basic volunteerism concepts, and the related
legislations and policy framework by Mr. Kenneth Siruelo; (2) the
role of PNVSCA in the voluntary sector and its thrusts and
priorities including the current initiatives in response to the
COVID 19 pandemic by Ms. Ela Sarmago; and (3) PNVSCA’s initial
efforts on strengthening sub-national mechanism to mainstream
volunteerism as a development strategy by Ms. Fely Baday.
Professors Alfred Sureta
and Eric de Torres of DILG also discussed IATF’S Recovery Task Force
efforts to engage volunteers in its strategies and priority
activities. DILG also highlighted the significant role of the LGUs
in taking the lead in addressing the pandemic in their respective
localities, and the importance of a coordinated and collaborative
effort between the LGU, CSOs and the public in general to overcome
the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic.
A number of questions and
concerns were raised during the open forum which were responded to
by the PNVSCA and DILG resource speakers; these include the
following: (1) how to establish a volunteer program, (2) what are
the necessary steps and policies that will sustain the
implementation of their existing volunteer programs including the
provision of incentive for the volunteers; (3) what to do when youth
are actively involved as volunteers but their age bracket is not
allowed to go out under the IATF guidelines; among others. As
rejoinder, several LGUs shared their best practices and experiences
on how they institutionalized volunteerism in their regular
programs.
For the participants’
added information and opportunity for learning and networking, they
were invited to attend PNVSCA’s webinar on 3 September 2020 on
Engaging Volunteers during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Some Good
Practices of Local Government Units (LGUs).
ED Gawe ended the meeting
by expressing his appreciation to all the participants and requested
the Volunteerism Focal Persons to suggest agenda items/topics for
the subsequent meetings.
Also present during the
meeting were the Regional Volunteerism Focal Points from 11 NEDA
Regional Offices and BPDA-BARMM.