In light of the community quarantine being implemented in the country because of covid-19 outbreak, PNVSCA held a virtual meeting with the France Volontaires (FV) Program management and five (5) of their French volunteers deployed at various Life Project 4 Youth (LP4Y) centers in the country on August 5, 2020 from 3 pm to 5 pm. The online session aimed to: (a) get updates on the volunteers’ status during the pandemic especially on how they are coping with the situation in their places of assignment and plans of the FV on the implementation of their programs in the country; and (b) foster camaraderie between and among the PNVSCA staff, FV representatives and the volunteers.
In his opening remarks, PNVSCA Executive Director Donald James D. Gawe thanked FV and LP4Y volunteers for honoring the Agency’s invitation and for deciding to stay in the country at this time when assistance is most needed. Having heard of the volunteers’ self-introduction at the beginning of the session, ED Gawe also expressed appreciation of the volunteers’ versatility in learning sign language to be able to connect or relate with the community partners which he said would be a good skill for international volunteers to acquire.
The brief sharing session revolved around topics on volunteers’ experiences and the challenges they encountered especially at the onset of the pandemic. All five (5) volunteers who are deployed in Cagayan de Oro City (2), Payatas in Quezon City (2) and Tondo, Manila (1) expressed satisfaction on the initial results of their assignment as they see positive changes among the out-of-school (OSY) youth beneficiaries who have to undergo the 9-month professional training for entrepreneurship that will mold them to become autonomous or self-reliant, responsible and mentors at the end the training. The volunteers also shared that they feel happy interacting with the OSYs’ families and their communities. On the other hand, they could also feel the adverse effect of covid-19 pandemic in the lives of the OSY beneficiaries. Sixtine Benault and Theo Morice who are based in Cagayan de Oro City noted that the trained OSY might find difficulty in applying their new skills given that venturing into business or applying as workers in restaurants and resorts might be difficult given the economic downturn.
On possible gender concerns, the volunteers in all three LP4Y centers shared that there are more women beneficiaries than men, especially in Tondo and Payatas LP4Y centers where the program focus is on young mothers. To support the young mothers, each of the two (2) centers have a nursery that take care of the babies while the mothers undergo classes and trainings.
The meeting culminated with two suggestions to further improve international volunteer service programs. First is to strengthen coordination between PNVSCA and international volunteer service organizations like the France Volontaires even during crises situations. The volunteers cited their difficulty in navigating the various policies of the government pertaining to the quarantine during this period of the pandemic. Second is the need for concerned organizations like the government agencies and perhaps the LGUs to help sustain the efforts introduced by the LP4Y. Example for this is facilitating the employment opportunities for the OSYs upon completion of the training or providing livelihood or business start-ups.
ED Gawe closed the session by thanking the volunteers for their time and France Volontaires, led by its National Representative Nanette Repalpa, for continuously coordinating the Program and for overseeing the volunteers’ welfare, safety and health.
Life Projects for Youth (LP4Y) is one of the NGO partners of FV that is dedicated to the professional and social integration of young adults living in extreme poverty and exclusion.
For inquiries, please contact:
Program Coordination, Monitoring and Evaluation Division
Philippine National Volunteer Service Coordinating Agency (PNVCSA)
Ground Floor, Philippine Sugar Center
North Avenue, Diliman, Quezon City
Phone: +63 (02) 3453 4726, +63 (02) 8927 6847
Email: [email protected] Website: http://pnvsca.gov.ph
Facebook: facebook.com/PNVSCA