VSO www'vso'org'uk

1
VSO? www.vso.org.uk

• VSO is an international development
  volunteering organisation established in 1958.
  It is made up of VSO international and a
  federation of national VSOs (UK, Canada,
  Philippines, Kenya/Uganda, India, N/Land and soon
  Ireland), sharing the same vision, purpose, and
  values.

2

• Volunteering (VSOs Niche)
• VSOs approach to volunteering has changed
  dramatically over the past 49 years, and we
  continue to expand upon our experience of
  developing and supporting volunteer programmes
  and partnerships.
• VSO now has a number of new initiatives in order
  to increase the overall impact of volunteering
  STV, NV, LINKS, Southern Volunteering Prog, Find
  a vol., Business partnerships, Employee
  volunteering and Diaspora Volunteering

3
Diaspora Volunteering Initiative DVI2005 Sept
2007

• Through the Diaspora Volunteering Initiative, VSO
  supports and promotes the mobilization of
  Diaspora communities to actively contribute,
  through volunteering, to fighting poverty and
  disadvantage in their countries or continents of
  heritage.
• VSO shares its experience, skills and resources
  in partnership with Diaspora organisations in
  order to build the capacity of the organisations
  to develop and manage their own volunteering
  programmes.

4

• VSO appreciates that Diaspora organisations and
  individuals are already actively engaged in
  supporting communities in the Diaspora and in
  their countries of heritage and are increasingly
  expanding their capacity to contribute to global
  development through volunteering and skills
  transfer.
• The DVI expands on these existing commitments and
  gives individuals from Diaspora communities a
  unique opportunity to work together, to develop
  and share valuable skills and to make a practical
  contribution where it is needed in local
  communities.

5

• The Diaspora Volunteering Initiative works in
  creative and flexible partnerships with Diaspora
  organisations.
• VSO supports Diaspora organisations throughout
  the research, pilot and implementation phases of
  their international volunteering programmes,
  providing technical financial support or both.
  Support is given in the UK and overseas (through
  our programme offices)

6
Examples of Successes

• 1. Programmes are owned by Diaspora
  communities but needs driven from overseas.
  Diaspora programmes/agenda have not been subsumed
  in VSOs agenda
• Three of twelve VSOUK Diaspora partners have
  developed and are implementing structured
  volunteering development programmes. In two
  years and with very limited resources, they have
  sent over 110 volunteers to overseas placements
  in four countries Ghana, India, Sierra Leone
  Cameroon. Their volunteers receive pre-departure
  training in development context/issues, in skills
  for working in development and on their return
  are supported to engage in Global Education
  within their communities

7

• 3. Eight of the twelve Diaspora partners have
  completed their research overseas
• 4. All Twelve of VSOUK partners have
  completed/are in the process of completing their
  volunteering policies, volunteer management
  systems and programme focus health, educ,
  secure livelihoods, disability, HIV AIDS and
  Participation governance
• 5. All Twelve VSOUK Diaspora partners work
  through direct partnerships with around 50
  overseas organisations. But impact of their work
  cut across nearly 250 organisations.
• 6. Diaspora partners to VSO International work
  in 16 countries across four continents (VSO
  Canada VSO Kenya work with Diaspora from
  Guyana, Philippines Sudan)

8

• Over Twenty Diaspora organisations (including VSO
  partners) have benefited from VSOs training
  programmes (VMS, FR, etc)
• Reciprocity Through the Commonwealth
  fellowship, VSO facilitated two overseas partners
  of UK Diaspora organisations to spend three
  months each sharing learning and experience in
  the UK.
• Formation of a strong group, made up of
  Diaspora volunteering organisations. They operate
  on the basis of shared values around volunteering
  and development and shared experiences of
  challenging funding and technical support
  environment. They provide peer support and work
  together to influence development agenda and
  thinking especially around the Diaspora. They
  also challenge existing belief that the Diaspora
  is complex, chaotic and full of conflict.

9
Some Challenges

• 1. Funders and international development
  environment has little understanding of the
  Diaspora and how they work and why they work the
  way they do
• 2. VSO is at the cutting edge of a new and
  flexible way of working (between mainstream
  development and smaller Diaspora organisations)
  so have had to invest heavily in trust building,
  morale raising, managing expectations,
  establishing new power dynamics, in capacity
  building, etc. And these are not areas you can
  easily sell to donors
• 3. The Global debate linking national
  policies to migration and development is very
  high level, exclusive and is yet to be fully
  grasped by a lot of the Diaspora

10

• Managing the expectations Diaspora organisations
  have of VSO
• Demand for VSOs support is way higher than VSO
  can provide
• Often, the mismatch between the capacity of
  Diaspora organisations and the programmes they
  seek to implement

11
Some Recommendations

• 1. Any form/type of engagement with the Diaspora
  must be empowering should not only be for the
  purpose of ticking Diversity boxes.
• 2. Diaspora programmes and agenda must be
  recognised and valued and should not be
  marginalized or subsumed in other agendas
• 3. Increased funding opportunities that cover
  capacity building and core costs such as office
  equipment, rent, staff time etc. A lot of
  pressure is placed on the Diaspora to deliver
  quality programmes at costs that are far, far
  less than for mainstream organisations. Already
  the Diaspora self-tax to fund their work so
  asking them to further invest their time is
  unacceptable.

12

• 4. Donors must be more open minded to new ways of
  working.
• 5. Policy environment/makers in migration and
  development must redefine how they currently
  engage with the Diaspora and must be seen to
  accept act on Diaspora views. More often
  consultation is a box ticking activity.
• 6. Policy makers must resist the temptation of
  working with just the Diaspora organisations that
  they feel are easy experience shows they link
  more with the yes yes Diaspora, i.e. those
  interested more in organising meetings,
  consultations etc where the Diaspora are invited
  to be talked at rather than to be heard.
• 7. Need for a space for constructive engagement
  between different stakeholders and the Diaspora

13

• THE END
• Alache Malia Ode (Ms)
• VSO DVI Partnership Manger
• Alache.ode_at_vso.org.uk
• 020 8780 7408 - DL