VOLUNTEERS. Some of the 50 volunteers trained by the Philippine National Volunteers Coordinating Agency and the US Peace Corps interact with each other during their workshop last week. A US Embassy statement on Thursday (Oct. 3, 2024) said that the US Peace Corps and PNVSCA have partnered in strengthening the Philippine’s culture of volunteerism. (Photo courtesy of the US Embassy)
CEBU CITY – The Philippine National Volunteers Service Coordinating Agency (PNVSCA) has partnered with the US Peace Corps to strengthen the country’s culture of volunteerism as they prepared more than 50 peace volunteers in Cebu City.
“This initiative is one of the many collaborations with the United States and Philippine key stakeholders, including government agencies, academic institutions, and civil society organizations, on volunteerism,” PNVSCA Executive Director Donald James Gawe said in a statement released by the US Embassy on Thursday.
The partnership, Gawe said, eyes a “more unified and institutionalized approach that will mobilize volunteers towards nation-building.”
Elizabeth Jung, specialist at the US Peace Corps Host Country Volunteerism Program, said they provided examples of volunteerism, national service, and service-learning from the US during the workshop in Cebu City last week to serve as models in instilling the spirit of volunteerism in the Philippines.
“The US Peace Corps is proud to support this workshop in partnership with PNVSCA. We thank all the partners representing various sectors and different provinces for coming together to discuss the future of volunteerism in the Philippines,” Jung said in a statement.
The corps, she said, hopes that “the energy and collaborative spirit we were privileged to witness continues as participants return home.”
The Philippine Volunteer Service Program is a national initiative led by the PNVSCA that promotes volunteerism as a development strategy for nation-building.
The US Peace Corps is the US government’s premier volunteer organization and has supported Filipino communities across the country for more than 60 years.
More than 9,300 American volunteers have served as co-teachers, youth development facilitators, environmental experts, and in various other roles requested by host communities. (PNA)
