VSO Ethiopia

VSO Ethiopia Youth Programmes

Voluntary Service Overseas (VSO) is a leading international non-governmental organisation, working through committed volunteers, both national and international, as well as with governmental, regional and local partners to build capacity, improve the quality of and access to essential basic services.

VSO has been working in Ethiopia since 1998 after being invited by the Ministry of Education of the Government of Ethiopia to support the education Arabia sector. Since then, the scale and scope of VSO Ethiopia’s programmes has expanded and in 2012 VSO Ethiopia developed its first five year Country Strategic Plan (CSP 2012-2017).

Where we work

Mekelle

Assosa

Addis Ababa

Hawassa

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The VSO Ethiopia office is located in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. We work in the regions of Hawassa, Dire Dawa, Assosa and Mekelle.

Dire Dawa

VSO Ethiopia’s Vision and Mission VSO Ethiopia envisions ‘an Ethiopia without poverty, where all individuals and communities are able to realise their own potential and that of Ethiopia, and improve their quality of life’.

Our task is to bring people together to work in partnerships, share skills, knowledge, and experience and build capacities to contribute to the fight against poverty among women, children and people with disabilities living in the most disadvantaged regions.

We believe that can encourage the youth to realize their full potential and become active citizens in society with our following programmes: 1. National Citizenship Service (NCS) 2. International Citizenship Service (ICS) 3. Youth Empowerment and Enterprise (YEE)

Our Guiding Principles • • •

Respect Shared endeavour Openness to learning

Our Values People are the best agents of change We are passionate about putting the right people in the right place at the right time. Our people transform lives and communities, including their own.

We deeply respect the courage and commitment such profound change requires.

Knowledge is our most powerful tool Change is best brought about by people sharing knowledge. This is why we are committed to ongoing, reciprocal learning.

Using knowledge in the right way helps us engage people, advocate and influence others at all levels.

Progress is only possible through working together We always work collaboratively with our partners. Our aim is to be as inclusive as possible, listening to all our stakeholders.

We understand that diversity makes our projects and our organisation stronger.

Working closely with developing communities helps narrow the distance between them and our donor, and is the way of ensuring our projects continue transforming lives over the long term.

By thinking globally, we can change the world The more we act like a global movement, the more influential we will be on the international stage and the greater our ability to eradicate poverty. Local contributions from VSO and all our partners come together with a common goal and one voice that is confident and consistent across the world.

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Our Work Designing impactful youth-led programmes to increase the civic engagement and participation of young people in their communities

We work with communities and partners who value the contribution of young people. Together we aim to provide opportunities for young people to be equipped with the skills, knowledge and ability needed to engage their peers and catalyse community participation, ensuring that development is not just the preserve of ‘external experts’.

Strengthening the capacity of civil society organisations

We strive to improve the human and institutional capacity of civil society organisations (CSOs) through active youth participation.

Personal and social development of youth

We want young people to develop a good understanding of the social, cultural, political and economic situation of the targeted grass root level community and play active roles in addressing the factors that put the community in disadvantageous situations.

Creating and encouraging Young people will be able to get employability opportunities employment opportunities by enhancing for youth job related skills and experience and expanding their opportunities through the various youth development programmes VSO Ethiopia sponsors.

Creating advocates for civil society organisations

Building networks and partnerships

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Young people who are involved in our programmes are able to see the interventions of CSOs and international non-governmental organisations.

They will therefore be a great force to promote the sector in future.

Our Approaches and Goals VSO Ethiopia’s programmes strive to:

VSO’s programming approach:

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Support government and civil society organisations to realise the importance of engaging Ethiopian citizens in national volunteering programmes in order to contribute towards the development of Ethiopia.

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Strengthen and promote national volunteering for development to encourage participation and social responsibility of all citizens.

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Support government and civil society organisations to improve the access to and utilisation of quality health, education and livelihood services.

TARGET GROUPS

COLLABORATORS

Youth programming Youth volunteering Youth empowerment and research Youth engagement Youth participation Youth economic strengthening Gender and social inclusion

To strengthen VSO Ethiopia’s youth programmes we focus on an asset-based approach for youth empowerment and development as illustrated in the diagram below.

YOUTH INITIATORS

Focus on working with and for youth towards effective development

Working for youth as BENEFICIARIES

Engaging with youth as PARTNERS

Supporting youth as LEADERS

Participatory practices

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VSO Ethiopia’s Strategies •

Establish partnerships with and strengthen the capacity of civil society organisations.

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Improve institutional frameworks and high impact modalities of youth engagement in the development of Ethiopia.

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Develop a flexible, accessible, convenient, motivating, and enabling environment for national volunteering.

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Build and strengthen networking, collaboration and partnership arrangements with a range of stakeholders and regional institutions.

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Promote a culture of volunteering and active citizenship amongst young people.

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reate tailored, innovative and holistic C programmes that add value for VSO Ethiopia’s overarching health, education and livelihood prorammes.

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Broaden funding bases and grow financial resources available for youth programmes.

VSO Ethiopia’s Sponsored Services • • • • • • • • • • • • • 6

Volunteering opportunities Mentorship opportunities Experience sharing Leadership and management Volunteer management system Gender and social inclusion Sexual and reproductive health Other trainings on global issues Internship opportunities Training opportunities Life skills Resource mobilisation Financial management

Accomplishments of Youth-Based Initiatives •

We have improved the development outcomes at community level. By working with communities and partners who valued the contribution of young people, national volunteers have been able to use their skills, knowledge and ability to engage their peers and catalyse community participation.

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VSO Ethiopia has had an impact on the personal and social development of young people. 128 national volunteers have developed a good understanding of social, cultural, political, and economic realities and applied that new-found knowledge to the communities they served.

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VSO Ethiopia has secured the signing of Memorandum of Understanding with the Ministry of Youth and Sports as well as a partnership agreement with the African Union.

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We have increased young people’s chances of employment through our NCS project, where over the course of ten months young people working as volunteers also gained relevant work experience.

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Through the NCS project, VSO was able to start the development of a regional volunteering policy, which is still ongoing. The first consultative workshop was conducted in Mekelle and partners showed interest to develop a system to manage volunteers and volunteering projects. We aim to scale this up to federal level. Discussions with the Ministry of Youth and Sports are underway.

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+251 11618 7445 vsoeth@ethionet.et www.vsointernational.org

VSO 17025

VSO Ethiopia P.O. Box 23531 Addis Ababa, Ethiopia