The first Volunteers Parade takes place in Sofia today. People mostly talk of volunteers when donation, social and environment campaigns are organized.  The National Diabetes Association have decided to promote these selfless acts and organized the Parade. The initiative is part of the Life without Fear Project of the National Youth Program, which finances the event. The goal is for organizations working with volunteers to present their campaigns. Presentations, workshops, photo exhibitions and interactive games will take place during the campaign.

“We are happy that thanks to the National Youth Program a number of young people became volunteers and started working with non-governmental organizations in the country,” Radost Radanova, head of the national youth program at the European Youth Programs Center in Sofia says.  “Young people in Sofia, Ruse, Shumen, Blagoevgrad, Vidin and Burgas are very active. The program supports a number of initiatives and volunteer activities which provide young people with lots of skills. Informal education is very important for us as a financing organization. In the past year we financed 41 volunteer projects from all across the country. 300 young people took part in them, as women were more than men. One of our aims is to include more men aged 18-29 in the campaigns. Financing in the past year totaled some 41 000 euro.  Everyone who worked under these projects receives a certificate for acquired skills. We are working for certifying informal education, as it can be valuable for a number of employers.”

According to an analysis of the National Alliance for Volunteer Action, more than 50 percent of the young people who took part in volunteer campaigns did it in order to help other people. 40 percent pointed out personal motives to join a certain environmental or social campaigns.

20 percent become volunteers in order to gain social experience and make new friends.

English version: Alexander Markov