MAKING IT EASIER FOR PEOPLE TO HELP PEOPLE IN THEIR COMMUNITIES

A) Objectives of the pledge:

Volunteering service is one of the main differentiating elements and added values of the Red Cross Red Crescent National Societies. There is a consensus around this idea in the vast majority of public forums and spaces and Red Cross Red Crescent leaders; however, these positions or discourses are often not seen or perceived to have any practical effect or impact on day-to-day practices in the development and management of volunteering in our National Societies.

Three complementary lines of action have been proposed since 2017 to reverse this situation, which probably has to do with the absence of a genuine culture of volunteering in National Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies:

• The design of a new volunteering policy, which was finally approved at the IFRC General Assembly in 2022.
• The formation of an ad hoc group on volunteering. This group was set up in 2018 under the National Society Development, Localisation and Volunteering Working Group to guide the Governing Board in improving volunteer engagement, participation and motivation.
• The creation of the Global Volunteering Alliance, a network of volunteer development and management professionals that brings together more than 70 Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies to discuss current trends in volunteering and the future of volunteering in a changing world.

Thus, three initiatives were aligned, each with a different focus:

1. The volunteering policy was the framework around which we were to work and focus in terms of volunteering management and development.
2. The ad hoc group was the strategic component, comprising senior management from a large number of National Societies, and acting as a conduit between the IFRC Governing Board and the Global Volunteering Alliance for the implementation of the volunteering policy.
3. The Global Volunteering Alliance was the technical component tasked with implementing initiatives to make volunteering policy a reality. Two years after the adoption of the volunteering policy and more than six years after the creation of the Global Volunteering Alliance, it is time to accelerate processes aimed at embedding the volunteer development and management component into the culture of our National Societies. Ultimately, it is about being stronger National Societies, thanks to the volunteers who are integrated into our organisations.

This pledge aims to propose actions aimed at bringing about internal changes within Red Cross and Red Crescent organisations so that:

• We accelerate the implementation of the International Federation’s Volunteering Policy, adopted in 2022, in our National Societies.
• We work with other sister National Societies to implement this Volunteering Policy in their own contexts.

B) Action plan:

1. Revitalise the Global Volunteering Alliance. Actively participating in the different technical teams, as well as in the different initiatives launched by the Alliance.
2. Re-conform the ad hoc group on volunteering. Supporting and taking an active part in the re-launch of the ad hoc group on volunteering.
3. Research on volunteering. Developing research initiatives on volunteering aimed at improving the way we manage and develop volunteering and volunteers, both in our National Societies and at transnational and international levels.
4. Implement volunteering policy:
   1. Ensure the implementation of the International Federation’s Volunteering Policy, adopted in 2022, in our National Societies.
   2. Collaborate with other sister National Societies in the implementation of this Volunteering Policy in their own contexts.

C) Indicators for measuring progress:

Revitalisation of the Global Alliance for Volunteering

• Number of National Societies participating in the Global Volunteering Alliance.

Re-conformation of the ad hoc group on volunteering.

• Number of meetings of the ad hoc group.
• Number of National Societies in the ad hoc group.

Research on volunteering

• Number of National Societies that have implemented volunteering research initiatives aimed at improving the way we manage and develop volunteering and volunteers, whether at national, transnational or international level.

Implementation of Volunteering policies

• Number of National Societies that have followed an analysis process to ensure the implementation of the Volunteering Policy in their own context.
• Number of collaborations between National Societies to support the implementation of the Volunteering Policy in their own contexts.

D) Resource implications:

A specialised team will be put in place to monitor and report on the pledge. Likewise, for the fulfilment of the indicators, appropriate financial resources will be made available.