Sending international volunteers to Global South countries is one of the forms of Official Development Assistance (ODA) used by most traditional donors. In the case of the Slovak Republic, it is also an instrument of its foreign policy, which also seeks to support development in the programme and partner countries of ODA SR in this way. In almost a decade of the existence of the national volunteer programme from the Ministry of Foreign and European affairs (MFEA SR), two hundred junior and senior volunteers have been sent from Slovakia to selected low-income countries. This study offers an insight into how international volunteering projects (including those under the SlovakAid brand – managed by Ambrela members) can contribute to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the 2030 Agenda.

Mapping and reporting on the impact of volunteering projects provides an opportunity for the parties involved (but primarily for the sending organisations) to reflect on their interactions with both the people sent and other partners, opening an opportunity for self-reflection and improvement of the overall volunteering management. However, the appropriate way to measure and evaluate such contribution in relation to the Global Goals is still being sought. The International Forum for Volunteering in Development (Forum) is lending a helping hand with a new online platform launching in autumn 2021, including a self-assessment tool to measure the impact of volunteering for development in several areas. In fact, little research has been conducted to demonstrate the benefits of volunteering for international development. In the Slovak Republic, the first such research, also focusing on the motivation and contribution of sending organisations to the Global Goals, was carried out in spring 2021.

The publication, called ‚Motivations and Contributions of Development Organizations to Meeting the Global Goals through International Volunteering‘‚ was written by Dr. Bozena Markovic Baluchova, PhD.. It‘ s a part of project entitled SDGs and Migration – Multipliers and Journalists Addressing Decision Makers and Citizens in the EU implemented within the framework of the Development Education and Awareness Raising (DEAR) programme and part of project entitled Building management, coordination and implementation capacities and increasing the competitiveness of development cooperation entities funded by SlovakAid. You can download and read it in Slovak language here and in English language here.