Nine Parliamentarians To Volunteer Overseas With VSO
30/07/2010 12:17:00
Next week sees the first two parliamentarians in VSO’s Parliamentarian Volunteering Scheme heading overseas to Mongolia and Uganda. John Mann, Labour MP for Bassetlaw and Hugh O’Donnell MSP for Central Scotland are the first of nine parliamentarians to take up the VSO challenge this year.
VSO is an international development charity that works through professional volunteers and for the third consecutive year it is helping parliamentarians use their advocacy, lobbying, and policy-making skills to tackle poverty in some of the world’s poorest countries.
First to leave will be O’Donnell who will spend two weeks helping the National Union of Disabled Persons of Uganda with its lobbying strategy. The rights of the disabled is an area O’Donnell has an active interest in after working for 15 years with adults with learning disabilities. One in ten Ugandans has a disability and it’s estimated that over 1.4 million of these people are children under 16 years old. One of VSO’s main aims for its disability programme in Uganda is to support disabled peoples’ organisations to engage more effectively with policymakers and organisations that deliver basic services.
Commenting on his decision to volunteer, O’Donnell said: “I’ve known about VSO for years and the quality and commitment of their work is remarkable. Volunteering in Uganda will be very advantageous for both countries - allowing useful knowledge to be exchanged and best practices discussed. It’ll be interesting and very useful to learn how the disability agenda is being taken forward in the developing world and I’ll be able to share my skills and knowledge on how National Union of Disabled Persons of Uganda could potentially improve the lives of disabled Ugandans. I’m looking forward to working with VSO’s partner organisation, the local people and their communities in order to bring about an agenda for change for the way in which resources are available for disabled people in Uganda.”
Brian Rockcliffe, VSO UK Director added: “Tackling poverty requires action from governments and authorities in poor countries and the ongoing commitment of the international community. In many countries unfair and outdated laws, poor investment in public services and failure of governments to follow through on their commitments is keeping millions in poverty. By sharing their skills and expertise in lobbying and advocacy UK parliamentarians will be helping our partner organisations to bring about change. We hope their VSO experience will give them a valuable insight into development issues that will enhance support for development in the UK Parliament.”
John Mann, Labour MP for Bassetlaw returns to Mongolia on the 6th August where he volunteered last year to continue his work supporting the Ulaanbaatar City Health Authority develop new models of healthcare.
Other parliamentarians who will volunteer this year are:
David Amess – Conservative, Southend West – departs 22nd August
Amess, a former member of the Health Select Committee, will travel to the Philippines to train the Philippine Nurses Association (PNA) to lobby more effectively for improved salaries and working conditions for nurses. Low pay, a lack of management support and difficult working conditions are currently driving many well-qualified and experienced nurses to work abroad or to leave the profession altogether. Amess will also undertake a series of meetings with government officials to discuss investment in the health workforce.
Malcolm Wicks – Labour, Croydon North – departs 26th August
Former Energy Minister, Malcolm Wicks will be supporting VSO’s human rights work with refugees on the Thailand-Burma border. Through activities around the Tak province, Wicks will help organisations to advocate more effectively and also understand how to more effectively raise issues with foreign governments. He will also work with Thai Ministers on the issue of access to education for migrant children.
John Leech – Liberal Democrat, Manchester Withington - departs 29th August
Leech will travel to Bangladesh to support the Social Action for Environment (SAFE) and the Department of Youth to improve livelihood security and workers’ rights in the Khulna region. Farmers and prawn producers are struggling under the impacts of climate change, there is high youth unemployment and female workers in the factories do not have contracts, equal pay, or safe working conditions. Leech will meet workers and help organisations that support them to develop advocacy skills, before undertaking lobbying meetings in Dhaka.
David Cairns – Labour, Inverclyde – departs 14th September
Cairns will volunteer with the National Empowerment Network of People Living with HIV/AIDS in Kenya. The government in Kenya has committed to supporting those living with HIV and AIDS and their carers, but interruptions to the supply of antiretroviral treatment have affected over 300,000 people and many carers are without basic medical kits. Cairns will support an ongoing campaign calling on the government to keep its promises on HIV treatment.
Jo Swinson – Liberal Democrat, East Dumbartonshire – departs 22nd September
Swinson will travel to Nigeria to support the International Centre for Energy, Environment and Development (ICEED) to lobby political leaders and government officials to implement climate change policies and legislation. ICEED is promoting awareness of the potential for the transition to a low carbon economy to stimulate growth, alleviate poverty and create jobs and is calling for the Clean Energy Bill and a Bill to establish a Climate Change Commission.
Baroness Stern of Vauxhall – Crossbencher – departs 27th September
Stern will travel to Kenya to support the Coalition on Violence Against Women (COVAW) to lobby for four new pieces of legislation that will significantly improve the lives of women in Kenya. The Marriage Bill, Matrimonial Property Bill, Domestic Violence (Family Protection) Bill, and Equal Opportunities Bill have all been introduced but are stalled. Stern will meet women affected by violence and the organisations working to support them before attending a series of lobbying meetings with Kenyan MPs.
Baroness Jay of Paddington – Labour – departs November
Last year Baroness Jay ran a workshop for parliamentarians from six Southern Africa countries during which they developed advocacy strategies for reducing the burden of HIV & AIDS care on women and girls.
Jay will return to South Africa to continue this work.
Parliamentarians will each spend two to three weeks overseas helping to advise community organisations on matters relating to advocacy and campaigning. VSO covers the costs of flights, accommodation, and health insurance for all volunteers. Parliamentarians will receive the standard VSO volunteer allowance, which is a modest amount to cover daily needs. This differs by country but is generally around £25-50 per week.
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For further information or to request an interview with a participating parliamentarian or a VSO spokesperson please contact Catherine Raynor, VSO Head of Media and Information on 020 8780 7343/ 07734 863987 or via catherine.raynor@vso.org.uk
Editor's notes
· VSO is an international development charity that works through volunteers. Since 1958 over 44,000 volunteers have worked in over 120 countries. Today there are over 1600 international volunteers working in 42 countries around the world.
· VSO needs to raise £10million each year in the UK in order to continue its vital work: working through volunteers to fight poverty in some of the world's poorest communities.
· VSO recruits volunteers from a wide range of professional backgrounds. The strongest need is for experienced managers, professionals with experience of working in primary education, and doctors and midwives. VSO can use financial professionals where they have strong planning or management expertise.
· Meet VSO events give people the opportunity to chat with VSO staff and returned volunteers about the volunteer experience. To find out more visit www.vso.org.uk/events
