In Kazakhstan the first vocational school on preparation of volunteers opened

“The school of trainers” is a special project for representatives of NGO of Kazakhstan, directed on creation of team of the experts who are professionally working with volunteers and engaged in implementation of social programs. The main objective of this school consists in training the qualified experts who will be able not only effectively to organize work with volunteers in the NGO, but also to teach this work of the colleagues from other organizations.

Today in Kazakhstan more than five thousand NGO working in the volunteer sphere are registered. According to the research “The Analysis of a Condition of Volunteering as Development Resource in Kazakhstan” which has been carried out by the Program of volunteers of the UN in Kazakhstan together with the Ministry of Culture and information of RK, only 12,5 percent from the interrogated organizations involve in the activity of volunteers. Thus 9 of 10 companies are interested in involvement of volunteers.

Aliyah Sagingaliyeva, the project coordinator “School of Trainers”, the Deputy executive director of Charitable Seimar Social Fund-of the Coordination Center of Volunteers of “Komanda SOS”, considers: “Development of voluntary initiatives — a subject actual for Kazakhstan. Unfortunately, volunteer efforts in our country still have fragmentary character, have no system approach, and also mechanisms of state regulation and stimulation. Therefore, especially in country regions, purposeful coordination of their efforts is necessary for volunteers and non-governmental organizations for achievement of the maximum effect and advantage”.

The training program “School of trainers” consists of seminars and trainings in the Russian and Kazakh languages for which carrying out the Kazakhstan and foreign experts in the field of design management, a fandreyzing, financial audit, journalism and electronic media, and also PR and psychology were invited. Within this project the first manual on methods, technologies and tools of the organization of volunteer activity and social projects in the Kazakh and Russian languages was created. Participants of the project “School of Trainers” noted that carrying out trainings in two languages allows to work on an equal footing.

Saule Meirmanova, the coordinator of the Youth Initiatives program Fonda Soros Kazakhstan, speaks: “Today, one of actual tasks vocational training of experts of the third sector is. The project “School of Trainers” represents a careful and integrated approach to the solution of this question. We are sure that it will allow not only to open in a new way a subject about importance of voluntary activity, but also to lift its appeal among young generation and the organizations”.

The project is realized by the combined efforts of Charitable Seimar Social Fund-Komanda SOS, the National Volunteer Network (NVN) and Youth Information service of Kazakhstan together with the Program of Volunteers of the UN with financial support Fonda Soros Kazakhstan.