Volunteerism shapes youth development

AS VOLUNTEERISM continues to grow in the sultanate, various volunteer platforms believe they should shape positive self-development skills for the participants.

One of the various volunteer platforms is the non-government organisations (NGO) as they offer various skills and knowledge for the youth to further develop them, while taking part in community work.

President of the Brunei Darussalam AIDS Council (BDAC) Iswandy Ahmad said letting the volunteers take control on events and programmes is one of the strategies for the council to improve for its members.

The members and volunteers can organise and run their own programmes and activities which BDAC will assist and guide them to run a successful event.

He explained BDAC allows the volunteers to speak out their ideas and requests which BDAC will assist them in achieving their objectives.

“We provide them the space and platform. We don’t just tell them to make a project, we give them the platform, guidance and credit,” he said.

Although the NGO have over 150 members and volunteers, they continue to open a spot for the public to be involved.

“We are open for volunteers. We do not limit on age or numbers. We give them what they want to learn through programmes and activities,” he said.

Meanwhile, Beach Bunch is focusing more on maintaining the number of volunteers in Brunei by taking care of them and attracting the public through social media.

Founder and President of Beach Bunch Rizan Latif said that volunteering is good for the public as it is a platform for them to take positive action for the people and the environment.

“In Brunei, volunteerism is already good. Majority of the youth is active in being involved, we have to take care of that,” he said.

Khairunnisa Ash’ari, Co-Founder & Community Engagement Director, Green Brunei said the NGO is continuing to focus on providing education for its members and volunteers through projects.

The projects include Green Leadership Camps, Green Ambassadors Programme, Green Brunei Eco Drive, beach clean ups and more.

Green Brunei is driven to continue promoting environmental sustainability for its members and volunteers through education, conservation and advocacy.

She said the volunteers would gain experience and knowledge to solve the national issues.

“For Green Brunei, we don’t only want to educate them about environmental issues, but also sustainable development as a whole which includes social and economic issues,” she said.

Source: The Brunei Times.