Volunteerism in the Philippines
CSC chair Karlo Nograles, who serves as Honorary Chair of the National Volunteers Month from 2023 to 2024, lauded volunteers from all sectors who share their knowledge and expertise without anything in return.
“Volunteerism is part of the fabric of life of every Filipino – our Bayanihan spirit. Volunteerism also is one of the first things taught to us as children. We know from our history that Bayanihan goes back to the time of our forefathers, and it is heart-warming to note that Filipino values have endured despite the changing of times,” CSC chair Nograles said.
PNVSCA Executive Director Donald James Gawe stated that contrary to popular belief, volunteerism is cross-cutting and there are plenty of volunteering opportunities aside from disaster response and social services such as other fields and sectors including information technology.
Director Gawe stated that PNVSCA has noted varying responses on the current state of volunteerism in the country during nationwide consultations.
“May nagsasabi na ang bayanihan ay nandiyan pa rin at nasa DNA ng bawat Filipino mayroon ring mga nagsasabi sa ating consultations that bayanihan is unfortunately a dying Filipino value,” he said.
Director Gawe also said that while initial data and studies on volunteerism and its impact on the country’s economy are scarce, the Philippine Statistics Authority has recently inserted volunteerism-centric questions in the Community-Based Monitoring System and Labor Force Survey in order to obtain more information on the current state of volunteerism in the country.
PIA Director General Jose A. Torres Jr. noted however that volunteerism is alive in the media sector especially since most practitioners are present in the grassroots level.
“Napapanahon na bigyan natin ng parangal ang media bilang bahagi at tunay na nakakaramdam doon sa bolunterismo dahil sila ring mga kasamahan natin sa media, sila rin ang nasa ground talaga,” Director General Torres said. (GG/PIA)
