CANBERRA — Volunteers have played an important role in Australia’s aid program since 1951, beginning with a program supporting Indonesia. Since then, more than 14,000 Australians volunteers have been through the program, providing a range of expertise and assistance to developing countries.
On Feb. 12, Sen. Concetta Fierravanti-Wells, Australia’s minister for international development and the Pacific, launched a new era of the Australian Volunteers for International Development program at Parliament House in Canberra. Supported by managing contractor Australian Volunteers International, the new volunteer program will maintain its development focus linked to the strategic objectives of the Australian Aid program, but will increase the diversity of volunteers with a new inclusion strategy.
The aim is to attract a cohort of volunteers who are more representative of Australian society, and the program will have specific strategies and opportunities to target youth, people with disability, and indigenous and female Australians.