Benin

Paragraph 1, page 40

Furthermore, in compliance, on the one hand, with resolution A/RES/70/129 on "Integrating volunteering into peace and development: the plan of action for the next decade and beyond" and, on the other, with General Assembly (UNGA73) resolution A/RES/73/140 which encourages Governments to increasingly cooperate with volunteer-involving and civil society organizations, Benin established, with the support of the United Nations Volunteers programme and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the National Corps of Young Volunteers for Development (CNJVD). The Corps was established to develop the potential of young people by promoting formal volunteer services and to mobilize them to participate fully in nation-building tasks. The Beninese Office of Youth Volunteer Services (OBSVJ) was created to run the Corps and recruited over 6,000 young volunteers between 2015 and 2017. These volunteers have been deployed in various key sectors (education, health, community development, local government support, etc.). In addition, a national platform for volunteer organizations was set up to improve the coordination of interventions and streamline volunteer efforts towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Furthermore, the OBSVJ signed a partnership agreement with the France Volontaires association, in the spirit of international volunteerism and exchange, which enabled the office to send more than 20 young Beninese volunteers to France between 2016 and 2019. Finally, with a view to enhancing the value of formal volunteerism, a new National Volunteerism Programme is being finalized with the support of the Organisation Internationale de la Francophonie and the United Nations Volunteers programme. This new programme primarily targets first-time job-seekers and out-of-school youth, who often face considerable difficulties entering the labour market.