According to comments and suggestions received during public discussion on Draft Law on Volunteerism, a group of experts (lawyers and members of IZVoR working group) prepared an amended text of the Law on Voluntary Work. After the public discussion of the amended version, the Law was formulated and submitted to the Assembly of Autonomous Province of Vojvodina by IZVoR Initiative in December 2006. The Assembly will, after the Law is adopted on the Provincial level, submit the Law to the People's Assembly of the Republic of Serbia for further procedure and adoption.

Final text:

Law on Volunteerism 

Serbian, PDF, 178KB

Explanation of the text

Serbian, PDF, 121KB

IZVOR Initiative working group consists of the representatives of the following NGO-s: NSHC, Nature Conservation Movement and Volunteers Center of Vojvodina, EHO and Crossbreading.

Brochure

VOLUNTEERS:

Source of Humanism, Tolerance and Social Wellbeing  (Serbian, pdf, 1.1MB)

International Conference ''Towards an Enabling Framework for Volunteerism: What Needs to be Done?''

Organized by NSHC and IZVoR Initiative, International Conference  'Towards an Enabling Framework for Volunteerism: What Needs to be Done?'' took place in Novi Sad, on April 26 and 27, 2007. The Conference gathered 112 representatives of governmental and non-governmental sector from Hungary, Bulgaria, Romania, Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Macedonia, Montenegro and Serbia, respectively. Distinguished guests presented their experiences in creating a legal framework for volunteer work in the neighboring countries. Group work was an opportunity for discussion on volunteerism role in the context of legislation, education, social welfare, employment and cross-sector cooperation. Participants agreed that the civil society participation and cross-sector cooperation are essential for successful creation of an enabling framework for volunteerism. The Conference results will be published in the Final Report that is going to be distributed to the Conference participants, and to decision makers who can directly assist in the development of volunteerism in the region.

More information + Photos from the Conference >>>

Conference Presentations:

- M. Ruzica: Društveni značaj volonterstva - okviri, granice, podsticaji

- M. Kolosnjai-Nenin: Inicijativa za zakonsko regulisanje statusa volontera u Srbiji

- V. Skorić: Položaj volontera u Republici Hrvatskoj

- N. Bullain: Volunteer Law in Hungary

- M. Lisetchi: Volunteering in Romania in 2007 - General Perspective and Legal Frame

Initiative for Volunteerism Legislation in the Republic of Serbia

At the end of June 2006 NSHC has officially started implementation of a new project 'Initiative for Volunteerism Legislation in the Republic of Serbia', as the official project implementor on behalf of the IZVoR Initiative. The overall objective of this project is to contribute to the development of volunteerism in Serbia, and therefore to the overall civil society development. The impact of volunteerism and its activities results in enormous gains for civic participation and social inclusion. Part of volunteerism’s benefits is a resulting sense of responsibility for society, which is a fundamental pillar for the strenghtening of democracy.

With this project proposal we shall promote a culture of volunteerism as an organized way of citizens’ participation in local community development, and increase capacities of citizens and civil society organizations to influence policies and contribute in the process of civil society development in Serbia.

The specific objective is to improve the legal framework for volunteerism in Serbia. At present, there is no defined legal framework for volunteer work in Serbia. The existing legislation on issues such as employment, non-governmental activities etc. does not include any regulations related to volunteerism. At the same time, proper legislation on volunteerism is very important for the entire civil society development in our country. By this joint, civil sector-based initiative, we intend to prepare a proposal for volunteerism legislation (draft of the Law on Volunteerism) in the Republic of Serbia, facilitate public discussion about it and submit the final version to relevant governmental instances for further procedure and adoption. Through these joint efforts, started two years ago within the IZVoR Initiative, we shall promote volunteerism and mobilize all relevant stakeholders to participate in creating a positive legal environment for development of volunteerism in our country. NSHC implements this project in partnership with the Nature Conservation Movement and Volunteer Center of Vojvodina. Other stakeholders involved in the project are NGOs 'EHO' and 'Ukrstanje', Secretariat for Work, Employment and Gender Equality of the Vojvodina Province, Secretariat for Sport and Youth of the Vojvodina Province and Secretariat for Local Administration and Inter-Municipal Cooperation of the Vojvodina Province.

The project is financed by the EU, through European Agency for Reconstruction. the main implementor is Consortium Center for Development of Non-Profit Sector and Fund Center for Democracy,

within a programme 'Fund for Support of Civil Society in Serbia'.

IZVoR Initiative had been previously supported by ICNL (USAID Serbia), American people through USAID within the CRDA/ADF Programme and the Executive Council of the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina.

The need for legal regulation of volunteerism in Serbia has been present in non-governmetal organisations for years. That was the motive to hold the first working meeting on the subject of the legal status of volunteers in Serbia. 

It was held on 5th December 2004, the International Volunteer’s Day, during the Festival of East-European NGOs in Novi Sad. On that ocassion the initiative for solving the legal status of volunteers in Serbia was started, and it grew into a project called ’IZVoR (source) Initiative'. With the goal to re-examine and confirm the knowledge about the general status of volunteers in Serbia, the working group of the IZVoR Initiative conducted a research on the status of volunteers in institutions, organisations and  municipalities. This was realised through workshops with volunteers, focus groups with the representatives of municipalities and through a questionnaire about the needs and requests of NGO-s.

The conference 'Status of Volunteers in Serbia',  held in June 2005., was the final point of this process. At the same time, the analysis of already existing legal frames for volunteer work (’Legal frame for Volunteering in the Republic of Serbia“, Zivka Vasilevska, CRNPS-Belgrade, Non-profit sector, June 2005.), was conducted by other participants in civil sector. In the text, it is concluded: ’ .... the rules on force in Serbia admit the fact of existance of volunteer work for the advantage of another, or for the common wellbeing, but there is no resolution that would regulate that kind of work in general way. In longer terms, the best solution would, perhaps, be passing a law which would regulate volunteer work in a more general way, by emphasizing its difference from the other kinds of  work, that are done for fullfilling a commitment in any kind of contract, and that is payed for, and regulated by laws.'

This all brought to the following conclusions:

·  generally speaking, volunteer work is not present in Serbia in an amount in which it should be;

·  the necessity for volunteer work is great;

·  volunteers are not satisfied by the treatment they get from the community nor by the status that they have in society;

·  there is an absence of any legal frame of engaging and protecting volunteers and their work.

With the goal to estimate specific needs of domestic volunteers and the organisations that engage them, and through various activities, the minimum of rights (and commitments) that go with volunteer work, were defined.

It is necessary to put these definitions into the form of a legal act. All the above mentioned created the base for writing the suggestion for  a Draft of Volunteer Work Law:

·   Engaging experts from the field of legislature into the process of creatng the working version of Volunteer Work Law Draft

·   Organizing a transparent, public discussion concerning this version of Volunteer Work Law Draft

·   Providing  public political support

The initiative for legal solving of the status of volunteers in Serbia - the working version of the law draft and the public discussion is a logical step forward of the activities of group IZVOR and their efforts to improve the relations between the comunity (institutions and  the public) and the volunteer work, to provide better conditions for volunteer work, make better the cooperation and connection between NGO-s and other participants within the local comunities, management and evaluation of volunteer work.

NOVI SAD HUMANITARIAN CENTER 2004 - 2007