Australian volunteers to lend their skills to the Philippines

A secondary school teacher, an accountant, and a business management specialist are among nine passionate young Australians who began working with local organizations through the Australian Youth Ambassadors for Development (AYAD) Program.

The AYAD Program is the youth stream of the Australian Volunteers for International Development program. An initiative of the Australian Agency for International Development (AusAID), the program deploys skilled volunteers to live and work in developing countries.

The Australian government’s development cooperation program aims to help improve lives of Filipinos by delivering aid where it is most needed and most effective. Volunteers contribute to this goal through the sharing of skills and the building of local capacity of our partner Filipino organizations and communities.

“Volunteering overseas is one way where Australians can make a positive contribution to poverty reduction, sustainable development and cross cultural understanding. They develop a strong understanding of local and cultural issues and build effective professional and personal relationships that help them to share skills and knowledge,” says Australian Ambassador to the Philippines Bill Tweddell.

For the past 12 years, over 200 Australian volunteers have worked with Filipino organizations in the areas of sustainable agriculture; community development and sustainable livelihoods; education; youth development; persons with disabilities; environmental sustainability; governance; and human trafficking.


AN AUSTRALIAN TEACHER IN CAMSUR

Australian volunteer Marie-Louise Batenburg is a secondary school teacher who has started work as a community education project officer based with the Department of Education (DepED) in Tiagon, Camarines Sur. Marie-Louise is involved in monitoring and evaluating a pilot program to support people of all ages to experience learning outside the formal education system.

“The program has the potential to reach people who previously would not have been able to access any form of education. I hope to support the program to be successful and sustainable for the Camarines Sur region,” Marie-Louise says. “Though I have only been living in the Philippines for a short time I have been welcomed with open hearts and homes. The kindness of the Filipinos has made my transition here from Australia so much easier.”

There are currently 23 Australian volunteers, including 16 Australian youth ambassadors in the Philippines. AusAID is working in partnership with Austraining, as well as Australian Red Cross and Australian Volunteers International to deliver the program.


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