06 December 2006

Seoul, Korea: The government of South Korea formed a committee on volunteer promotion to address the issue of social inclusion.

The Committee of Volunteer Promotion (CVP) consists of ministers from different government agencies and 17 representatives of civil society  organizations.

As specified in the basic law of volunteering that took effect in February 2006, the Prime Minister will take the chairmanship with membership shared by related ministries, such as the Ministry Of Government Administration and Home Affairs (MOGAHA) and health and welfare (MOHW) and civic leaders such as the president of Korea Association of Volunteer Centers (KAVC), the chair-man of the Korea Council of Volunteering (KCV), the president of Korea Labor Union, the vice president of Korea Red Cross, and the standing vice-president of Federation of Korean Industry (FKI).
 
The operations committee has also been formed a subcommittee, co-chaired by Kang-Hyun Lee, the new secretary general of KACV. This committee is responsible for national policy setting, comprehensive planning, examining major policies on volunteering, improving volunteer-related institution, among others.

As part of its five-year plan, the committee set a goal to spur the growth of volunteers 10 per cent, from current 20 per cent, in five years. 

IVD awards and declaring ‘Noblesse Oblige’
 
The government will award around 200 volunteers and organizations to celebrate International Volunteer Day, 5 December. A ceremony jointly hosted by KCV and MOGAHA will honor the volunteers. The awardees were selected based on nature of volunteer work, length, and impact of participation. Out of the estimated 43 total awardees, four will be given national decorations and awards. Thirty five individuals and organizations will be given either presidential or prime ministerial awards.   

coinciding with the ceremony is the induciton of the “Noblesse Oblige Volunteer corps,”  consisting  of celebrities volunteers and leaders of the public, civil, and businesses sectors. This initiative was initiated by KCV last year and has gradually evolved through affiliated local teams and programmes.