WAYS TO IMPROVE THE SUPPORT OF VOLUNTEERING BY STATE AND LOCAL AUTHORITIES IN UKRAINE

Abstract

Volunteering as a social movement in Ukraine have developed most significantly since the Russian military invasion of Ukraine in February 2014, but the first months of the full-scale war in February-March 2022 can be called a kind of culmination of this development. Despite the significant dynamics of the development of volunteering in Ukraine and its enormous potential, there are significant problems in the area of its support and development by public administration and local government institutions. Among such main problems are insufficient funding, limited access to information, insufficient coordination with business and communities, as well as bureaucratic barriers. This leads to low efficiency of volunteer projects, lack of motivation and recognition of volunteers, and also complicates the development of the volunteer movement in general. Solving these problems requires a comprehensive public administration approach and active participation of all stakeholders, who should not only support volunteering in Ukraine, but also ensure its sustainable development.

The analysis of definitions and legislative wording made it possible to identify the key features of volunteer activity, which are voluntariness, that is, activity according to the personal will of the individual, without obligations or coercion; gratuitousness, or non-profitability, that is, the absence of material remuneration for volunteer activity. On the contrary, volunteers, as a rule, give their time, skills and resources to improve the lives of other people or to support important public affairs; social utility, that is, the focus of activity on improving the well-being of the community, society, state, providing assistance to those who need it.

The view of volunteering as a form of charitable activity does not prevent the government from developing this type of social relations independently, which is confirmed in particular by the presence of a separate law on volunteer activity. However, legal support is only part of public administration of the development of volunteer activity. Its main, and perhaps most difficult, direction is related to the formation of socio-psychological motives among citizens and the development of a culture of volunteering, which, in combination with organizationally capable volunteer institutions, ensure the sustainability of volunteering in Ukraine.

The need for support for volunteering in Ukraine by public authorities and local governments is due to the special role of volunteering in conditions of full-scale war. If we add to this the ability of volunteering to lay the foundation for civil society in general, then the development of volunteering should be one of the key priorities of public and administrative activities. Below are several ways in which such activities can be improved, namely: financial support, in particular the provision of grants, subsidies and other financial resources for volunteer organizations; development of human capital of volunteering through training and consulting of volunteers in order to increase their competence and effectiveness of activities; information support, which is manifested in ensuring open access to information about volunteering opportunities, as well as in the popularization of volunteering through the media and social networks; cooperation with the business environment and stimulation of corporate social responsibility in the form of support for volunteer projects; recognition and encouragement of volunteer activities, in particular the introduction of a system of awards, prizes and other forms of recognition of the role of volunteers; simplification of legal procedures, in particular in terms of reducing bureaucratic obstacles and facilitating the registration process of volunteer organizations; creation of volunteer centers that will provide support, coordination and resources for volunteers.

In conditions of martial law, when the government and its institutions at all levels have a huge lack of resources, it is worth introducing relatively simple measures that will give many times greater short-term effect in the form of activating potential and long-term in the form of sustainable development of volunteering than the resources spent on them. We have included such priority areas as: public promotion of volunteering, increasing the practice of involving volunteers in the activities of public authorities and local self-government bodies, simplifying the procedure for attracting foreign volunteers to Ukraine, disseminating information about volunteer organizations and forming a positive image of volunteering.

Thanks to the proposed areas of public support, volunteering has every chance of becoming part of the national idea of Ukrainians around the world and even an «exported product» to those countries that are beginning their path to democracy and civil society. But such a long-term scenario is possible provided that there is constant public support for volunteering, its conceptual elevation to the level of socially useful work, as well as the active involvement of the public and business in supporting and developing volunteer initiatives. Only a systemic approach, taking into account all aspects of volunteer activity and their integration into the national development strategy, will be able to ensure the successful and sustainable development of the volunteer movement in Ukraine.