Finnish Volunteer Programme - ETVO

ETVO is a KEPA (The Service Centre for Development Cooperation) volunteer programme that channels volunteers to non-governmental organisations (NGOs) in the South. These NGOs must already have an existing cooperation relationship with a Finnish NGO, that is a member of KEPA.

The programme aims at bringing benefits to the relationship and the work of both the receiving organisations in the South, as well as Finnish civil society.

The purpose of the programme is to enhance the dialogue between the South and the North and to strengthen the partnership between the two. Involvement of the Finnish NGOs helps the volunteers to become active members of the civil society when they return to Finland.

ETVO has been active since 1995, it has no political or religious affiliations.

• Aims of the programme

Volunteers

The volunteers have worked, for example, in environmental conservation, with street children and with people with disabilities. The volunteering period varies from six to twelve months.

Having worked with Finnish funded development projects in the South, the volunteers will have a personal insight to international co-operation, its success stories and challenges. ETVO tries to channel their experiences into Finnish NGOs.

People of other nationalities than Finnish are welcome to apply to be ETVO volunteers. However, due to he ETVO trainings that take place before departure, a working knowledge of Finnish is required.

NGOs

Occasionally ETVO receives volunteers from the South. To apply for this you must be a member, commited activist or employee of an NGO that has a Finnish partner NGO. The application is made together with the NGOs.

The contact information of the NGOs involved in ETVO are confidential so as not to confuse our volunteers and tourists. If you are interested in NGOs working in the South we suggest you look into websites like www.idealist.org where NGOs list their own volunteer work opportunities.

To receive volunteers from ETVO your NGO must have a existing development cooperation with a Finnish NGO that is a member of KEPA that must then contact us and we will negotiate with them.

Contact details

Please, before getting in touch with us, read the information above.

Etvo programme
Kepa ry
Töölöntorinkatu 2 A, 00260 Helsinki, Finland
tel. + 358 9 584 23 251 / + 358 9 584 23 250
fax. + 358 9 584 23 200
etvo [at] kepa [dot] fi