6 - Youth Volunteering for Development in South Africa
Corresponding Author(s) : Chigozie Azunna
African Sociological Review,
Vol. 25 No. 2 (2021): African Sociological Review
Abstract
Youth unemployment and the quest for empowerment have led to a growing surge in youth volunteerism in South Africa. The objective of this paper is consequently to examine how youth volunteer activities (YVAs) have offered opportunities and created an enabling development environment for young men and women to be employable, thereby improving their quality
of life. To be able to achieve this objective, the researchers used quantitative methodologies to generate data for analysis. The researchers relied on secondary information from Statistics South Africa’s (StatsSA) database. The study found that the youth volunteer rate has increased over the past decade by 2.1 percentage points from 3.7% to 5.8%. It also found that youth
volunteerism has become a way of life and a route to fulltime employment that assured them and improved their quality of life.
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- African Union Commission, 2015. Agenda 2063: The Africa we want. Addis Ababa: African Union Commission.
- Atibil, C.L. 2014. ‘Philanthropic foundations and civil society in Sub-Saharan Africa’ in The Handbook of civil society in Africa. p. 457-474. Edited by E. Obadare. New York: Springer International.
- Caprara, D., Mati, J.M., Obadare, E. and Perold, H. 2012. Volunteering and civic service in three African Regions: Contributions to regional integration, youth development and peace. Brookings: Brookings Institution.
- Chigozie, A., and Botchway, S. 2018. Youth Participation in Electoral Processes. Discovery: 54(273), September 1, 2018.
- Delany, A. and Perold, H. 2016. The role of civic service in enhancing youth employability: Reflections on national youth service programmes in Sub- Saharan Africa, pp.75-98, in Perspectives on volunteering: Voices from the South, edited by Jacqueline Butcher and Christopher Einolf.
- Switzerland: Springer.
- Einolf, C. and Chambré, S.M. 2011. Who volunteers? Constructing a hybrid theory, International journal of nonprofit and voluntary sector marketing, 16 (4): 298–310. Everatt, D. and Solanki, G. 2008. A nation of givers? Results from a national survey of social giving, pp.45-78, in Giving and Solidarity: Resource Flows for Poverty Alleviation in South Africa, edited by A. Habib & B. Maharaj. Cape Town:Human Sciences Research Council Press.
- Everatt, D. and Solanki, G. 2004. A nation of givers? Social giving among South Africans. Durban: Centre for Civil Society, University of KwaZulu-Natal.
- Good Deeds Organisation. 2019. Five Ways Volunteering Benefits your Business: The Blog.
- http://www.good-deeds-day.org/blog/benefit-business/ Jan 18, 2016.
- d in June 07.07.2019.Graham, L., Patel, L., Ulriksen, M., Moodley, J. and Mavungu, E.M. 2013. Volunteering in Africa: An
- overview of volunteer effort in Africa and its potential to contribute to development. The Centre for Social Development in Africa, University of Johannesburg and Swedish Red Cross Society.
- Grizzle, C., and Yusuf, J. W. 2015. Trusting, happy, religious, and giving: Explaining volunteering in the context of Nordic exceptionalism, Journal of Civil Society, 11 (4): 384-401.
- Hacker, E., Picken, A. and Lewis, S. 2016. Perceptions of volunteering and their effects on sustainable development and poverty alleviation in Mozambique, Nepal and Kenya, pp. 53-73, in Perspectives on volunteering: Voices from the South, edited by Jacqueline Butcher and Christopher Einolf. Switzerland: Springer.
- International Labour Organization. 2011. Manual on the measurement of volunteer work. Geneva: International Labour Office.
- Kehinde, F.A. 2016. National Service and Beyond: A Panel Study of Tertiary Graduates in Ghana.
- Working paper F-33109-GHA-1. International Growth Centre.
- Leigh, R., Giesing, C., León, M.J., Haski-Leventhal, D., Lough, B.J., Mati, J.M., and Strassburg, S. 2011. State of the World’s Volunteerism Report: Universal values for global well-being (P.
- Hockenos, Ed.). Bonn, Germany: United Nations Volunteers (UNV).
- Lough, B. and Mati J.M. 2012. Volunteerism for peace in East Africa. CSD Working Papers No. 12-29.
- Center for Social Development, Washington University in St. Louis.
- Mary, A. H. 2004. Community Determinates of Volunteer Participation and the Promotion of Civic Health: The Case of Japan. Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly, Supplement vol. 33, no. 3, September 2004 8S-31S DOI: 10.1177/0899764004265434 Mati J.M. 2017. Horizontality: The ignored particularity of African Volunteering. VOSESA,
- Johannesburg.
- Mati, J.M., and Perold, H. 2011. Youth volunteer exchange programs in Southern and Eastern Africa: Models and effects. Johannesburg: VOSESA.
- Okafor, C. and Ani, J. K. 2014. The National Youth Service Corps Programme and Growing Security Threat in Nigeria. Africa’s Development Watch: Vol 2 (2) June 2014 ISSN 2310-2152. Africa’s Public Service Delivery and Performance Review.
- Perold, H. and Graham, L. 2014. Volunteering, civic service and civil society in Africa, pp. 439- 456, in the handbook of civil society in Africa, edited by Ebenezer Obadare. New York: Springer.
- Population Reference Bureau. 2017. The Demographic dividend in Africa relies on investment in the reproductive health and rights of adolescents and youth.
- n Reference Bureau: Washington.Statistics South Africa 2019. Mid-year report 2019. Statistics South Africa, Pretoria: Statistics South Africa Statistics South Africa a. 2018. Demographic Profile of Adolescents in South Africa. Statistics
- South Africa, Pretoria: Statistics South Africa, 2018. Report No. 03-00-10.
- Statistics South Africa b. 2018. Volunteer Activity Survey. Statistics South Africa, Pretoria: Statistics South Africa, 2018. Report No. P0211.3.
- Statistics South Africa. 2017. Annual Report 2016/2017. Statistics South Africa. Pretoria: Statistics South Africa, 2017. ISBN: 978-0-621-45440-6.
- South Africa. 2015. National Youth Policy (NYP), 2015-2020. Cape Town: Department of Youth Commission. National Youth Policy 2020, April, 2015 Statistics South Africa. 2014. South Africa - Volunteer Activities Survey 2010. Report generated
- on: July 3, 2014. http://www.datafirst.uct.ac.za/dataportal/index.php Taniguchi, H. 2012. The determinants of formal and informal volunteering: evidence from the American time use survey, Voluntas: International Journal of Voluntary
- and Nonprofit Organizations, 23 (4), 920-939.
- Toraldo, M.L., Contu, A and Mangia, G. 2016. The hybrid nature of volunteering: Exploring its voluntary exchange nature at music festivals,Nonprofit andvoluntary sector quarterly. Published online first DOI: 10.1177/0899764016649688.
- United Nations. 2016. Youth and migration. New York.
- Volunteering Australia, 2015. The National Standards for Volunteer Involvement. April 2015 www.volunteeringaustralia.org
- VOSESA. 2011. Volunteer Management Needs Assessment Survey among South African civil society organisations. VOSESA: Johannesburg.
- Wilkinson-Maposa, S. and Fowler, A. 2009. The Poor Philanthropist II: New approaches to sustainable development. Cape Town, South Africa: University of Cape Town and the Southern Africa-United States Centre for Leadership and Public Values.
- Wilkinson-Maposa, S. 2005. The rich is not the only ones who can help the poor, Sunday Times: Business Section, 13 February, 2005, p. 6.
- Wilkinson-Maposa, S., Fowler, A., Oliver-Evans, C., and Mulenga, C.F.N. 2005. The poor philanthropist: How and why the poor help each other. Cape Town, South Africa: University of Cape Town & the Southern Africa-United States Centre for Leadership and Public Values.Wilson J. 2000. Volunteering, Annual review of sociology, 26
References
African Union Commission, 2015. Agenda 2063: The Africa we want. Addis Ababa: African Union Commission.
Atibil, C.L. 2014. ‘Philanthropic foundations and civil society in Sub-Saharan Africa’ in The Handbook of civil society in Africa. p. 457-474. Edited by E. Obadare. New York: Springer International.
Caprara, D., Mati, J.M., Obadare, E. and Perold, H. 2012. Volunteering and civic service in three African Regions: Contributions to regional integration, youth development and peace. Brookings: Brookings Institution.
Chigozie, A., and Botchway, S. 2018. Youth Participation in Electoral Processes. Discovery: 54(273), September 1, 2018.
Delany, A. and Perold, H. 2016. The role of civic service in enhancing youth employability: Reflections on national youth service programmes in Sub- Saharan Africa, pp.75-98, in Perspectives on volunteering: Voices from the South, edited by Jacqueline Butcher and Christopher Einolf.
Switzerland: Springer.
Einolf, C. and Chambré, S.M. 2011. Who volunteers? Constructing a hybrid theory, International journal of nonprofit and voluntary sector marketing, 16 (4): 298–310. Everatt, D. and Solanki, G. 2008. A nation of givers? Results from a national survey of social giving, pp.45-78, in Giving and Solidarity: Resource Flows for Poverty Alleviation in South Africa, edited by A. Habib & B. Maharaj. Cape Town:Human Sciences Research Council Press.
Everatt, D. and Solanki, G. 2004. A nation of givers? Social giving among South Africans. Durban: Centre for Civil Society, University of KwaZulu-Natal.
Good Deeds Organisation. 2019. Five Ways Volunteering Benefits your Business: The Blog.
http://www.good-deeds-day.org/blog/benefit-business/ Jan 18, 2016.
d in June 07.07.2019.Graham, L., Patel, L., Ulriksen, M., Moodley, J. and Mavungu, E.M. 2013. Volunteering in Africa: An
overview of volunteer effort in Africa and its potential to contribute to development. The Centre for Social Development in Africa, University of Johannesburg and Swedish Red Cross Society.
Grizzle, C., and Yusuf, J. W. 2015. Trusting, happy, religious, and giving: Explaining volunteering in the context of Nordic exceptionalism, Journal of Civil Society, 11 (4): 384-401.
Hacker, E., Picken, A. and Lewis, S. 2016. Perceptions of volunteering and their effects on sustainable development and poverty alleviation in Mozambique, Nepal and Kenya, pp. 53-73, in Perspectives on volunteering: Voices from the South, edited by Jacqueline Butcher and Christopher Einolf. Switzerland: Springer.
International Labour Organization. 2011. Manual on the measurement of volunteer work. Geneva: International Labour Office.
Kehinde, F.A. 2016. National Service and Beyond: A Panel Study of Tertiary Graduates in Ghana.
Working paper F-33109-GHA-1. International Growth Centre.
Leigh, R., Giesing, C., León, M.J., Haski-Leventhal, D., Lough, B.J., Mati, J.M., and Strassburg, S. 2011. State of the World’s Volunteerism Report: Universal values for global well-being (P.
Hockenos, Ed.). Bonn, Germany: United Nations Volunteers (UNV).
Lough, B. and Mati J.M. 2012. Volunteerism for peace in East Africa. CSD Working Papers No. 12-29.
Center for Social Development, Washington University in St. Louis.
Mary, A. H. 2004. Community Determinates of Volunteer Participation and the Promotion of Civic Health: The Case of Japan. Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly, Supplement vol. 33, no. 3, September 2004 8S-31S DOI: 10.1177/0899764004265434 Mati J.M. 2017. Horizontality: The ignored particularity of African Volunteering. VOSESA,
Johannesburg.
Mati, J.M., and Perold, H. 2011. Youth volunteer exchange programs in Southern and Eastern Africa: Models and effects. Johannesburg: VOSESA.
Okafor, C. and Ani, J. K. 2014. The National Youth Service Corps Programme and Growing Security Threat in Nigeria. Africa’s Development Watch: Vol 2 (2) June 2014 ISSN 2310-2152. Africa’s Public Service Delivery and Performance Review.
Perold, H. and Graham, L. 2014. Volunteering, civic service and civil society in Africa, pp. 439- 456, in the handbook of civil society in Africa, edited by Ebenezer Obadare. New York: Springer.
Population Reference Bureau. 2017. The Demographic dividend in Africa relies on investment in the reproductive health and rights of adolescents and youth.
n Reference Bureau: Washington.Statistics South Africa 2019. Mid-year report 2019. Statistics South Africa, Pretoria: Statistics South Africa Statistics South Africa a. 2018. Demographic Profile of Adolescents in South Africa. Statistics
South Africa, Pretoria: Statistics South Africa, 2018. Report No. 03-00-10.
Statistics South Africa b. 2018. Volunteer Activity Survey. Statistics South Africa, Pretoria: Statistics South Africa, 2018. Report No. P0211.3.
Statistics South Africa. 2017. Annual Report 2016/2017. Statistics South Africa. Pretoria: Statistics South Africa, 2017. ISBN: 978-0-621-45440-6.
South Africa. 2015. National Youth Policy (NYP), 2015-2020. Cape Town: Department of Youth Commission. National Youth Policy 2020, April, 2015 Statistics South Africa. 2014. South Africa - Volunteer Activities Survey 2010. Report generated
on: July 3, 2014. http://www.datafirst.uct.ac.za/dataportal/index.php Taniguchi, H. 2012. The determinants of formal and informal volunteering: evidence from the American time use survey, Voluntas: International Journal of Voluntary
and Nonprofit Organizations, 23 (4), 920-939.
Toraldo, M.L., Contu, A and Mangia, G. 2016. The hybrid nature of volunteering: Exploring its voluntary exchange nature at music festivals,Nonprofit andvoluntary sector quarterly. Published online first DOI: 10.1177/0899764016649688.
United Nations. 2016. Youth and migration. New York.
Volunteering Australia, 2015. The National Standards for Volunteer Involvement. April 2015 www.volunteeringaustralia.org
VOSESA. 2011. Volunteer Management Needs Assessment Survey among South African civil society organisations. VOSESA: Johannesburg.
Wilkinson-Maposa, S. and Fowler, A. 2009. The Poor Philanthropist II: New approaches to sustainable development. Cape Town, South Africa: University of Cape Town and the Southern Africa-United States Centre for Leadership and Public Values.
Wilkinson-Maposa, S. 2005. The rich is not the only ones who can help the poor, Sunday Times: Business Section, 13 February, 2005, p. 6.
Wilkinson-Maposa, S., Fowler, A., Oliver-Evans, C., and Mulenga, C.F.N. 2005. The poor philanthropist: How and why the poor help each other. Cape Town, South Africa: University of Cape Town & the Southern Africa-United States Centre for Leadership and Public Values.Wilson J. 2000. Volunteering, Annual review of sociology, 26