Systemic Enablers: Case of Volunteering in Lithuania
Any non-profit organization can sign a bilateral volunteering agreement and recruit volunteers. Each organization foresees the need for volunteers and the corresponding profile, and during a face-to-face meeting, the expectations of both sides are discussed: tasks, scope of activities, timetable, communication, matching the capabilities of both parties.
Volunteers can find an organization of interest independently in the dedicated database and contact the organization directly or the Voluntary Service Organization (VSO) in their county or municipality .
Volunteering can take many forms - volunteering and voluntary service, national and international volunteering, short and long-term volunteering. Each form has its own advantages, so it is important to choose not only a topic but also a form that suits the needs of the volunteer. Voluntary service programs are open to Lithuanian citizens aged 14 and over and persons under 18 can volunteer if their legal representatives do not object as stipulated in the Law on Voluntary Activities of the Republic of Lithuania (XI-1500). Volunteers must comply with the rules of the host organization and prepare themselves properly for the specific activity. The host organization undertakes the responsibility to explain the rules, train the volunteers in the activity and provide them with the tools they need to carry out the activity.
In July 2024, an updated Law on Voluntary Activities of the Republic of Lithuania came into force, defining the activities of the coordinating organization (usually an NGO) and distinguishing between short-term and long-term volunteering.
Youth voluntary service
Youth Voluntary Service (YVS) is an intensive 6-month program for young people aged between 14 and 29, where they volunteer for at least 35 hours a month at an accredited host organization of their choice. The YVS program offers the opportunity not only to discover an activity you like, but also to get to know yourself better and develop general competences.
The organization commits to a 40-hour per month volunteering schedule that matches the volunteer's competences and is meaningful for both parties. A mentor is assigned to the volunteer to train, develop and support him/her during the service. Volunteers meet regularly with their mentor and learn to overcome difficulties.
Participation in the YVS program (6 months) earns 0.25 entry points to Lithuanian higher education institutions and counts as civic and social activities at schools.
The European Solidarity Corps
The European Solidarity Corps is a European Union-sponsored program that aims to give young people opportunities to develop themselves by helping others. It is open to all young people aged between 18 and 30. More information:
https://www.solidarumokorpusas.lt/.
Volunteering experiences in Lithuanian schools
Starting in the 2017–2018 school year, the general curriculum of primary and secondary schools includes compulsory practical socio-civic activities, which are measured in hours.
Social and civic activities are mandatory for pupils in the basic education program, with a minimum of 10 hours per school year, depending on their grade. Schools can assign more hours based on pupils' age.
From 2024–2025, all pupils in grades 5–10 will need at least 20 hours. Secondary school students must complete at least 70 hours over two years. These activities should be recorded and can be done individually or in groups, often in cooperation with associations or local authorities. Voluntary service, with proof, can also be counted.
The general curriculum for elementary and secondary schools includes specific socio-civic activities designed to develop students' competences through practical activities. These include civic engagement, which develops decision-making skills and motivation to participate in school and local community activities; civic knowledge is implemented through practical or project-based activities in cooperation with various children's and young people's organizations, interest groups, government and local authorities; media and information literacy; and social/charitable activities aim to develop the values of respect, caring for and helping others.
Pupils routinely record the hours of socio-civic activities they have completed by filling in a dedicated sheet. However, only a small number of pupils reflect on their activities by writing evaluations or reflections, or by keeping a competence journal. Pupils tend to follow teachers' recommendations on which activities to carry out, and they also tend to choose their own activities from a list provided or to rely on the recommendations of subject teachers. The usual choice of activities is school based, although extracurricular activities may now be required in three areas of social citizenship. Students in large cities are more likely than others to choose activities outside school, as there is a lack of out-of-school activities in smaller areas.
The coordination of socio-civic activities is the responsibility of the tutor, or another person designated by the head of school. Their role is to help the pupil to plan and evaluate his or her activities and, if the social-civic activities are carried out outside the school, keep in contact with representatives of the organizations and take an interest in how the pupils are doing.
The situation in Finland
Services promoting digitalisation
The Digital and Population Data Services Agency promotes the digitalisation of society and electronic services in Finland.
The agency service design team helps public administration organisations that need support in improving the customer orientation of the organisation or its services and its strategic reform.
The agency also coordinates a national digital support network. The task and aim of the work are to have the same opportunities to use digital services for everyone in Finland and, when necessary, to get help in the use of e-services flexibly and at a time that is best for them. Digital services and digital skills are for everyone.
To steer and manage the development of government digitalisation, the Digital and Population Data Services Agency forms a situational picture of data management for public administration by compiling information from studies and evaluations on public administration data management, the management of data, information security, and e-transaction services. The data is used as a knowledge base for the supervision of development of government digitalisation and in the services of the Digital and Population Data Services Agency and other organisations that produce shared services.
Government report: Digital Compass
A Digital Compass was drawn up to direct and manage the development of the digital transformation in Finland. The work was steered by the ministerial working group on developing the digital transformation, the data economy and public administration. The Compass was prepared by a coordination group for digitalisation.
The Digital Compass is based on European values and the programme – Digital Decade 2030. It steers the development work and strengthens the shared understanding of the benefits, concepts and direction of digitalisation and the data economy. It also sets out priorities for Finland's advocacy work in the European Union.
The report indicates a common roadmap for the development of digitalisation and the data economy in Finland. According to the vision, Finland is building a digitally capable country that is attractive, competitive, sustainable and prosperous.
Achieving the objectives set for the Digital Compass calls for extensive systemic change; determined cooperation with the public and private sectors, universities, research institutes and organisations. To accelerate digitalisation and the data economy, Finland needs investments and cross-sectoral practices.
Priority of digital communications by public authorities
The work began after Prime Minister Petteri Orpo's Government Programme stated that Finland will gradually make digital services the primary channel for accessing public authorities' services. In this context, this refers to notifications from public authorities to citizens. The aim is that citizens who use e-services will primarily receive notifications sent by public authorities electronically. At the same time, alternative channels for communicating and for accessing services will be available for people who are unable to use digital services and communication channels.
To achieve this objective, the Ministry of Finance has launched the Programme to Promote Primarily Digital Official Communications for the period from 27 April 2024 to 31 December 2027. In addition to developing legislation, the programme is tasked with developing
Suomi.fi messages in a customer-oriented manner, providing instruction and advice to citizens and public authorities on the use of the service, and providing digital support to citizens in switching to digital official communications.