Our programme of work in Sri Lanka which was funded by the Scottish Government's International Development Fund is now almost complete. The main focus of this programme has been the long-term support and rehabilitation of tsunami-impacted communities, through the development of local organisations.
The international and local response to the 2004 Boxing Day tsunami was outstanding. CWW is building the capacity of local organisations to build thriving, sustainable communities for the future. Over the last year CWW has recruited over 30 business professionals to undertake organisational development work through 3 to 6 month assignments with our partner organisations.
The first volunteers departed in May 2007. The work of 2 of the early volunteers - Will and Emma was case studied in a Glasgow Herald article ”Development sustained with high-level skills.” (Tuesday 14 August). In the article Will and Emma talk about the challenges they faced, the value of the work and how the work overseas helped their own career development.
Since May, over 30 volunteers have completed their 3-6 month longassignments. Sharing a range of skills from IT to Communications, Business Development and Project Management, the first five volunteers worked with 4 different local civil society organisations supporting their growth and development.
The volunteers who have returned have been great at working with us to raise awareness of the programme and to share their experiences of working in Sri Lanka through events we have held (sponsored by Hudson) in Edinburgh and Glasgow. We hope to continue these events in Aberdeen and the central belt early in the new year, so if you are keen to attend, please just contact the office on 0845 2000 342.
We have also started to collate case studies from volunteers as they return. This all forms part of our monitoring and evaluation of the programme to demonstrate the effectiveness of our model both for our Sri Lankan partners and the volunteers who participate. You can read a case study from Thalia Leibeg - a Project Manager from Brighton who has recently completed an assignment with the Women's Development Federation in Hambantota by going to our Case Studies page or by clicking Thalia's Case Study
You can also download a Partner case study (below) which tells the story of how Thalia's, and also Volunteers Andrew and Francesa and Volunteer currently on placement Anne's work is supporting the development of WDF through our Partner and Volunteer Case study.
During the programme a series of suitably skilled professionals will be placed with 16 local partner organisations. We have a limited number of assignments left for high quality professionals who are adaptable and dynamic. The work is challenging and hard and volunteers have to make the most of limited resources.
With the Scottish Executive funding, living expenses, insurance, visas and training are provided, and volunteers only need pay for their flights and any personal expenditure.
For further information, please call the CWW team on 0845 2000 342 or email Recruitment Co-ordinator Kirsty Summers kirsty@challengesworldwide.com
During the programme a series of suitably skilled professionals will be placed with 16 local partner organisations. We have a limited number of assignments left for high quality professionals who are adaptable and dynamic. The work is challenging and hard and volunteers have to make the most of limited resources. 