B.

facilitate the development, for that purpose, of the following lines of action, while having due regard for their national frameworks and legislation in the field of voluntary activities, and their overall national priorities, existing local opportunities and public expenditure regimes: 1. improve the level of knowledge of voluntary activities within their national territories and transfer this information to the European Commission for further dissemination; 2. make information on opportunities for voluntary activities abroad easily accessible to young people and to those active in youth work and in youth organisations; 3. make information available to all the relevant actors on the rights and opportunities that arise from existing provisions at European and national level on cross-border voluntary activities; 4. promote the exchange of information on the opportunities for voluntary activities in other Member States and the simplification of the procedures to be followed with the aim of making it easier for young volunteers of a Member State to take part in voluntary activities in other Member States; 5. adopt, where appropriate, a flexible approach to developing opportunities for cross-border voluntary activities in Europe, for example by: — supporting the development of the hosting capacity for cross-border volunteers, — supporting the creation of contact points for young European volunteers, in connection, if feasible, with National Agencies of the Youth in Action Programme, — promoting the use of existing European mechanisms that can help youth mobility, such as, for instance, mobility cards, — promoting the cross-border mobility of those active in youth work and in youth organisations, — supporting the development of information and training, for those active in youth work, youth organisations, local authorities and civic services, on the cross-border voluntary activities of young people; 6. increase awareness of the importance of intercultural competences and language learning among young people in order to reduce barriers to their cross-border mobility; 7. encourage organisers of voluntary activities to develop self-assessment tools, taking into account the EVS experience, in order to ensure the quality of the cross-border voluntary activities they are taking part in; 8. encourage organisers in both sending and receiving Member States to cooperate in providing assurances about the protection of young volunteers and service recipients. This should include sufficient information about the voluntary activity, its organisers and the volunteer, so as to enable both parties to make an informed decision about the activity's suitability and meet any legal requirements; 9. examine further relevant social protection provisions through the appropriate existing EU fora with a view to making full use of the possibilities under EU and national legislation; 10. promote the appropriate recognition of learning outcomes of voluntary activities, in line with Community provisions and within the respective national systems or frameworks for qualifications, where existing; 11. promote the use of instruments at EU level that can facilitate cross-border voluntary activities by ensuring the transparency of qualifications, such as Europass, Youthpass and the European Qualifications Framework; 12. give particular attention to young people with fewer opportunities in order to enhance their access to voluntary activities and especially to cross-border voluntary activities.