REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL Annual report on the implementation of the EU Aid Volunteers Initiative in 2016
Date: 2017-06-12
Institutions: Directorate-General for European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations (ECHO), European Commission
Subjects: EU aid, EU initiative, activity report, foreign aid, humanitarian aid, man-made disaster, natural disaster, non-governmental organisation, third country, voluntary organisation

EN 

   EN 

   EUROPEAN COMMISSION  Brussels, 12.6.2017  COM(2017) 313 final   REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL Annual report on the implementation of the EU Aid Volunteers Initiative in 2016  
 
 
I. Introduction 

As  envisaged  by  the  Treaty  of  Lisbon1,  the  European  Union  established  the  EU  Aid 
Volunteers  (EUAV)  initiative  in  20142.  It  aims  to  strengthen  the  EU’s  ability  to  provide 
needs-based humanitarian aid and to strengthen the capacity and resilience of vulnerable or 
disaster-affected  communities  in  non-EU  countries.  At  the  same  time  it  allows  European 
citizens to show solidarity with people in need by taking part in humanitarian action in these 
countries.  

Article 27  of  Regulation  (EU)  No 375/2014  requires  the  Commission  to  submit  annual 
reports to the European Parliament and to the Council on the progress made in implementing 
the Regulation. 

The initiative began operations in 2016 when the first volunteers were trained and deployed 
outside  of  the  EU.  This  is  the  third  annual  report  outlining  the  main  activities  and 
achievements in the implementation of the EUAV initiative3.  

The  report  is  based  on  data  that  is  collected  and  analysed  in  line  with  a  framework  for  the 
monitoring  of  the  implementation  of  actions  under  the  initiative.  The  framework  was 
established  and  agreed  upon  between  the  Commission  and  the  Education,  Audiovisual  and 
Culture Agency (EACEA), which is responsible for managing most of the operations of the 
initiative.  

II. Objectives and priorities  

The activities were based on the 2016 annual work programme for implementing the EUAV 
initiative adopted by the Commission4 in accordance with Article 21(3) of Regulation (EU) 
No 375/2014 and Article 84(2) of the Financial Regulation5. EUR 16 885 000 was set aside 
in the budget to implement the initiative, which aimed to help: 

  strengthen resilience and disaster risk management in vulnerable, fragile or disaster-

affected countries and forgotten crises;  

  select, train and deploy volunteers;  
  strengthen the capacities of organisations hosting volunteers in non-EU countries and 
provide technical assistance to organisations based in the EU Member States that send 
volunteers abroad;  

1   Article 214 (5) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union: "In order to establish a framework for joint contributions from 
young Europeans to the humanitarian aid operations of the Union, a European Voluntary Humanitarian Aid Corps shall be set up. The 
European  Parliament  and  the  Council,  acting  by  means  of  regulations  in  accordance  with  the  ordinary  legislative  procedure,  shall 
determine the rules and procedures for the operation of the Corps.". 

2   Regulation  (EU)  No 375/2014  of  the  European  Parliament  and  of  the  Council  of  3  April  2014  establishing  the  European  Voluntary 
Humanitarian  Aid  Corps  ("EU  Aid  Volunteers  initiative")  (OJ  L  122,  24.4.2014,  p.  1).  Commission  Delegated  Regulation  (EU)  No 
1398/2014 of 24 October 2014 laying down standards regarding candidate volunteers and EU Aid Volunteers (OJ L 373, 31.12.2014, p. 
8).  Commission  Implementing  Regulation  (EU)  No  1244/2014  of  20  November  2014  laying  down  rules  for  the  implementation  of 
Regulation  (EU)  No  375/2014  of  the  European  Parliament  and  of  the  Council  of  3  April  2014  establishing  the  European  Voluntary 
Humanitarian Aid Corps ("EU Aid Volunteers initiative") (OJ L 334, 21.11.2014, p. 52). 

3   Annual report on the implementation of the EU Aid Volunteers initiative in 2014, COM(2015)335 of 13.07.2015 and Annual report on 

the implementation of the EU Aid Volunteers initiative in 2015, COM(2016)436 of 30.06.2016 

4   Commission  Implementing  Decision  C(2015)9058  of  15.12.2015  concerning  the  adoption  of  the  2016  work  programme  and  the 

financing for the implementation of the EU Aid Volunteers initiative 

5   Regulation (EU, EURATOM) No 966/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 25 October 2012 on the financial rules 
applicable to the general budget of the Union and repealing Council Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1605/2002. (OJ L 298, 26.10.2012) 

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 
 
 

certify sending and hosting organisations;  
establish the EU Aid Volunteers platform and various communication activities; 
implement  the  training  programme  for  candidate  volunteers  funded  under  the  2015 
work programme. 

III. Actions implemented in 2016 

The actions presented in sections 1-5 below are delegated to and implemented by EACEA in 
cooperation with the Commission6.  

EACEA is responsible for the calls for proposals, calls for tender, contract management and 
implementing  the  corresponding  budget  appropriations  in  line  with  the  annual  work 
programmes adopted by the Commission. In terms of managing operations, the Commission 
remains directly responsible for establishing the partners and volunteers' network, the online 
platform and communications.  

1.  Certification 

All  organisations  wishing  to  send  or  host  volunteers  under  the  EUAV  initiative  must  be 
certified7. The certification of sending and hosting organisations began in 2015 and continued 
throughout  2016.  It  verifies  that  the  high  standards  and  efficient  procedures  of  volunteer 
management  that  are  established  to  protect  and  manage  volunteers  during  their  deployment 
under the EUAV initiative can be fully achieved by all participating organisations8.  

The objective of the call for applications, published in January 2015, was to compile a list of 
100 certified sending and hosting organisations wishing to participate in the EUAV initiative. 
By the end of 2016, 82 organisations were certified - 23 sending organisations and 59 hosting 
organisations9.  One  application  was  rejected.  The  evaluation  of  a  further  nine  applications 
submitted in 2016 will be finalised in 2017.  

Applications  for  certification  will  continue  to  be  accepted  until  30  September,  2020. 
Therefore, the process is regularly monitored and improved based of the experience shared by 
stakeholders.  As  a  follow  up  to  dialogue  with  the  participants  in  the  EUAV  initiative  and 
their  regular  feedback,  the  process  was  simplified  and  the  electronic  forms  for  submitting 
applications were made more user-friendly, clear and available in three languages (English, 
French and Spanish).   

6  The  division  of  tasks  between  the  Commission  and  EACEA  is  based  on  Commission  Decision  C  (2013)9189  of  18.12.2013  delegating 
powers  to  the  Education,  Audio-visual  and  Culture  Executive  Agency  with  view  to  performance  of  tasks  linked  to  the  implementation  of 
Union programmes in the field of education, audio-visual and culture comprising, in particular, implementation of appropriations entered 
in the general budget of the Union and of the EDF allocations.  

7 Article 10 of Regulation (EU) No 375/2014; Articles 32 and 33 of Delegated Regulation (EU) No 1398/2014 

8 https://eacea.ec.europa.eu/sites/eacea-site/files/certification-call-announcement-012115.pdf  

9http://eacea.ec.europa.eu/eu-aid-volunteers/selection-results/selection-results-certification-mechanism-for-sending-and-hosting-

organisations_en  

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2.  Technical assistance/Capacity building 

The  EUAV  initiative  provides  opportunities  for  capacity  building  for  hosting  organisations 
and  technical  assistance  for  sending  organisations10.  The  objective  is  to  strengthen  the 
abilities  of  the  organisations  intending  to  participate  in  the  initiative  and  to  ensure  they 
comply  with  the  standards  and  procedures  established  for  the  EUAV  initiative.  A  call  for 
proposals  (EACEA/27/2016)  was  published  on  30  April  201611  providing  a  total  budget  of 
EUR  7  960  000  for  the  co-financing  of  projects  for  capacity  building  for  hosting 
organisations and technical assistance for sending organisations in different areas such as: 

  disaster risk management  
  volunteer management 
  ability to undergo certification 
 
  building partnerships 
  communication activities.  

tools and methods to assess needs 

By  4  July  2016  (the  deadline  for  applications),  eight  applications  were  submitted.  Five 
projects  (three  for  technical  assistance  and  two  for  capacity  building)  with  a  total  of  39 
implementing  partners  were  selected  for  co-funding  with  a  total  EU  grant  of  EUR  2  845 
68912.  

The  technical  assistance  projects  for  EU-based  organisations  focus  on  strengthening  and 
improving these organisations' procedures, volunteer management practices and ability to be 
certified.  Partnership  and  alliance-building  amongst  organisations  is  a  clear  priority  area, 
which organisations wish to develop.  

Other  areas  which  organisations  intend  to  strengthen  include  the  setting  of  standards 
governing the management of partnerships, needs assessments, programme management and 
the development of local volunteering. The projects that develop the skills and capabilities of 
organisations  based  in  non-EU  countries  are  also  focused  on  building  partnerships  and 
forming  alliances.  By  building  close  partnerships  during  the  projects,  partners  may  launch 
new  joint  projects  under  the  EUAV  initiative,  particularly  deployment  activities.  They  will 
act  as  ambassadors  within  their  respective  networks  and  help  to  improve  best  practice 
according to EU standards. 

Case study: The project "More and Better EU Aid Volunteers" is headed by GVC (Italy) and is implemented by 
eight partner organisations from eight different countries: Spain, Portugal, Estonia, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania, 
Slovenia,  Hungary  and  one  associate  from  Italy.  The  project  aims  to  strengthen  capabilities  of  present  and 
future  sending  organisations  to  undertake  Humanitarian  Aid  activities,  participate  in  the  EU  Aid  Volunteers 
initiative, and understand and apply the standards and procedures required to become a sending organisation. 

Case  study:  The  EU  Aid  Volunteers  Capacity  Building  project  called  "Reinforcement  and  Sustainability  in 
Humanitarian Volunteering Management" (HVM) aims at strengthening partners from the Balkans, Caucasus 
and the Maghreb in different fields linked to humanitarian volunteering management. 

10 Article 10 and 15 of  Regulation (EU) No 375/2014  

11 OJ C 155, 30.4.2016, p. 6. 

12 https://eacea.ec.europa.eu/sites/eacea-site/files/selection_results_2016_0.pdf  

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Together with 10 projects selected for funding in 2015 involving 88 partners, there are now in 
total  15  projects  in  total  operating  in  2016.  44  organisations  (under  technical  assistance 
projects)  and  85  organisations  (under  capacity  building  projects)  are  involved  in  these 
projects to strengthen their management and operational systems, and to work in partnership 
to implement best practices in humanitarian aid delivery and volunteer management.  

From  spring  2017,  the  first  projects  that  started  activities  in  2015  will  complete  their 
activities. Projects are running according to their general overall work programmes with no 
significant delays reported. 

Organisations involved in: 

  Capacity Building 
  Capacity  Building  and  Technical  Assistance  (EU  countries)  or  Capacity  Building  and 

Deployment (non-EU countries) 

  Technical Assistance only 
  Deployment only 

3.  Deployment 

Deploying volunteers is one of the main activities under the EUAV initiative. The objective 
is to select, prepare and deploy junior and senior volunteers to contribute to strengthening the 
EU's  capacity  to  provide  needs-based  humanitarian  aid  and  to  strengthen  the  ability  and 
resilience of vulnerable and disaster-affected communities in non-EU countries.  

Two  deployment  projects  selected  for  funding  under  the  2015  call  for  proposals  were 
operating  in  2016.  They  were  run  by  groups  of  sending  and  hosting  organisations13.  Under 
these projects 44 volunteers were selected and trained, with the first deployments starting in 
December, 2016. EU aid volunteers are participating in projects in 13 countries outside of the 
EU:  Angola,  Bolivia,  Cambodia,  Ecuador,  Haiti,  Jordan,  Lebanon,  Malawi,  Nicaragua, 

13 The full list of participating organisations per project: https://eacea.ec.europa.eu/sites/eacea-site/files/deployment.pdf 

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Senegal, Sierra Leone, Tunisia, and Turkey. These volunteers have different profiles and are 
working  in  various  areas.  For  example,  they  support  their  hosting  organisation  in  project 
management, food security and nutrition, communication, logistics, urban resilience, gender 
issues, and disaster risk management.    

A  call  for  proposals  (EACEA/14/2016)  was  published  on  17  March  201614,  with  a  total 
budget  of  EUR  8  400  000  to  co-finance  projects  that  deploy  EU  aid  volunteers,  including 
apprenticeship  placements  for  junior  professionals  and  capacity  building  and/or  technical 
assistance  for  organisations  implementing  the  initiative.  The  call  for  proposals  had  two 
rounds  with  two  deadlines  (17  May  and  1  September,  2016).  Four  projects  involving  71 
partners were selected for co-funding with a total EU grant of EUR 4 920 35615. Under these 
projects 162 volunteers will be deployed to non-EU countries in 2017 and 2018.  

Deployment of EU Aid Volunteers 2016 

  EU Partner countries 
  Countries of Deployment 

4.  External evaluators  

The 2016 annual work programme provides funding to support the management of calls for 
proposals  for  certification,  deployment,  technical  assistance  and  capacity  building.  All 
eligible applications received are subject to independent external evaluation which helps with 
the decisions on whether to award or reject certification or to select projects for funding. 

14 OJ C 101, 17.3.2016, p. 6. 

15 https://eacea.ec.europa.eu/sites/eacea-site/files/selection_results_euav_deployment_2016_2.pdf  

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Each  year  a  pool  of  experts  with  at least  35 %  of  it  consisting  of  new evaluators  is  set  up. 
Each evaluator is selected following an evaluation of their curriculum vitae which takes into 
consideration: 

the level and field of their studies 

 
  professional experience in the humanitarian aid field 
  prior work as evaluator 
 
languages spoken.  

All  experts  in  the  pool  are  briefed  on  the  programme,  the  evaluation  process  and  the 
evaluation tools, and are guided through the process by an Expert Handbook. 68 applications 
for certification, deployment, capacity  building, and technical assistance projects have been 
evaluated by 18 experts. 

EACEA  has  an  open  call  for  expression  of  interest  in  order  to  establish  a  database  of 
evaluators with a high level of expertise EACEA programmes. Such a database would help to 
speed up the creation of the annual expert pool. 

5.  Training Programme 

In May 2016, a contract to provide training for EU aid volunteer candidates was signed with 
a consortium comprising ICF Consulting Services Ltd (ICF), MDF Training and Consultancy 
BV  (MDF),  with  Punto.sud,  Gesellschaft  fur  Organisation,  Planung  und  Ausbildung  mbH 
Consulting  (GOPA),  with  B&S  Europe,  the  Austrian  Study  Centre  for  Peace  and  Conflict 
Resolution  (ASPR)  and  the  Scuola  Superiore  Sant’Anna  (SSSUP).  97  candidate  volunteers 
were trained in four groups in October and November/December 2016, in Pisa. The number 
of  candidate  volunteers  trained  was  higher  than  the  planned  number  of  volunteers  to  be 
deployed in order to deal with possible dropouts and candidate volunteers who were deemed 
unfit  for  deployment  following  the  training  assessment,  and  to  ensure  the  successful  and 
timely roll-out of deployment projects.  

The EU Aid Volunteers training programme is based on a competence framework laid down 
in  Delegated  Regulation  1398/2014.  It  is  being  delivered  through  a  combined  learning 
approach based on: 

  20 hours of online learning as part of an introductory learning period; 
  9 to 12 days of face-to-face classroom modules comprised of mandatory and optional 

training modules; 

  a scenario–based exercise in the field16.  

The  training  included  mandatory  modules  1-7  as  well  as  optional  modules  8,  9  and  12. 
Feedback from the volunteers trained was very positive with an evaluation score of 8.5 out of 
10. Detailed feedback provided by volunteers and trainers on each training module will allow 
for  the  further  refining  of  some  of  the  modules,  in  order  to  continuously  improve  this 
important part of the EUAV initiative.       

16 Annex II of  Implementing Regulation (EU) No 1244/2014 

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6.  Support Measures 

The  amount  committed  in  2016  for  support  measures  aimed  at  information  and  awareness 
raising among potential beneficiaries and the development of the EU Aid Volunteers platform 
was EUR 417 015. 

Through  these  actions  relevant  participants  were  informed  about  opportunities  to  become 
involved  in  the  initiative,  and  the  initiative's  platform  and  database,  online  volunteering 
scheme  and  partner/volunteer  network  for  the  EU  Aid  Volunteers  initiative  were  further 
developed.  

The  Commission  has  continued to  gather  stakeholder  input on  the  initiative:  for  example  it 
held a round-table discussion on the application process in January 2016. The organisations 
involved  provided  feedback  on  the  challenges  they  met  when  applying  for  certification  or 
submitting proposals for deployment, capacity building and technical assistance. Suggestions 
were made on possible solutions and improvements for smooth and effective participation. 

Furthermore,  the  Commission  organised  information  events  for  organisations  about  the 
funding  opportunities  available  under  the  EUAV  initiative.  Two  'Info  Days'  on  the 
deployment call for proposals and the certification for sending and hosting organisations and 
on capacity building and technical assistance took place on 5 April and 1 June 2016 at DG 
ECHO's premises. Both events were web-streamed allowing those organisations not present 
to follow the presentations remotely and ask questions.  

On  5  December  2016,  the  International  Volunteer  Day,  the  Commission  organised  an 
information  session  providing  updates  on  the  latest  developments  concerning  the  EU  aid 
volunteers and encouraging organisations to get involved. Aside from gathering information 
organisations had the opportunity to network and to facilitate future partnerships. 

The initiative's spread and outreach were broadened through its participation in various major 
events, such as the World Humanitarian Summit (Istanbul, May 2016), the European Youth 
Event at the European Parliament (Strasbourg, May 2016), the European Development Days 
(Brussels, June 2016), and the AidEx Conference and Exhibition (Brussels, November 2016). 
The  Commission  paid  numerous  visits  to  Member  States,  attended  conferences  and  held 
bilateral meetings with organisations to inform and encourage potential partners to participate 
in the EUAV initiative. 

Information products encouraging potential organisations and volunteers to become involved 
have been produced, and certain events, such as the training of candidate EU aid volunteers 
in Pisa, Italy, in November 2016, provided opportunities to gather volunteer testimonies and 
other communication materials. 

The  key  tool  enabling  the  work  of  the  partners  and  volunteers  network17  is  the  EU  Aid 
Volunteers platform18. It was developed by the Commission and was launched in the summer 
of  2016.  Different  features  and  tools  have  being  gradually  introduced,  e.g.  space  for 

17 Article 16 of  Regulation (EU) No 375/2014 

18 https://webgate.ec.europa.eu/echo/eu-aid-volunteers_en 

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discussions, individual projects, vacancies, volunteer profiles, space for individual projects to 
interact, etc.  The  platform  serves  primarily  as  a  working  environment  for  selected projects, 
certified  organisations  and  volunteers.  However  it  also  provides  ample  networking 
opportunities  to  the  participants  and  those  interested  in  taking  part  in  the  future.  The  up-
coming features will include automatic notifications and satisfaction surveys.  

IV. Conclusions and way forward 

The implementation of the EU Aid Volunteers initiative in 2016 was marked by: 

 

 
 
 

 

the start of the first ten projects on capacity building and technical assistance and the 
first two projects that led to the first EU aid volunteers being deployed; 
the first vacancies for volunteers being published; 
the first training of volunteers and the training programme being implemented; 
the  on-going  certification  process  resulting  in  82  sending  and  hosting  organisations 
becoming certified; 
the launch of the EU Aid Volunteers platform.  

Despite  the  slower  than  expected  uptake  of  programme  opportunities,  organisations  are 
becoming increasingly familiar and confident with the initiative and its uptake is improving 
with many organisations already implementing projects and planning further future activities. 

In  2017  the  initiative  will  continue  to  provide  opportunities  for  more  hosting  and  sending 
organisations  to  benefit  from  capacity  building  and  technical  assistance  projects  and  more 
volunteers to be deployed in non-EU countries. Certifying sending and hosting organisations 
will continue on a rolling basis and the EU Aid Volunteers platform will be maintained and 
developed  further.  Moreover,  the  first  online  volunteering  opportunities  are  expected  to  be 
published in summer 2017. 

The EUAV initiative will be further promoted through communication campaigns. An active 
outreach campaign will aim to improve on the rate of participating organisations from 2016, 
and  increase  the  number  of  projects  funded.  Networking  will  contribute  to  partnership 
building  and  increase  the  number  of  organisations  involved  in  the  initiative.  An  EU  Aid 
Volunteers network workshop took place in February 2017, whereby EUAV participants had 
the  opportunity  to  meet  organisations,  to  interact,  share  experience,  and  build  new 
partnerships.  

An  interim  evaluation  of  the  initiative  by  independent  evaluators  is  currently  underway  as 
required by Regulation 375/2014.  

In line with the work programme for 201719, one of the main objectives will be to contribute 
to  strengthening  resilience  and  disaster  risk  management  in  vulnerable,  fragile  or  disaster 
affected  countries  and  forgotten  crises,  including  actions  in  the  following  stages  of  the 
disaster management cycle:  
  disaster prevention  
  preparedness  

19  Commission  Implementing  Decision  C(2016)8989  of  6.1.2017  concerning  the  adoption  of  the  2017  work  programme  of  the  EU  Aid 

Volunteers initiative 

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  disaster risk reduction 
 
  early warning.  

recovery from natural and man-made disasters 

Deploying EU aid volunteers in non-EU countries in order to support local communities to 
improve their resilience and capabilities to manage disasters will continue to demonstrate the 
Commission's  strong  political  commitment  on  strengthening  resilience  in  these  countries. 
These activities will contribute to: 

improving services and opportunities 

  building better prepared, inclusive, and stable societies 
 
  mitigating risks 
 

reducing suffering and loss.  

More information on the EU Aid Volunteers initiative can be found at the following address: 
http://ec.europa.eu/echo/what/humanitarian-aid/eu-aid-volunteers_en  

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