A scheme offering young people from Scotland the chance to join volunteering projects in the Third World has been opened by the Prime Minister. The International Citizen Service will enable 18 to 22-year-olds to work as volunteers for 10 to 12 weeks in a developing country on projects to improve the lives of the world’s poorest people.
The scheme aims to contribute towards reducing poverty overseas as well as to broaden the horizons of the volunteers and to develop team working and other skills, which will be valued by future employers.
David Cameron said: “I want young people from this country to have the chance to really understand the challenges faced by people in very poor countries, by living and working alongside them to improve their lives.”
Endorsing the scheme yesterday, Lindon Rennie, from Glasgow, who recently returned from volunteering in Nigeria, said: “This is a brilliant opportunity and I would urge people to apply. I went to Nigeria and worked on HIV awareness, with street kids and on sanitation projects. I felt I made a real difference in the communities we worked in. The experience really changed my life. It built up my confidence, self-esteem and team working skills and helped me to secure a new, more senior, role in London.”