Empowering Volunteers in Kenya

Empowering Volunteers to Lead  Peer To Peer Program. Presented By Joseck Kweya  Olala & Purity Kavuri Mutuku from the Kenya National Library Service

What is Volunteering

NCVO ( 2013) volunteering is someone who spends time, unpaid accomplishing a certain task or duty with the aim of benefiting someone that they are not closely related.

What are Empowered Volunteers?

Empowering is giving the volunteers responsibility along with authority and resources to accomplish their mission

Who can volunteer?

• Learning Circle beneficiaries
• University/College  Students
• Youth/gang groups leaders
• Library users
• School Leavers
• School Dropouts
• Opinion leaders

How can you empower volunteers?

1. Understand what it means to be a volunteer
   1. Be appreciative of their time
   2. eliminate their frustrations
2. Give up some control-delegate
3. Allow them to work-take their ideas and transform them into a task.
4. Guide their effort and supply their resources –e.g. internet, Laptop, projector, pen, flip charts etc.
5. Motivate yourself to motivate
   1. Others-motivation is contiguous. Volunteers will learn from you
   2. Show enthusiasm/interact with them
   3. Be friendly and open to dialogue with them
   4. Meet frequently with the volunteers
   5. Be a good listener
   6. Concern and respect their opinion

1. Recognize their effort

• Say thank you
• Drop a thank you note, an email or a telephone call
• Recognize them during the meetings/gathering

Benefits of empowering

• Create a greater impact in the communities
• Add credibility to the peer program
• It’s a competitive world out there and other professionals are doing it. Can we afford not to?
• Assist you to plan for the future/ focus further
• Reach more people
• They  support  facilitators to  achieve the objectives and mission of both learning Circles and  your institution
• Raise the awareness about learning circle to the community
• Promote community engagement and partnership
• Promote lifelong reading habits

Common pitfalls to avoid  

• Lack of clarity
• Poor timing
• Targeting the wrong group
• Inappropriate communication methods (Gestures, body movement, lack of consultation)

What can I do if my Volunteers do not become empowered?

• Take it slow
• Remember you are developing leaders
• Dialogue
• Change your approach
• Consult others

Success Story

• More learning circles
• More participants
• Increased library patronage
• Improved library visibility
• Boosted staff morale library has become more vibrant
• Inspired leaders
• Empowered community
• Promotion of National Cohesion and Peace

Contact information

• Joseck.olala@knls.ac.ke ,  +254708392651
• Purity.kavuri@knls.ac.ke ,  +254721286389