Survey on volunteering in Panama

In Panama, the participation of Istmeños in voluntary social and environmental activities has increased in recent years.

At least that’s how it is III National survey of volunteeringwas published by the Volunteers of Panama Foundation.

34% of Panamanians older than 15 years donated their time as volunteers in the past year, according to the survey.

This represents an increase of 13 percentage points compared to 2017, the last year in which the survey was applied.

Panamanian volunteers contributed a annual average of 36 hours to various social and environmental causes.

The provinces where the most volunteering is registered are Panama, Chiriquí, Panama Oeste, Colón and Veraguas.

“The results show that Panamanians are increasingly becoming more constructively involved in improving the country,” said Carolina Freire, founder and director of Volunteers of Panama.’

The survey, conducted by Volunteers of Panama every five years since 2012, aims to measure the rate of voluntary participation in the country and characterize volunteering practices. The poll was conducted face-to-face by Gallup Panama on 1,274 people over the age of 15 in the national territory, excluding indigenous regions due to accessibility. The measurement is carried out in accordance with the Manual for measuring voluntary work of the International Labor Organization.

“It is encouraging to know that those who volunteer are also more involved in other areas of civic life,” he added.

He noted, “These results also demonstrate the importance of volunteerism as a powerful instrument for promoting individual leadership and participatory democracy.”

Causes of greatest interest

– Panamanian volunteers provide support, in a larger proportion, to goals related to children and youth (24%), education (13%), environment and climate change (11%), human rights (7%) and animal welfare (6%). ), among other things.

– 65% direct their support through an organization, whether it is their school or university (31%), a religious organization (25%), an NGO (18%), their company (13%) or through a local association or government.

– 85% of Panamanian volunteers volunteer personally. Compared to the 2017 survey, virtual volunteering increased from 3% to 5%.

Namely

III. The National Volunteer Survey was conducted by the Fundación Voluntarios de Panamá, with the support of the Ministry of Social Development, led by the National Council of Volunteers, United Way Panama and the Panama Chamber of Social Development.