By Prisca Promise Mashushu

Lilongwe, January 17, Mana; The Minister of a Labour, Vitumbiko Mumba has said he will push more efforts to revise regulations and policies that support volunteers to have safe working environments.

The Minister said this during the commemoration of volunteer’s day at Airwing Primary School in Lilongwe on Friday.

He said volunteerism is more than just an act of goodwill as it is a driver for sustainable development for a resilient and inclusive economy that the country is envisioning.

“Volunteers play a crucial role in eradicating poverty by engaging in grassroots activities that improve livelihoods and skills development by enabling the empowerment of communities, particularly women and youth.

“For Malawi with abundant youthful human resource, volunteerism has helped to engage the population in a productive way so that we all contribute to the national development,” Mumba explained.

The Executive Director for National Youth Council of Malawi, Rex Chapota, hailed government for its initiative to support volunteers in the country by ensuring inclusivity of youths and women in programmes that promote national developments.

“As a council we are highly involved in the issues of volunteerism since about 80 percent of the volunteers are youths hence a call for measures to ensure that all volunteers in the country are doing their work in a safe environment by receiving the necessary support and resources.

“The government under the Ministry of labour should also continue to ensure that volunteers are safe from physical attacks by making sure that communities are aware of their important roles they play in fostering developments in the country,” he explained.

One of the volunteers, Gomezgani Nkhoma, also applauded the government for its support towards volunteers but has appealed for support at local and national level towards volunteers work in different areas.

“People especially in rural areas lack proper communication when it comes to volunteers something that is compromising their work hence a need for action from all parties to support volunteers from the grassroots levels,” he noted.

The volunteer day, was commemorated under the theme “Volunteer actions towards sustainable and inclusive future”.