Help for self -help: How seniors create new opportunities in Venezuela

Help for self -help: How seniors create new opportunities in Venezuela

Los Teques, Venezuela - on December 3, 2024, on the occasion of the Day of the volunteer Projects highlighted in the global south. The program "Senior Experts Austria", which was launched by the Austrian development organization Youth, enables experienced volunteers to bring their expertise in areas such as education, health and craft and to open up new perspectives. Managing Director Reinhard Heierer emphasizes that this collaboration takes place at eye level and should not be perceived as one -sided patronage.

Despite these positive approaches, Venezuela, a main country for many voluntary senior experts, sees itself confronted with a devastating social and economic crisis. Over 8.5 million people have already left the country, and the remaining population suffers from extreme poverty and drastically low wages. Gertrude Brindlmayer, a senior expert who recently worked in Venezuela, describes the worrying conditions. Teachers often only earn between 4 and 9 euros per month, which leads to a chronic lack of teachers and the students are forced to only have lessons two to three days a week, while teachers have to generate additional income on other days to feed their families.

commitment in the need

The Senior Experts Austria program has sent around 60 senior experts to 18 countries to provide sustainable help. These specialists bring their decades of experience in areas such as technology, pedagogy and marketing to help directly on site and to contribute to the solution of many challenges. The operations are usually created for several months up to one year and follow the principle of "help for self -help". Brindlmayer's experiences show that the exchange of knowledge and social skills can have a significant impact on people's living conditions even under difficult conditions.