Home News New platform SAVAN will support international development volunteering in Slovakia
The second half of May once again belonged to Volunteer Week in Slovakia. Alongside activities at national, regional and local level, there is also a form of volunteering that extends beyond national borders – international development volunteering. The newly established SAVAN platform will connect former and future volunteers working in SlovakAid partner countries and create a space for sharing experiences, inspiration, and community building.
The SAVAN platform was created with the aim of increasing awareness of international development volunteering, connecting alumni of volunteer missions, and motivating more people to engage in volunteering activities abroad in low-income countries around the world.
The initiative is led by the civic association DocUnion, headed by Dr. Boba M. Baluchová, who has long been active in international development and volunteering as a researcher and lecturer.
“The acronym SAVAN can be expanded in English as ‘Slovak Aid Volunteers Alumni Network’. It is a network of former volunteers offering space for further learning, experience sharing, and cooperation. At the same time, it serves as a practical tool for future volunteers, who can use the database to explore sending organisations, volunteering opportunities, and stories of people working directly in the field,” explains the platform’s founder Boba M. Baluchová.
The platform will include an alumni network, a database of volunteering opportunities, a series of field interviews, webinars, podcasts, and a planned volunteering Reunion. SAVAN aims to support discussion, networking, and active engagement in volunteering. More information on activities and opportunities to get involved is available on the platform’s website www.savan.sk.
International development volunteering has long been part of the Official Development Assistance of the Slovak Republic. Its goal is to support local communities in partner countries through the professional knowledge, experience, and practical assistance of deployed volunteers and experts.
Within the national Volunteer and Expert Volunteer Deployment Programme to developing countries, launched by the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs of the Slovak Republic in 2012, Slovak non-governmental organisations have sent hundreds of volunteers abroad for periods ranging from three to twelve months. They have worked mainly in healthcare, education, agriculture, IT, and communications, depending on the needs of partner organisations and communities.
“Over nearly fifteen years of the programme’s implementation, more than three hundred volunteers have been deployed with the support of the Slovak Republic under SlovakAid in 28 programme and partner countries. More than two-thirds of them worked in Africa. This is why we consider it important to highlight their work and bring their stories to the public,” said Boba M. Baluchová.
The establishment of the platform also symbolically follows the declaration of 2026 as the International Year of Volunteering for Sustainable Development (IVY 2026) by the United Nations.
The creation and management of the SAVAN platform is implemented by DocUnion with the support of the Slovak Agency for International Development Cooperation (SAIDC).