Project profile — Cuso International - Volunteer Cooperation 2020-2028

• Benin (10.90%)
• Congo, Democratic Republic (11.07%)
• Cameroon (10.90%)
• Colombia (7.28%)
• Ethiopia (10.57%)
• Honduras (7.76%)
• Jamaica (8.81%)
• Nigeria (11.56%)
• Peru (10.08%)
• Tanzania (11.07%)

• Population Policies/Programmes And Reproductive Health: Reproductive health care (13020) (10.80%)
• Democratic participation and civil society:
Democratic participation and civil society (15150) (27.00%)
Human rights (15160) (11.14%)
Women's rights organisations and movements, and government institutions (15170) (11.23%)
• Other Social Infrastructure And Services: Employment policy and administrative management (16020) (18.30%)
• General Environmental Protection: Environmental education/training (41081) (10.89%)
• Unallocated/ Unspecified: Promotion of development awareness (99820) (10.64%)

• Gender equality (significant objective)
• Participatory development and good governance (significant objective)
• Climate Change Adaptation (significant objective)
• Youth Issues (significant objective)
• Environmental sustainability (cross-cutting) (principal objective)

This project aims to improve the economic and social well-being of the poorest, most marginalized and vulnerable people, especially women and girls, in developing countries, with a view to contributing to the Sustainable Development Goals. Through the support of 1,037 volunteer placements, it increases the participation of Canadians in international development and global issues and enhances the performance of 120 developing country partners to deliver more inclusive, innovative and environmentally sustainable development initiatives that promote gender equality. Partners include feminist organizations promoting women's economic empowerment, women's rights and the prevention of sexual and gender-based violence; national volunteer organizations promoting the social inclusion of marginalized groups in development efforts and the empowerment of women and girls ; youth associations that promote human rights, political participation of young women and marginalized groups as well as the sexual and reproductive health and rights of young women and girls; key professional associations that promote economic empowerment, rights and leadership of young women; and key climate change organizations that promote women's participation, climate change mitigation and adaptation measures and sustainable management of natural resources. Project activities include : (1) recruiting and training volunteers with a focus on gender equality; (2) providing technical assistance to partners in developing countries to strengthen knowledge, policies and processes to integrate a human rights-based and transformative approach to gender equality; (3) providing technical assistance to partners in developing countries to strengthen local, national and international coordination mechanisms, platforms, networks and alliances to advance gender equality agendas; (4) implementing a public engagement and knowledge-sharing strategy to engage Canadians and organizations on international development and gender equality issues, lessons learned and good practices; (5) establishing thematic funds to support sub-projects to maximize the impact and sustainability of technical assistance provided by volunteers; and (6) organizing multi-stakeholder meetings on policy and programming and support the development of knowledge and learning products.

The expected outcome for this project include: (1) increased performance of partners in developing countries in implementing development initiatives that are more inclusive, innovative and environmentally sustainable, and that advance gender equality; and (2) increased participation of Canadians in international development and key global issues.

Results achieved as of March 2025 include: (1) completed 736 volunteer mandates to support 127 local partners; (2) 98% of local partners declared or demonstrated new or improved development initiatives that advance gender equality; (3) 86% of developing country partners reported and demonstrated improved organizational practices through the Volunteer Cooperation Programme’s support; and (4) mobilized 1,251,910Canadians through engagement activities on informed actions to support international development.

• Proactive disclosure