1963: Young Voluntueers JVP to SNV

From the Youth Volunteer Programme’ (JVP) to SNV

In 1963, the Dutch Youth Volunteers Program (JVP) was established by the Dutch government. Following the example of the Peace Corps initiated by President Kennedy, the Netherlands also wanted to send young people to do volunteer work. For the first project, 21 young people were selected to go to Cameroon to help. Before they set off, they received a three-month training at the KIT where, in addition to English lessons, they received theoretical lectures from professors and practical lessons to prepare them for two years of volunteering. Unlike in the US, all participants had completed their education and were chosen based on their knowledge of certain subjects. When they arrived in Cameroon, the project they were supposed to work on was no longer feasible, so they had to develop projects on the spot based on the needs of the population and their observations. The podcast "Het Spoor Terug" tells the stories of the first participants and how the first projects were set up.

In 1965, the JVP was converted into the Dutch Volunteers Foundation (SNV). The goal of the SNV was to share (practical) knowledge with the local population. In the 1970s, an additional goal was added, namely, to make the Dutch public aware of the situation in developing countries, which grew into an awareness campaign in the Netherlands. While the focus in the early years was mainly on technical support, since 1990 the focus has shifted to advisory work. Since 2002, the SNV has become an NGO after becoming a private entity from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Sources and extra information:

Het spoor terug: De SNV, Nederlandse vrijwilligers in ontwikkelingswerk
Opleiding vrijwilligers bij het Koninklijk Instituut voor de Tropen - Beeld-en-Geluid-archief 1968
Andere tijden - met geld en idealen naar het buitenland
Kobo - Lalibela Road Project 1974-1979, the Starting of SNV Netherlands Development Organisation Work in Ethiopia, Worku Behonegne, Mekonnen Lulie, Johannis Leeuwenburg, Bart Wesseling (2019), NICC collection, E00026
SNV Netherlands Development Organisation: Reference Guide on Trade in Agricultural Products, Han Baartmans (2002), NICC collection, A01005
About us page, website SNV 2011