© dpa
For 60 years, young people in Germany and Berlin have been able to do a Voluntary Social Year (FSJ).
This is celebrated today in the capital with a ceremony organised by the Berlin State Working Group for Volunteer Services. Among other things, Berlin's Youth Senator Katharina Günther-Wünsch (CDU) is scheduled to give a welcome address.
According to the organisation, more than 2,000 young people do an FSJ with one of the 30 organisations in Berlin every year. ‘Voluntary services strengthen social cohesion,’ says Swantje Navasery, spokesperson for the state working group. The FSJ brings people from different social, cultural and religious backgrounds together and thus promotes democracy, she told the Deutsche Presse-Agentur dpa.
‘The majority of volunteers work with children and young people.’ These include placements at schools, daycare centres or in youth welfare. Many also opt for a FSJ in the healthcare sector, for example to prepare for a medical degree. On average, the volunteers are school leavers and between 16 and 20 years old. ‘Many want to get a taste of a profession,’ said Navasery. Others are still unsure about what to do after school and use the FSJ as a kind of break before deciding on a course of study or training.
The majority of volunteers come from Berlin. There are also financial reasons for this. ‘Voluntary service is not possible regardless of your parents' wallets.’ The average pocket money is between 350 and 450 euros per month. Most of them therefore live with their parents during the FSJ. Navasery is therefore calling for a volunteer allowance financed by the federal government that is based on the maximum Bafög rate (992 euros). She is convinced that this would allow significantly more places to be filled. In Berlin, there are more places than applicants.