Promotion of Human Values

“Red Cross in Action – Promotion of Human Values” (RCA-PHV) is a project which for years in continuity is being implemented in our country by the City Red Cross of Skopje, which is designated as implementator by the Macedonian Red Cross. The idea for this project was initiated in 1996 by Macedonian Red Cross and International Committee of Red Cross (ICRC), with the support of Norwegian Red Cross. The project is a domestic product created in accordance with the local costumes and cultural norms, and is constantly upgraded in compatibility with the needs that occur on field. In the creation of the project many people have constantly participated, but as authors of the project are considered to be Ekaterina Dzajkovska, Herbi Elmazi and Darko Jordanov.

Main objective of RCA-PHV is inclusion of young people form different ethnic belonging in mutual projects for development of the common understanding, tolerance and culture of dialog.

Missionof the program RCA-PHV is promotion of the culture of dialog as a core precondition for creation of intercultural society and promotion of active knowledge and active approach towards life, through the fundamental principles and values of Red Cross.

Sub objectivesof the program are creation of a dissemination model for working with young people, promotion of culture of dialog, connection of dissemination and humanitarian action, recruiting new volunteers in the Red Cross and promotion of human values, promoting the culture as a system of values and promoting active approach towards life.

Since the beginning the concept and the methodology of the project are approved and supported by the Ministry of Education of Republic of Macedonia. That is a reflection of the great results that he RCA-PHV program has achieved in resent years, in 2004 the City Red Cross of Skopje signed an agreement together with the Bureau for development of education at the Ministry of Education of Republic of Macedonia, by which the RCA-PHV became a part of the official educational system.

The RCA-PHV project evolves the students in exercises by which the possibilities for development of judgments and attitude that may cause misunderstanding are reduced and positive cultural values affirmed. The project doesn’t enforce young people from different ethnical communities to become friends, nor it encourages students to forget who they are, the RCA-PHV program is simply intensifying their cultural consciousness, trough promotion of tolerance, mutual understanding and respect for the differences, which is actually one of the tasks of the Red Cross.

The RCA-PHV cycle of this program is following the school cycle and is consisted of few activities. One day RCA-PHV workshops are held at the beginning of the project cycle in each RCLB. In each of these workshops around 30 volunteers of each RCLB (1200 in total) get a training package that is consisted of session for dissemination, recognition of the needs of the community and sessions how to prepare, implement and document small project for local community benefit.

After this workshop the young volunteers are ready to put their new proactive knowledge into practice. Supported by their disseminator, they begin to implement their small projects (in general 100 small projects in cycle) for help of the local communities in which they live. Representatives from the best and most successful project afterward are invited to take participation at the final RCA-PHV workshop. At this workshop participants are deepening their knowledge on topic of culture, communication, disseminations, and the best participants from this workshop are than selected to participate and to represent out National Society at different international events.

During past years RCA-PHV in continuation is giving great results, in addition is a short tabular display of the number of implemented small projects from the period of past five cycles.

As a result of the continuation of the success and successful work during 2010/2011 in the RCA-PHV cycle were actively involved 1053 young people and 34 disseminators, and as a result of their collective effort this cycle resulted with 115 implemented small projects for the benefit of community.

Thanks its own specific methodology of work with young people, as well as thanks to the results that each RCA-PHV cycle is giving, the interest for the RCA-PHV program each year is spreading more and more outside the borders of our country. So far, RCA-PHV is piloted for a year in Albanian and in Serbia, three years continually is implementing in Bosnia and Herzegovina, and during 2010 was piloted and begun with implementation in Sri Lanka.

For more information connected to the RCA-PHV project visit the RCA-PHV section of the web page of the City Red Cross of Skopje.

www.skopje-redcross.org.mk/cka_phv_krakta_istorija.htm