On this page

1. Information providers

2. Key initiatives

Information providers

In Sweden, there are no specific contact points or state-funded or regional volunteer centres or websites, having the responsibility to assist with young volunteers’ placement and to promote volunteering opportunities. Instead, several government agencies within different sectors are responsible for the distribution of grants, information and advice, and for the implementation of policies concerning voluntary organisations. For example the Swedish Agency for Youth and Civil Society (MUCF), the National Board for Health and Welfare (Socialstyrelsen), and the Swedish Agency for Economic and Regional Growth (Tillväxtverket).

Even local authorities give support to different types of voluntary organisations. Municipalities have the major responsibility for providing information to young people at the local level. Information regarding voluntary activities may be spread through many actors, for example employment offices, schools and study counsellors.

Autonomy for the municipalities in Sweden is a fundamental principle, regulated in the Local Government Act. The local authorities develop their own policies and programmes within the general frameworks set up by the Parliament and the Government. As a result, different approaches to promote volunteering can be found across the country.

Independent umbrella organisations in various fields of the civil society also promote volunteering. In fact, the civil society organisations carry out most of the promotion activities in Sweden. They rely on volunteers and therefore strive to engage more people in their work. The National Forum for Voluntary Organisations (Forum) is an umbrella organisation for civil society organisations working within the social sphere in Sweden. Their aim is to improve the opportunities for voluntary social work within Sweden through influencing public opinion, facilitating the exchange of knowledge and introducing new methods of work.

Key initiatives

One of Forum's activities is to intermediate for volunteer engagement through Volontärbyrån (the volunteer agency), an on-line matching tool for volunteering opportunities. Volontärbyrån works actively to to inspire more young people to engage in voluntary work. Volontärbyrån provides training in matters of non-profit engagement. They also offer training kits and other materials for skill development.Although many non-profit organisations are continually seeking more volunteers, and many young people want to make a difference, it is not always easy to find each other. Volontärbyrån runs several projects and collaborations to strengthen the conditions for non-profit engagement. These include both local projects with the aim of promoting citizens' civic engagement and attracting more people to take part in voluntary work.

There are also national projects. For example, with a focus on non-profit engagement for people with disabilities and non-profit engagement among young people. Volontärbyråns experience is that many young people do not know how to organise themselves in the established associational life. Many therefore turn to social media, looser networks and more volatile activism to channel their commitment. In the project "Unga i förening" (young people in an association), Volontärbyrån wants to highlight positive stories from young people and inspire more young people to start an association. They even offer training kits on how to form an association and then involve more people in it.

In 2024, the Agency for Youth and Civil Society Affairs received two new assignments aimed for encouraging young people's involvement in civil society. One is about distributing SEK 20 million (about 1 800 000 euro) to organizations that work with volunteer coordination, as the government wants to increase opportunities for involvement through matching and coordination between people who want to get involved on a non-profit basis in various missions and non-profit organizations. The other is about distributing SEK 15 million (about 1 340 000 euro) to increase voluntary engagement within civil society. The purpose of the support is to make it easier for individuals who want to have a task within non-profit organizations, but do not have a natural contact into the context. With these annual grants, the government wants to enable organizations to reach new target groups and create new forms of voluntary engagement.