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ABOUT IFSW
Visit to Asia November 2008
Chapter 3: VISIT TO THE PHILIPPINES, Part 2, November 2008
IFSW PRESIDENT VISIT TO THE PHILIPPINES
Part 2
November 2008
My previous blog reflected on my visit to Malaysia and the first part of my time in The Philippines. This chapter reflects on the final stages of the visit to The Philippines.
I was visiting The Philippines to share in the celebrations of the 60th birthday of the Philippines Association of Social Workers Incorporated (PASWI) and to attend their annual conference in Baguio, north of Manila. John Ang, IFSW President Asia-Pacific had also been invited and we were traveling together.
Part 1 of my reflections on my visit to The Philippines described the formal opening of the conference on Thursday 20th November. The opening ceremony also included presentations to social workers of the year from each Region and then to the national social worker of the year; it is always good to see good social workers recognised by their colleagues. After the formal conclusion, the PASWI Executive, John and I took part in a lengthy photo call with regional groups and individuals before we broke for lunch.
The afternoon started with a plenary session about ‘upgrading the status of social workers through the Magna Carta’. This is a recent piece of legislation setting down some of the basic rights and responsibilities of social workers in the public sector. However not all Regions have implemented the act yet, so there is more work to be done by the association. The conference then broke into sub-plenary workshops for specific employment groups including local government, school and industrial, medical and court, and NGOs and faith based organisations. Papers included the following titles: ‘disaster management and the social work response to securing law and order’, ‘integrating corporate social responsibility in social work profession’, ‘establishing continuous quality improvement’, ‘ethno-religious conflict’ and ‘working with sexually abused children’. However by then I was feeling exhausted from all the travelling and scores of photos so I reluctantly took a break in my room.
After dinner, delegates gathered for the official PASWI birthday party, introduced by the (elected) Governor of the Province, who was said to be very supportive of social work. The live band was a trio of musicians from a local NGO (voluntary organisation) that worked with young people who had dropped out of school. The drummer and bassist were former drop-outs and the lead guitarist was the founder of the project. The highlight was a comedian and musician who had everybody laughing and responding as he made jokes about his own mixed race heritage, the characteristics of people from different regions of the country and his own playing.
A quick aside about humour at social work conferences, in case anybody can help me with this problem! There is no doubt that social workers around the world share jokes and find humour in work situations; it is difficult to survive the work without a sense of humour! However in my experience, it is very difficult to have a successful professional comedian in social work conferences. There seem to be a number of reasons for this. Perhaps the most important is that a lot of humour involves laughing AT somebody, a group or a situation and social workers find that uncomfortable – we try to understand rather than make fun of people. This tendency seems to be exaggerated when we are in a group. Perhaps we instinctively feel unsure of the likely reaction of our colleagues. A profession that is not seen to have fun sometimes risks taking itself too seriously and becoming a laughing stock. How can we find humour together? The Filippinos at this conference certainly enjoyed the jokes!
The party also included games and dancing. In my experience, delegates like to see their leaders joining in any party and having fun. I always enjoy some active dancing and exercise after sitting in conference rooms all day and I know that people like to see that the President is ‘human’. In fact my personal experience of running conferences is that they will be a success, even if most of the programme is just about OK, provided they have one good plenary speaker and a good party! What do others think?
The following day started with a plenary session about proposed reform to the Philippines social work law, which sets the standards for social work practice and organisation. The law is ?? years old and there is now a debate about whether it should be reformed or abolished. The association is in the middle of an internal debate about this. Some delegates were impatient for faster progress, but it was clear that there is still a need for consensus. The association has set up a process to prepare evidence for the Parliament which has to be presented through the Council of Professions (???) They are confident of being able to influence the Parliamentary process.
After this session, John and I left the conference with some local colleagues to visit social work projects in the area and to see something of the town. We first visited a day centre for children and adults with disabilities. This was located in the former hospital building, on loan since a new hospital was built next door. As ever, the social workers and other staff we met were caring and committed. For example, 3 staff were working with one child with autism helping to control his behaviour and need for stimulation. They have outreach programmes visiting families at home, but know that many parents with disabled children in the rural areas have no access to support and may never have had help or advice of any kind. The facilities were basic and the amount of time they can spend with any child is very limited.
Our next call was a courtesy visit to the mayor. We then visited another residential centre for children, similar to the one I saw on the first day. Once again, the emotional pain of seeing children aged two and three years old begging to be picked up and clinging tightly to any passing adult was almost unbearable. There were also a few children with quiet severe disabilities who had been abandoned. We talked with the staff about their attempts to find and work with parents, their shortage of foster parents and the difficulty of finding adoptive placements for many children, even from overseas.
In the afternoon we attended a cultural event involving a competition between local schools, one from each local area, once again meeting the Governor and the mayor we had visited in the morning. The young people were using traditional dance and drama to represent the history of their area. We arrived without prior notice but as the only ‘outsiders’ present, we were immediately ushered to the front and introduced to the crowd. It was a real privilege to share in a cultural event surrounded by proud parents and the local community rather than a group of tourists, which is what cultural events so often seem to become in these days of mass tourism.
We returned to the conference hotel after the end of the PASWI annual business meeting so we could have an informal meeting with a number of members of the new Executive in order to build links and to sustain the positive contacts which had developed in the planning of this conference. John was keen to talk with them about possible projects which could be undertaken by the IFSW Region. It was good to go out with the President, Froilan, and some of the Executive members for an evening meal and to share in their relief that the event had been brought to a successful close!
My next blog will talk about the final stage of my programme in the Philippines, including visits to a Children’s Village and a social housing project in Manila, participation in celebration of the award of Registered Social Worker status to a new group of students, a conference for students and social workers in Manila and a trip to the rim of an active volcano.
David N Jones
IFSW President
28 November 2008
Chapter 3: VISIT TO THE PHILIPPINES, Part 1, November 2008
Visit by David N Jones to a residential children's centre near Angeles, Philippines
My previous blog described my visit to Malaysia. My next destination on this Far East tour was The Philippines, a 3 hour flight away to the east of Kuala Lumpur. This was the first of several early starts, leaving the hotel before sunrise, around 05.00 – always difficult for me as I am not a morning person!
After many months of planning it was good to arrive in the Philippines to join in the celebrations of the association’s 60th birthday and to be met by members of the local PASWI chapter at Clark Airport, the former US base north of Manila. A personal welcome from the airport security staff and fast track through immigration was a pleasant surprise; sometimes one feels like a President! It was just a pity that my bag was one of the last ones to arrive at the conveyor belt! However the traditional warmth of the Filipino greeting from Froilan Maglaya and my local hosts made me feel very welcome.
We boarded the minibus to start our local tour. First stop was an old church which had been half buried following a volcanic eruption in 1991. The current church had been reconstructed in the former roof space. People had not been aware that Mount Pinatubo might erupt and when it did, there was extensive devastation. The vast volumes of ash and rock rose 40kms into the air, falling over a wide area and washed down onto the plans by torrential rain. The lahar (muddy waste) buried buildings to a depth of 7 – 10 meters, so houses and whole villages were buried in the mud. There was also a lava flow down the mountain which is still a wasteland. Some of my hosts had lost their homes in the disaster so we spent some time talking about disaster planning and personal experiences. The Philippines is sited on the Pacific ring of fire, with several active volcanoes, as well as being in the typhoon zone with risks of heavy winds and rain. It was therefore no surprise that disaster planning is a key issue for social workers and this featured in a parallel plenary session at the association conference later in my stay. It was astonishing to drive across the flat lands and to think that the whole area had been swamped by tons of volcanic waste. The size of it was almost incomprehensible and the human tragedy was immense.
After visiting the buried church, we visited a children’s residential home, illustrating an equally real human tragedy for most of the children. The home was intended for young children between birth and 10 years but some stayed into their teenage years when no alternatives were available. It was heartbreaking to go into the babies’ room and see rows of cots holding around 10 babies and toddlers. The caring staff were doing what they could, but the response of the children to the visitors showed their need for emotional contact. Many of the babies had been abandoned at the hospital following birth and it had proved impossible to trace the mothers. Some may be teenage single mothers unable to care for their child, others may have been afraid that they could not pay the hospital fees and just disappeared.
I was told that the social workers do their best to trace the parents and assess their capacity to care for the child. Whilst this is happening, the ideal situation for these children would be to be placed in a foster home. However there are too few homes and placement processes take time, so most have to stay in residential care. When it becomes clear that the child has been abandoned or the parent is unable to provide care, the adoption process starts, but this can also take several years because of the slow court processes, so residential care is a reality for many children under five years old. Social workers actively seek local adopters and there is also an active international adoption process. The staff told me that they seek regular reports about the children placed overseas and do their best to monitor progress; I was shown photos sent by the adoptive parents of some of those children.
Coming from a country which has no residential nurseries and places all children under 10 years old in foster homes, the reality of the residential nursery was emotionally painful. The staff were kind and friendly and clearly doing their best. However my experience and training tells me that the children would probably suffer irreversible developmental damage. Perhaps a campaign to speed up the adoption process would be one response for the local association to adopt.
The home also provided care for neglected and abused children. They had support from a psychologist and social workers and were able to assess families and provide support for some of the children to return home.
After food and refreshments, always a feature of any visits on this trip, we boarded the minibus and drove to the DSWD-Regional Office 3 headquarters headed by the Regional Director Minda Brigoli, who was then the Vice Presidetn of PASWI in 2006. This had recently been refurbished in bright and individual colour schemes chosen by the teams. This was only one of several examples of involving staff in decisions and awareness of the importance of valuing and looking after staff. On the other hand, compared with social work offices in the UK, the technological and other administrative facilities available were basic.
The final leg of the day was a short trip to my hotel, situated in Angeles, just outside the former US Clark airbase and in the centre of the lively (and notorious) nightlife of the Bilibago area, which has changed but continued since the Americans left in haste as the volcano erupted in 1991. On a Tuesday evening, not much of the nightlife was in evidence. However throughout my visit to the Philippines, social workers talked with me about their concerns about sexual exploitation of women and children and trafficking.
The following day I was collected from the hotel, meeting up with John Ang (IFSW President, Asia-Pacific Region) and Froilan Maglaya (PASWI President) who had driven up from Manila. We then drove north for about 6 hours to the mountain city of Baguio, a climb of some 1,000 meters. The final stage up the Marcos Highway was spectacular as we watched the colourful sunset, driving through the surprisingly crowded and congested city in the dark. We had a warm welcome at the conference hotel and received a briefing on the opening conference formalities taking place the following day.
My previous blog described my visit to Malaysia. My next destination on this Far East tour was The Philippines, a 3 hour flight away to the east of Kuala Lumpur. This was the first of several early starts, leaving the hotel before sunrise, around 05.00 – always difficult for me as I am not a morning person!
After many months of planning it was good to arrive in the Philippines to join in the celebrations of the association’s 60th birthday and to be met by members of the local PASWI chapter at Clark Airport, the former US base north of Manila. A personal welcome from the airport security staff and fast track through immigration was a pleasant surprise; sometimes one feels like a President! It was just a pity that my bag was one of the last ones to arrive at the conveyor belt! However the traditional warmth of the Filipino greeting from Froilan Maglaya and my local hosts made me feel very welcome.
We boarded the minibus to start our local tour. First stop was an old church which had been half buried following a volcanic eruption in 1991. The current church had been reconstructed in the former roof space. People had not been aware that Mount Pinatubo might erupt and when it did, there was extensive devastation. The vast volumes of ash and rock rose 40kms into the air, falling over a wide area and washed down onto the plans by torrential rain. The lahar (muddy waste) buried buildings to a depth of 7 – 10 meters, so houses and whole villages were buried in the mud. There was also a lava flow down the mountain which is still a wasteland. Some of my hosts had lost their homes in the disaster so we spent some time talking about disaster planning and personal experiences. The Philippines is sited on the Pacific ring of fire, with several active volcanoes, as well as being in the typhoon zone with risks of heavy winds and rain. It was therefore no surprise that disaster planning is a key issue for social workers and this featured in a parallel plenary session at the association conference later in my stay. It was astonishing to drive across the flat lands and to think that the whole area had been swamped by tons of volcanic waste. The size of it was almost incomprehensible and the human tragedy was immense.
After visiting the buried church, we visited a children’s residential home, illustrating an equally real human tragedy for most of the children. The home was intended for young children between birth and 10 years but some stayed into their teenage years when no alternatives were available. It was heartbreaking to go into the babies’ room and see rows of cots holding around 10 babies and toddlers. The caring staff were doing what they could, but the response of the children to the visitors showed their need for emotional contact. Many of the babies had been abandoned at the hospital following birth and it had proved impossible to trace the mothers. Some may be teenage single mothers unable to care for their child, others may have been afraid that they could not pay the hospital fees and just disappeared.
I was told that the social workers do their best to trace the parents and assess their capacity to care for the child. Whilst this is happening, the ideal situation for these children would be to be placed in a foster home. However there are too few homes and placement processes take time, so most have to stay in residential care. When it becomes clear that the child has been abandoned or the parent is unable to provide care, the adoption process starts, but this can also take several years because of the slow court processes, so residential care is a reality for many children under five years old. Social workers actively seek local adopters and there is also an active international adoption process. The staff told me that they seek regular reports about the children placed overseas and do their best to monitor progress; I was shown photos sent by the adoptive parents of some of those children.
Coming from a country which has no residential nurseries and places all children under 10 years old in foster homes, the reality of the residential nursery was emotionally painful. The staff were kind and friendly and clearly doing their best. However my experience and training tells me that the children would probably suffer irreversible developmental damage. Perhaps a campaign to speed up the adoption process would be one response for the local association to adopt.
The home also provided care for neglected and abused children. They had support from a psychologist and social workers and were able to assess families and provide support for some of the children to return home.
After food and refreshments, always a feature of any visits on this trip, we boarded the minibus and drove to the DSWD-Regional Office 3 headquarters headed by the Regional Director Minda Brigoli, who was then the Vice Presidetn of PASWI in 2006. This had recently been refurbished in bright and individual colour schemes chosen by the teams. This was only one of several examples of involving staff in decisions and awareness of the importance of valuing and looking after staff. On the other hand, compared with social work offices in the UK, the technological and other administrative facilities available were basic.
The final leg of the day was a short trip to my hotel, situated in Angeles, just outside the former US Clark airbase and in the centre of the lively (and notorious) nightlife of the Bilibago area, which has changed but continued since the Americans left in haste as the volcano erupted in 1991. On a Tuesday evening, not much of the nightlife was in evidence. However throughout my visit to the Philippines, social workers talked with me about their concerns about sexual exploitation of women and children and trafficking.
The following day I was collected from the hotel, meeting up with John Ang (IFSW President, Asia-Pacific Region) and Froilan Maglaya (PASWI President) who had driven up from Manila. We then drove north for about 6 hours to the mountain city of Baguio, a climb of some 1,000 meters. The final stage up the Marcos Highway was spectacular as we watched the colourful sunset, driving through the surprisingly crowded and congested city in the dark. We had a warm welcome at the conference hotel and received a briefing on the opening conference formalities taking place the following day.
At the end of the morning opening session, there was a lengthy photo call with the Executive and then with all the regional delegate groups. As so often at conferences, I was then bombarded with requests for individual photos with delegates who were keen to talk and share experiences.
My next blog will talk about the rest of the conference and the rest of my programme in the Philippines, including visits to a Children’s Village and a social housing project in Manila, participation in celebration of the award of Registered Social Worker status to a new group of students and a trip to the rim of an active volcano.
David N Jones
IFSW President
28 November 2008
Chapter 2: Malaysia 14 - 17 November 2008
IFSW President David N Jones with President Elsie Lee and members of the Malaysian Association
Malaysia is the first country in my short tour of Far East countries. I met the Minister for Women, Family and Community Development at the ICSW conference in July 2008 where she invited me to speak at a conference on the future of social work. Sadly her own availability and mine did not coincide for this visit so it was not possible to organise the government sponsored conference. However the Malaysian Association was keen to go ahead with an event and to involve me in talking with Ministry officials about the proposed Social Work Act.
I arrived in Kuala Lumpur from the UK via Amsterdam late in the afternoon of Friday 14 November. My first formal function was a quick briefing with Elsie Lee, the Association President, soon after I arrived, followed by dinner with some local members. It is always good to meet international friends and to re-establish links and of course it is helpful to catch up with recent local developments before speaking at a conference.
Saturday involved a day seminar for 80 people on global trends in social work. This opened with a presentation about developments in social work in Malaysia, by a senior official from the Ministry. This fortunately reinforced one of my own messages - that most countries seem to be grappling with very similar challenges, such as growing social problems, shortages of social workers and a concern about standards and quality. The presentation is available on the IFSW website. (See it further down this page.)
My own presentation built on material I had used previously during the July/August conferences and elsewhere. This noted the growing sense of social crisis in the world and the key role of social workers in this situation. The small group work on the links between local challenges and global themes was lively, with everybody seeming to contribute, focussing mainly on the day-to-day challenges.
The afternoon was devoted to evaluation of social work practice. I started by asking people how they knew whether they were doing a good job. The responses were similar to those given in similar sessions which I have run around the world; most social workers get their main feedback from service users, line managers and colleagues in the first instance, with few people identifying more formal sources of feedback including performance management frameworks. My presentation (See presentation further down this page) noted different forms of evaluation, including routine supervision, insider research, external research and inspection. I again emphasised the need for practice, management, evaluation and inspection to be seen to be working towards the same goals and to be underpinned by the same values. Some time ago I developed the acronym CAIRE to summarise these common values – Consistency, Acceptance, Integrity, Reliability and Empathy. The small group discussion recognised the need to develop more systematic forms of evaluation of daily practice.
On Sunday morning a small and committed group of members met to work on the strategic plan for the association. The committee asked me to map out the different roles which associations undertake around the world. (See presentation further down this page.) As I frequently find all over the world, the small group of committed Executive members were dispirited by the size of the task, the small number of members who are active and a sense of not making much progress. They were surprised to find that they are already doing at least something in relation to most of the possible roles of an association. They also recognised that they had been very effective in lobbying for the proposed social work act and a competency framework for social work in Malaysia. We discussed possible strategies to pursue these objectives.
Sunday afternoon provided my first short break from the hectic programme; I was able to visit one of the big religious and tourist sites around Kuala Lumpur. The Batu Caves are a Hindu holy site with temples set in a spectacular limestone cave reached by over 200 steps. In the evening I enjoyed walking around ‘Little India’ just behind my hotel. I ate a tasty Indian curry at one of the lively street vendor food sites for which KL is so famous.
Monday morning started with a visit to the Ministry of Women, Family and Community Development. We had a 90 minute discussion about the development of social work in Malaysia with the Secretary General of the Ministry, members of her staff and the President and Vice President of the Association. We reviewed the work which had been done by the Association and the Department of Social Welfare on a national competency standards for social work practice and the need for a social work act and certification. I was able to comment on developments in these fields in some other countries, which helped to emphasise the need to make progress on these themes in Malaysia. We had a warm reception and we left feeling optimistic that action was possible. However, as with any major political project, there remains a need to sustain momentum by building alliances with other groups and stakeholders and to use the media to keep a focus on the issues and keep up pressure on the politicians. After lunch with members of the Association and some Ministry officials, I had a short opportunity to do a little sight-seeing and shopping in KL before an interview with a journalist for a feature article in the main daily paper.
Then it was time to say thanks and good-bye to Elsie and her members who had worked so hard to put the programme together and to energise the Association. She was pleased that my visit seemed to have encouraged and stimulated the active members and had given added momentum to their effective campaign for a social work act. Then it was time to pack, go out for a quick visit to the famous Petronas Twin Towers and back to deal with e-mails before going to bed for four hours sleep and getting up for the taxi to the airport and my next stop in the Philippines.
It is always difficult to know how to evaluate these short visits and to know whether they are cost effective. There is no doubt that personal contact helps to cement relationships and keep the Federation ‘real’. It is also very evident that a visit by the President does give encouragement to national Executives, especially in small associations where a few people carry a big burden and get little positive support. It always helps to put the local frustrations and difficulties in context. I always gain a lot from conversations and experience of the local social work scene, which feeds into my thinking about the global priorities for the Federation and trends in social work practice. And just occasionally, a visit from the IFSW President can help push national developments which support social work.
I am finishing this in the Philippines after arriving yesterday. More to follow ….
David N Jones
IFSW President, Philippines.
19 November 2008
Malaysia is the first country in my short tour of Far East countries. I met the Minister for Women, Family and Community Development at the ICSW conference in July 2008 where she invited me to speak at a conference on the future of social work. Sadly her own availability and mine did not coincide for this visit so it was not possible to organise the government sponsored conference. However the Malaysian Association was keen to go ahead with an event and to involve me in talking with Ministry officials about the proposed Social Work Act.
I arrived in Kuala Lumpur from the UK via Amsterdam late in the afternoon of Friday 14 November. My first formal function was a quick briefing with Elsie Lee, the Association President, soon after I arrived, followed by dinner with some local members. It is always good to meet international friends and to re-establish links and of course it is helpful to catch up with recent local developments before speaking at a conference.
Saturday involved a day seminar for 80 people on global trends in social work. This opened with a presentation about developments in social work in Malaysia, by a senior official from the Ministry. This fortunately reinforced one of my own messages - that most countries seem to be grappling with very similar challenges, such as growing social problems, shortages of social workers and a concern about standards and quality. The presentation is available on the IFSW website. (See it further down this page.)
My own presentation built on material I had used previously during the July/August conferences and elsewhere. This noted the growing sense of social crisis in the world and the key role of social workers in this situation. The small group work on the links between local challenges and global themes was lively, with everybody seeming to contribute, focussing mainly on the day-to-day challenges.
The afternoon was devoted to evaluation of social work practice. I started by asking people how they knew whether they were doing a good job. The responses were similar to those given in similar sessions which I have run around the world; most social workers get their main feedback from service users, line managers and colleagues in the first instance, with few people identifying more formal sources of feedback including performance management frameworks. My presentation (See presentation further down this page) noted different forms of evaluation, including routine supervision, insider research, external research and inspection. I again emphasised the need for practice, management, evaluation and inspection to be seen to be working towards the same goals and to be underpinned by the same values. Some time ago I developed the acronym CAIRE to summarise these common values – Consistency, Acceptance, Integrity, Reliability and Empathy. The small group discussion recognised the need to develop more systematic forms of evaluation of daily practice.
On Sunday morning a small and committed group of members met to work on the strategic plan for the association. The committee asked me to map out the different roles which associations undertake around the world. (See presentation further down this page.) As I frequently find all over the world, the small group of committed Executive members were dispirited by the size of the task, the small number of members who are active and a sense of not making much progress. They were surprised to find that they are already doing at least something in relation to most of the possible roles of an association. They also recognised that they had been very effective in lobbying for the proposed social work act and a competency framework for social work in Malaysia. We discussed possible strategies to pursue these objectives.
Sunday afternoon provided my first short break from the hectic programme; I was able to visit one of the big religious and tourist sites around Kuala Lumpur. The Batu Caves are a Hindu holy site with temples set in a spectacular limestone cave reached by over 200 steps. In the evening I enjoyed walking around ‘Little India’ just behind my hotel. I ate a tasty Indian curry at one of the lively street vendor food sites for which KL is so famous.
Monday morning started with a visit to the Ministry of Women, Family and Community Development. We had a 90 minute discussion about the development of social work in Malaysia with the Secretary General of the Ministry, members of her staff and the President and Vice President of the Association. We reviewed the work which had been done by the Association and the Department of Social Welfare on a national competency standards for social work practice and the need for a social work act and certification. I was able to comment on developments in these fields in some other countries, which helped to emphasise the need to make progress on these themes in Malaysia. We had a warm reception and we left feeling optimistic that action was possible. However, as with any major political project, there remains a need to sustain momentum by building alliances with other groups and stakeholders and to use the media to keep a focus on the issues and keep up pressure on the politicians. After lunch with members of the Association and some Ministry officials, I had a short opportunity to do a little sight-seeing and shopping in KL before an interview with a journalist for a feature article in the main daily paper.
Then it was time to say thanks and good-bye to Elsie and her members who had worked so hard to put the programme together and to energise the Association. She was pleased that my visit seemed to have encouraged and stimulated the active members and had given added momentum to their effective campaign for a social work act. Then it was time to pack, go out for a quick visit to the famous Petronas Twin Towers and back to deal with e-mails before going to bed for four hours sleep and getting up for the taxi to the airport and my next stop in the Philippines.
It is always difficult to know how to evaluate these short visits and to know whether they are cost effective. There is no doubt that personal contact helps to cement relationships and keep the Federation ‘real’. It is also very evident that a visit by the President does give encouragement to national Executives, especially in small associations where a few people carry a big burden and get little positive support. It always helps to put the local frustrations and difficulties in context. I always gain a lot from conversations and experience of the local social work scene, which feeds into my thinking about the global priorities for the Federation and trends in social work practice. And just occasionally, a visit from the IFSW President can help push national developments which support social work.
I am finishing this in the Philippines after arriving yesterday. More to follow ….
David N Jones
IFSW President, Philippines.
19 November 2008
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Visit to Malaysia - David Jones' Report (42 KB) |
Before departure
I will be travelling during the final 2 weeks of November. I fly to Malaysia on 13th November. I am speaking at a day conference in Kuala Lumpur on Saturday and I am helping with an association strategic planning workshop on Sunday. We have some visits on Monday, in particular a meeting with the Permanent Secretary at the Ministry responsible for social work.
I fly to Philippines on Tuesday 18th November. I am making some agency visits that same day and then meeting up with John Ang the following day. Our hosts are taking us north to Baguio where we will take part in the 60th anniversary conference of the association. We will also visit social work projects in that area and meet local dignitaries. We have some more agency visits as week as some time for sight-seeing and relaxation over the weekend. ON the Monday we have meetings and conferences, including a student conference, in Manilla.
I leave for Hong Kong on Tuesday morning . I will have discussions there with the local 2010 conference committee and meet the President of IASSW for bilateral discussions. I expect to talk with members of the association and visit some local services and take part in a student workshop. Fiona Robertson will also be in Hong Kong and will share in some of these meetings. She and I will also have discussions about the Federation's activities and strategy leading up to the 2010 General Meeting. I return home on 30 November.
I should also give congratulations to our team at the UN Habitat World Urban Forum in China at the start of November. Please look at the website to see reports. This was a very successful event with a very big attendance and a lot of interest. We have certainly helped people see more clearly the link between urban issues and social work. Congratulations to Charles Mbugua who has now coordinated IFSW participation in 3 Habitat WUFs, and also to John Ang and the whole team from Africa and Asia. We are already thinking about the next WUF. Do please look at the website for more reports and photos.
Visit to the Philippines November 2008 - Documents
| Global Trends in Social Work |
Visit to Malaysia November 2008 Documents
| Global Trends in Social Work |
| Evaluation of Social Work Practice |
| Strategic Development for Professional Bodies |
page last updated on 12.03.2009
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