Leonardo da Vinci Project: “Civil service apprentiship”
Which role for the civil service in Europe

In Rome, at Cenasca Cisl was held the First International meeting on " Civil service apprentship" project, of the Leonardo da Vinci program. The project begun in the October of 2004, will last 24 months, therefore ending September 2006.
The countries involved in the project are Spain with the CECE, Holland with the Kenniscentrum EVC, Bulgaria with the Epa 21 Century and Italy with the Cenasca-Cisl, Cesfor and Erifo. Italy, with Cenasca-Cisl, which will be the country leader and coordinator of the entire project.

The progect’s executive proposal is the elaboration of an appraisal not-formal learning for young people that carry out the civil service

The outcomes will be highly important to Cenasca Cisl, because it has a convention with the National Office of Civil Service, and manages activities for all of the Cisl.

The executive progect’s activities will be divided on three high actions:

1) to analyse the main experiences of not-formal learning realized in Europe;

2) to elaborate a prototype of a not-formal distance learning;

3) to arrange a monitoring and appraisal of the not-formal learning.

During the discussion it has emerged that in the performance modalities meaningful and important differences and likenesses exist, related mainly to difference and performance of the Civil service, Social service, Conscience Objection and Voluntary.
Moreover some other substantial differences concern the obligatory nature of the military service. While in Bulgaria a complex reform has begun in 2001, in Italy it will be totally voluntary from 1st of January 2005 and in Spain and in Holland it is already voluntary.

The different meaning of the term “voluntary” has generated an interesting debate, since in the case of the civil service "the volunteer" term does not indicate that the employees are not paid as it happens in other cases and in other countries.

Another point of discussion has been the objective of this kind of civil service, than while in Italy and Spain, it is often utilized like an income in the world of the job besides that of a social value in other countries it indirectly seems to have primarily a social objective and a value of personal formation and therefore professionalizing.

For a better understanding it was decided to realize a glossary that should describe, in detail, the appropriate meaning of the terms used. The glossary will serve to create, if not a common language, a better clarity regarding the terms and their meaning and their social role in every country partner.

The subsequent step has been to programme the analysis and the appraisal of the cases study schedule, to find out the performance modalities, the instruments, to specify the purposes of the project and its aims in a mean and long term schedule.

Another item has been the formulation of the survey, of the competences of the volunteers, i.e. those who apply to be employed in the "civil service" or other services that will have similar features. The competences will be evaluated at three stages: in entrance, that is which are the characteristics that must possess those who want to be engaged in a plan of civil service; which are the competences to transfer during the period of formation; and which competences must be acquired in order of being able to approach and perform an active role in the service.

As internal monitoring as well as internal and external spreading out of the product there is the intention to elaborate a newsletter and a website ( www.info-civilservice.net   it will be activated to short time) designed in such a way to give the possibility to anyone who is interested to reach immediately the most pertinent information.

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