APR targets over 42 million Scouting membership growth by 2023

“Scouting is a movement, because it moves forward. As soon as it stops moving, it becomes an organisation, and is no longer Scouting” – Baden Powell

Suncheon, South Korea – In cooperation with Korea Scout Association (KSA), the Asia-Pacific Support Centre organized a workshop on Membership Growth from 14 to 20 July 2017. The workshop aims to support National Scout Organizations (NSOs) in reaching the Region’s membership growth target to help achieve WOSM Vision 2023.

VISION 2023
“By 2023, Scouting will be the world’s leading educational youth movement enabling 100 million young people to be active citizens inspiring positive change in their communities and in the world based on shared values.”

The Region’s projected growth targets an average of 3% annually, a vision that was positively received by the NSO key leaders. Scouting in the Asia-Pacific Region is envisioned to achieve a 38.9% growth in membership by 2023, from currently 30 million Scout members to 42 million Scouts and active citizens creating positive change in the community and in the world.

As one of the many steps to be taken, this workshop will help build internal capacity within NSOs to attract more people to join Scouting and keep Scouts inspired and moving. The workshop will also help NSOs to:

¬ develop analytical competency and identify the scope for membership growth
¬ describe essential factors for quantitative growth in Scouting
¬ draft membership growth strategy at national and local level
¬ develop action plan for 2017-2018 on Growth and Strategy

With these objectives, the NSO key leaders agreed to improve coordination within the national and sub-national level organizations to increase their efforts in bringing Scouting to areas that it does not exist and ensuring that Scouting is available to all segments of society.

The workshop was attended by 33 key leaders from 17 NSOs (Bangladesh, Bhutan, Brunei, Cambodia, Fiji, Hong Kong, India, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Mongolia, Myanmar, Nepal, Pakistan, Philippines, Singapore, and Sri Lanka).