Galway has been chosen to host a major European conference on volunteering in 2020.
The announcement was made at the National Volunteer Management Conference at the Marino Institute of Education in Dublin.
Minister for Community Development, Seán Canney, who was the guest speaker at the event, said it was a great honour for Galway to host the important conference.
"Volunteering plays a major role in Irish life and makes an invaluable contribution to our communities. CSO statistics from 2013 have shown that 29 per cent of Irish people work as volunteers - that is more than a million people," he said.
The European Volunteer Centre Capacity Building Conference will be held next year from April 23 at NUIG Galway. It will be preceded on April 22 by Volunteer Ireland's National Volunteer Management Conference. The events will be organised in partnership with Galway 2020, NUI Galway, Galway Volunteer Centre, and the European Volunteer Centre, CEV.
