"BYLC Volunteer Awards: Pandemic Heroes 2021" was launched Thursday. The winners were selected from over 800 individual and over 70 organisation submissions across 64 districts. The awards aimed to recognise the contributions of individuals and organisations working for social issues within their communities during the pandemic. Through this award, the Bangladesh Youth Leadership Center (BYLC) wants to promote partnerships between youth changemakers, community members, and other stakeholders to contribute to the government's vision of achieving Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030. Also read: BYLC hosts virtual run to observe Int’l Youth Day Winners were shortlisted based on their contribution, impact, reach, and engagement in the categories of individual and organisation submissions. Ten winners of the individual volunteer category received a social action project grant of Tk10,000; the top three volunteer organisations received grants of Tk25,000, Tk20,000, and Tk15,000. Speaking as chief guest at the event, Dhaka North City Corporation (DNCC) Mayor Md Atiqul Islam said: "Volunteers are essential to building an inclusive city and country. Even DNCC's mandatory masking campaign is being run by volunteers. We cannot achieve development without the contribution of volunteers who go out of their way to engage in social welfare."   Paula Roos-Schindeler, deputy head of mission of the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Bangladesh, was a special guest at the event.  "It takes a lot of resources and time for any organisation or government to reach every single community, identify their issues, and solve them. Young people can address some of the issues of their community because they understand these challenges and have greater chances to engage with the people," she said. "During a crisis, the first thought that crosses people's minds is their survival and wellbeing. Even during these challenging times, the winners of the BYLC Volunteer Awards thought of their civic responsibility and worked for the welfare of their community," said BYLC President Ejaj Ahmad.

Shadia Rahman, an expatriate of Prairie Provinces of Canada got Canada’s Volunteer Awards 2019 (CVAs) recently organised by Immigration And Settlement, a non-profit volunteer platform.