Voluntary Service Overseas (VSO) is a not-for-profit international development organization charity with a vision for "a fair world for everyone" and a mission to "create lasting change through volunteering". VSO delivers development impact through a blended volunteer model consisting of international, national, and community volunteers working together to develop the systems and conditions for positive social change. In 2018–19, VSO worked in 23 countries in Africa and Asia. VSO currently works in the following core programme areas: Inclusive Education Health Livelihoods And through three core approaches that are relevant to all the areas: Social Inclusion and Gender Social Accountability Resilience In addition, VSO has a youth focus in which young people are both the beneficiaries of social change outcomes as well as the primary actors in creating the change. Structure and governance Voluntary Service Overseas (VSO) is a company limited by guarantee. VSO operates internationally largely through branch offices. Exceptions to this are: Voluntary Service Overseas (Ireland) Limited Company Limited by Guarantee, which is a subsidiary of VSO and incorporated as a charitable entity in Ireland. VSO India, which has agreements in place with the independent Indian charitable organisation, VSO India Trust. These agreements permit the Trust to carry out VSO's work using the VSO trademark. Stichting VSO Netherland, which is a Dutch independent charitable organisation that has agreements with VSO, including a trademark license, and whose accounts were integrated with VSO's as of April 2018. In March 2018, Voluntary Service Overseas USA, Inc. was incorporated, and an application has been made to register this entity as a US 501(c) organisation(iii). VSO's governing body is the International Board, currently comprising nine trustees. It also has two youth advisors to the Board. The day-to-day management of VSO is carried out by the executive board. The executive board has operational oversight of VSO's global work. Each Executive Board member is responsible for a function of VSO: People, Programmes, Business Development, and Finance. History VSO was founded in 1958 by Alec and Mora Dickson through a bishop's letter to the London paper, The Sunday Times, as an educational experience overseas for school-leavers, initially only male, before starting university. Volunteers offered unskilled help in return for basic accommodation and pocket money. In 1962, the practice changed to using university graduate volunteers. By 1980, the unskilled volunteers had been completely phased out and the length of service had been extended to two years. Active volunteer