27 June 2005

Bonn, Germany: More than 1,700 UN Volunteers are currently supporting UN peacekeeping operations in 11 countries worldwide: Afghanistan (UNAMA), Burundi (UNOB), Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUC), Eritrea and Ethiopia (UNMEE), Haiti (MINUSTAH), Ivory Coast (UNOCI), Kosovo (UNMIK), Liberia (UNMIL), Sierra Leone (UNAMSIL), Sudan (UNMIS), and Timor-Leste (UNMISET).

After nearly a decade of civil war, peace is permeating the West African nation of Sierra Leone. A project launched in 2003 by UNV and the United Nations Assistance Mission in Sierra Leone (UNAMSIL) is at the centre of efforts to foster reconciliation and reintegration among youth in each of the country’s 12 districts. Targeting ex-combatants between the ages of 15 and 35 and voluntary youth groups, the project uses sports and cultural events, peace camps, and workshops to foster understanding, tolerance and the promotion of peaceful coexistence. Led by UN Volunteers from the Mission’s Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration (DDR) section, projects have since been implemented covering the entire country and involving more than 3,500 youth. Some 65 youth organizations, supported by the project, carry out training courses ranging from confidence building to leadership skills. Sports activities are also proving effective in building and restoring trust. In Kono district, for example – Sierra Leone's diamond-rich region and one of its most volatile areas – a football match was key in bringing together youth groups as well as traditional authorities for the first time since the beginning of the conflict in the region.

Going beyond their regular scope of duties, numerous UN Volunteers are involving themselves and other mission staff in community-level initiatives. In Liberia, they held a walkathon in Monrovia in November 2004, raising funds to support an income generation project of an association of people living with HIV/AIDS. And in the Caribbean nation of Haiti, home to the United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH), many of the 145 UN Volunteers in the country spend their free time volunteering with local groups. One such UN Volunteer is Karine Bouchard of Canada. During workdays, she is a district coordinator with the electoral arm of MINUSTAH, but on Sundays she volunteers at the Foyer de l’Espoir orphanage in the capital of Port au Prince. Here, she plays with the 30 children, prepares meals and, as she says, “gives them some affection”.

The UN Verification Mission in Guatemala (MINUGUA) officially ended in December 2004, after a decade of verifying human rights and helping the country implement its peace accords. In all, 430 UN Volunteers have performed key tasks such as assessing human rights violations, facilitating the process of rights verification at the community level, and keeping the public informed about progress made. In his final report on MINUGUA, Secretary-General Kofi Annan lauded the 60 Guatemalan UN Volunteers, who, in the last year of the Mission, were tasked with preparing communities and partner organizations for the transition and departure of MINUGUA. Working closely with counterparts in government, civil society organizations and human rights institutions, these UN Volunteers have played a vital role in ensuring that the acquired knowledge, including the value of volunteerism in protecting and promoting human rights, is retained and continues to serve the population.