26 April 2000

Bonn, Germany: Visitors of the UN Pavilion at the EXPO Hannover will be met by qualified guides: they will be led through the exhibition by United Nations Volunteers, who have previously worked in UN development projects or on UN Missions in support of elections. In addition to providing information on the structure and on general activities of the United Nations, the guides will also be able share first hand experiences on the practical aspects of the United Nations' work.

The UN Volunteers who will provide information and answer questions on the United Nations during the EXPO 2000 are coming from 11 countries in Europe, Africa, Asia and Latin America. Their previous tasks as UN Volunteers were as diverse as preparing the elections in Bosnia, restoring antique books in the National Library of Lebanon destroyed during the civil war, or promoting the rights of children in Central America.

"Our United Nations Volunteers, who have been working in direct contact with the people on all continents, embody the motto of the UN exhibition: The United Nations Works for You!", says the Executive Coordinator of the Bonn-based United Nations Volunteers programme, Ms. Sharon Capeling-Alakija. "At the same time they demonstrate the variety of tasks the UN pursues all over the world."

The UNV programme assigns annually more than 4,000 United Nations Volunteers comprising some 140 nationalities to work in a similar number of countries. Originally mainly involved in development activities, a new focus on humanitarian relief, human rights monitoring and electoral support has emerged in recent years. The referendum in East Timor during which the majority of the population voted for independence from Indonesia was prepared by 500 UN Volunteers. Soon, 700 UN Volunteers will have been deployed to Kosovo to cover tasks ranging from reconstruction activities to the creation of a civil administration and the registration of voters for the municipal elections scheduled for this fall. Since 1996, UNV headquarters is located in Bonn. Comprising some 120 staff members, it is the largest UN body based in Germany.