25 November 2002

Dili, Timor-Leste: A special mission of officials from the United Nations Volunteers (UNV) Headquarters in Bonn, Germany, ended a four-day mission on 23 November. While in Timor-Leste, the UNV mission explored possibilities for further involvement of the UNV Programme in the country, and held meetings with officials from the Timor-Leste Public Administration, UN Agencies, NGOs and UN volunteers currently working in the newly independent nation.

The UNV mission included Andre Carvalho, Chief of the Development Programme and Operations Group; Junko Sazaki, Chief of the Asia, Pacific, Europe and CIS Section; Amareswara Rao, Management Officer; and Thuan Nguyen, Programme Specialist.

In a meeting the UNV mission had with Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation Jose Ramos-Horta, he spoke with appreciation of the contributions UNVs have made in many areas of the country as it progressed toward Independence and in its initial months as a full fledged nation.

Mr. Ramos-Horta is scheduled to pay a formal visit to UNV Headquarters in Bonn on 27 November, to meet with UNV Executive Coodinator Sharon Capeling-Alakija and administrative staff there.

The Bonn UNV mission left Timor-Leste confident that its meetings will lead to further UNV programme involvements in the country. According to Douglas Campos, Programme Manager for UNV Operations in East Timor, “The visit reaffirmed the important contribution these dedicated and professional volunteers have made in Timor-Leste. I’m confident that the work and results shown by the UN Volunteers will lead to even greater UNV involvement in helping the country develop.”

In a meeting with the UNV mission attended by more than 200 UNVs who are currently working in Timor-Leste, Deputy Special Representative to the Secretary General and UN Resident Coordinator Sukehiro Hasegawa said, “I believe in you. You are making a difference. Even the UN Security Council has taken note of it.”

Mr. Hasegawa, who has had a long association with the UN Volunteers, also expressed his hope that many of the volnteers would rise in the UN system in the years to come. “We are watching you”. He said. “The United Nations needs well-qualified, considerate, kind and culturally sensitive people such as you”.

At the same session with UN Volunteers, Andre Carvalho, Chief of the Development Programme and Operations Group in Bonn, cited the high praise the mission heard regarding the contributions of the UNVs currently employed in Timor-Leste: “Everywhere we have gone this week, they tell your stories. You are the ultimate expression of what the UN is all about.”

The UNV Programme in Timor-Leste, currently with some 267 UN Volunteers employed here, is the largest in the world. Most of these UNVs work with the United Nations Mission in Support of East Timor (UNMISET), however the number of UNVs working with UN agencies is growing as projects focussing on sustainable development come on line.

During the previous UN mission in East Timor, UNTAET, UN Volunteers played key roles in all operations of the UN Transitional Administration. Many were involved as well in the civic education, voter registration and electoral campaign processes and in helping administer violence-free Constituent Assembly and Presidential elections that paved the way to Independence. Some 800 UNVs served in East Timor prior to Independence.