10 August 2006

Monrovia, Liberia: In an important extension of their work, 14 UNV volunteers working with the UN Mission in Liberia (UNMIL) have volunteered to teach at the University of Liberia. Twenty other colleagues from the Mission will join them.

The 34 men and women from UNMIL will teach a variety of subjects, including business administration, economics, engineering, environmental management, information technology, international relations, law, mass communications and political science.

The President of Liberia Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf last week praised the volunteer teachers from the Mission at the opening of the university’s Public Policy Forum and refurbished auditorium.

“I congratulate you, I commend you and I thank you for this service to our people that goes beyond that which you already do in the service of your various positions,” she said. “For sharing your intellect with our young people, we hope in return you get from them something that enriches your own capacity and deepens your experience.”

President Johnson-Sirleaf has earlier called upon the university to constitute a national youth civil service. UNDP and UNV, along with other stakeholders in Liberia, are developing a concept paper for such a service, to enable young graduates to volunteer in the local communities and acquire experience as teachers. This is expected to lead to skills enhancement and higher employment rate.

Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General, Alan Doss, pointed out that UNMIL was neither a development institution nor an education programme. The Mission's principal role is to help secure and consolidate peace, without which the education system cannot be rebuilt in Liberia.

“We take this opportunity to again remind people,” Mr. Doss said, “that UNMIL will continue to act vigorously to deal with any threats to the peace. We have the capacity and the will to do so. We cannot allow the massive investment that the people of this country and the international community has made, to be lost.”

Commending UNMIL staff for volunteering with the university, he said UNMIL would do its part to work with the government to ensure young Liberians have access to a bright future, in a peaceful, stable and prosperous Liberia.

The desire for peace in Liberia received a strong vote of confidence on 11 October 2005, when Liberians turned out to cast ballots in the country’s first post-war elections. This resulted in Africa’s first elected woman head of state. UNV volunteers – working with UNMIL as electoral officers – were engaged in all aspects of the electoral process.

In close collaboration with UNMIL and the Liberian National Elections Commission, UNV volunteers played a vital role in registering some 1.3 million voters in Liberia’s main towns, remote villages and camps for the internally displaced. They carried out civic education campaigns, identified registration and polling stations, and advised on legal matters. They also trained some 18,500 election officials, including presiding officers and polling staff, in all 18 provincial UN electoral offices.

In addition to electoral assistance, some 300 UNV volunteers have been assisting the UNMIL operations since October 2003, providing critical support in a range of fields such as civil affairs, demobilization, air operations and information technology.