23 May 2000

Bonn, Germany: Finnish President Tarja Halonen was one of thousands of visitors to a four-day "People and Development" conference and fair arranged by Finland's Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Helsinki. While at the United Nations Volunteers (UNV) exhibition, President Halonen told UNV staff members of her interest in development and of her knowledge of the situation in Guatemala, where UNV has a long-standing programme in support of human rights.

The conference, which ended at the weekend, is organized every two years for the general public. This year it featured the development prospects and work of around 50 organizations and agencies active in Latin America. The main component of the event was an exhibition where UNV's activities and Finnish UN Volunteers serving in Latin America were presented.

Finnish visitors expressed interest in online volunteering, a new approach spearheaded by UNV using the NetAid web site to link home-based translators, graphic artists database experts and human rights activists with individuals and organizations needing assistance to help fight poverty in developing countries.

UNV staff also explained the organization’s role as the focal point for the International Year of Volunteers 2001 (IYV2001). Preparations are underway for IYV2001 celebrations in Finland. In April, about 30 umbrella organizations representing youth, environment, development, social welfare and health, disabled people, sports and including the UN Association and Finnish Red Cross set up a national IYV network. The organizations have been in contact with several government ministries to raise funding for IYV2001 activities, which are being officially launched worldwide on 5 December 2000 to commemorate International Volunteer Day (IVD).