27 December 2010

Yaren, Nauru: On 9 September 2010, the United Nations Joint Presence (JP) Office in Nauru was officially opened by the President of Nauru, His Excellency Mr. Marcus Stephen. This is the latest such initiative of the United Nations (UN) in efforts to have greater presence in the Pacific countries. International UNV volunteer Rainer Kleffel is a specialist in UN Coordination and Aid Management who is supporting UN agencies in its efforts to establish a stronger presence in Nauru.

This ceremony was also attended by UN Resident Coordinator and United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Resident Representative Mr. Knut Ostby, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) Representative Dr. Isiye Ndombi and the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) Representative and Pacific Sub-Regional Director Mr. Dirk Jena, Members of the Cabinet, senior government officials, diplomats and civil society representatives.

Having joined the UN in 1999, Nauru along with other Pacific Island Countries (PICs) advocated for the establishment of UN Offices outside of Suva (Fiji) and Apia (Samoa). Having received endorsement by the UN Secretary General in September 2006, the three Executive Committee members, UNDP, UNICEF and UNFPA forged a partnership which has led to the establishment of eight JP offices across the Pacific – Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Palau (UNDP Lead Agency); Kiribati & Vanuatu (UNICEF Lead agency); Republic of the Marshall Islands, Federated States of Micronesia (UNFPA Lead Agency) since 2007.

This JP Office launch in Nauru is attributed to the commitment of the United Nations to play a greater and more significant role in the Pacific. It is also another milestone for UN reform in the Pacific. The UN Joint Presence Offices around the Pacific are headed by Country Development Managers (CDMs) who are nationals of the country. However, for Nauru, it was mutually agreed to recruit a candidate from the United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme with expertise in both UN Coordination and Aid Management.

Nauru is one of the smallest countries in the world, consisting of one single island of only 21 square miles. Travel in and out depends on the weekly flight to Brisbane (six hours flight) or to Nadi (Fiji). The current population is estimated at 9,500; 55.5 percent are under 25 years of age.

Rainer Kleffel, a German national, was selected as the international UNV volunteer specialist for Nauru and arrived at the duty station in mid February 2010. Prior to his arrival in Nauru, Rainer served for 10 years with the UN Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK). Upon reaching the UN retirement age of 62, Rainer felt he would be leaving unfinished business until he found out about the UNV programme. Therefore, in January 2004 he re-entered the Mission in Kosovo as a UNV volunteer.

“I enjoy the experience and have learned a lot from working in an international atmosphere. I like to use my skills and help those who need support. It is better satisfaction than to sit and watch television or do gardening. The assignment gives me the chance and opportunity to see part of the world where I would never have come, if I hadn’t worked for the UNV programme,” Rainer said.

“Since my arrival until the JP Office Launch, I have entirely concentrated on getting the office prepared for the opening in September. Now that this mammoth task is completed, I have moved on with the second aspect of my posting, working closely with the Aid Management Unit in strengthening the aid management architecture in the Nauru Government and thus making development aid more effective and efficient,” Rainer explained.

In addition to working on the JP presence launch, Rainer has also been involved in volunteer work outside his regular work duties. These include participation as international observer in the Nauru Constitutional Referendum in February 2010, in local clean-up events as well as drafting a Constitution for the Baitsi District.

“I am proud to have contributed to this success as a UNV volunteer!” he concludes.