29 August 2007

Niamey, Niger: The United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme has launched an initiative to assist Niger in recruiting members for its new national volunteerism scheme. The Government of Niger recently adopted a decree, establishing a national scheme for volunteerism for development (V4D).

Mr. Mahamane Baby, UNV Programme Manager and the Chief Technical Adviser of the UNV-funded project on National Volunteerism Infrastructure in Niger, is working with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) to advise on the process of recruiting the volunteers who need to build capacity for the delivery of services and access to services.

“We expect to recruit 70 people immediately and up to 100 national volunteers in the short-term,” Mr. Baby said. “They should be recruited by November and in place, under the national scheme, by January 2008.”

The volunteers will be providing support for education, health care and civil rights, particularly in remote areas. “The need for volunteers is so high in Niger that we expect to recruit at least 500 per year,” Mr. Baby said. “They need a lot of skilled people to link communities with the newly-established local administrators.”  

In particular, newly-elected local officials are benefiting from support from UNV volunteers. They have a range of responsibilities acquired through Niger’s decentralization plan, but most lack experience and many are illiterate. They need practical support and advice on establishing basic public goods such as access to clean drinking water and sanitation, Mr. Baby said. “Local officials and elected people are the target of our sensitization work on the role of volunteerism for development of their communities,” he said.

Niger’s national volunteerism scheme is the result of work by Mr. Baby and other UNV staff and volunteers who have advised the Government on the role and benefits of volunteerism, provided support for the legislation, and sensitized officials, civil society and local communities to the opportunities it presents to address their needs. The legislation establishes the status of volunteers and a structure for their engagement in a national scheme, together with conditions on how long they can work and who can engage them in development projects. UNV volunteers are now helping to develop a broader infrastructure to support their work.

The V4D scheme has strong support from the Government of Niger and among civil society and local authories, Mr. Baby said. “There is great national ownership of this programme. The Government likes it, communities appreciate it and people are willing to get involved.”

Niger is facing a range of development challenges as well as a state of emergency in the North due to civil conflict. Some 20 national UNV volunteers are helping to reinsert former combatants into society in the North. In other regions, a further 45 national and 20 international UNV volunteers are working within a number of UN organisations including the UN Development Programme, World Food Programme, UN Population Fund, UN Capital Development Fund and UNESCO.

“We have a great opportunity to help Niger seek a peaceful resolution to its conflict. There is a good opportunity to mobilize volunteers for peace building, to empower communities and train people in human rights and basic literacy, and to help them develop their organizational capacity through advice and access to support.”