When emergencies strike, having the right information can mean the difference between life and death. For Ahmed Anas Awad, an Egyptian, this belief drives his work every day. Since July 2024, he has been using his skills to support relief efforts in Gaza and Sudan as a UN Volunteer Information Management Officer with the World Health Organization’s Country Office in Egypt.
Anas's job is to make sure people get the information fast. He builds dashboards that show who’s doing what, helps collect and analyze data, and ensures it’s easy for everyone to access. His mission is simple: give decision-makers, responders, and communities clear, reliable information they can trust.
One of his standout achievements? Leading the creation of an interactive dashboard that brought together updates from UN agencies, international NGOs, and Egypt’s Ministry of Health. This tool became a central hub for crisis coordination—enabling everyone involved to visualize the full spectrum of support and help simplify decisions.
Beyond screens and spreadsheets, Anas is also on the ground, helping evacuate Palestinian patients who need urgent medical care. The missions, backed by the EU Civil Protection Mechanism, require close coordination between countries. Here, the dashboards he creates show real-time updates on aid delivery and help teams stay connected—making fast and safe medical evacuations possible.
For him, getting patients safely to hospitals in Europe isn’t just logistics but more than that—it's service to humanity.
One of the most memorable moments was seeing critically ill patients safely transferred for life-saving treatment. Behind every data point and plan are real human lives. That makes the work meaningful.”
Challenges are part of his everyday reality. Crises bring floods of data, and the pressure to act quickly is constant. Different systems, different ways of working—it’s a lot to manage. But Anas stays on top of it with smart workflows, automation tools, and clear communication. His assignment has sharpened his skills. But most of all, it’s shown him that what he does makes a real difference in people’s lives.
The dashboard we built became a model for how coordination can be done. It’s rewarding to know that something I worked on will continue to help others beyond this crisis.”
Whether building tools that keep aid flowing or helping patients reach safety, volunteering is a powerful reminder: behind every life-saving response is a person who cares enough to make it happen.
For more information about UN Volunteer assignments and how you can get involved, click here. To read more volunteer stories, click here.