International Volunteer Day 2021 called for the recognition of volunteers and volunteerism as powerful and cross-cutting ways of achieving the SDGs and building an inclusive world. A number of UN partner representatives, influencers and national authorities shared via social media their messages of acknowledgement and appreciation for the support of volunteers.

In Ukraine, events to mark IVD kicked off on 5 December, with a workshop on Innovations for long-term volunteering. The development of volunteerism for youth was the topic of discussion at a major online event held on 7 December, hosted with the Ministry of Youth and Sports, and facilitated by the UN Population Fund (UNFPA).

What do you do as a UN Volunteer? The Global Fund’s COVID-19 response programme aims to mitigate the impact of the pandemic on the fight to defeat HIV, tuberculosis and malaria, and promotes urgent improvements in health and community systems.

According to the 2018 Latinobarómetro report, more than half of Latin Americans (56 per cent) do not trust the media, and the democratic support is only 48 per cent. In addition, information contamination (or info-pollution) and bad information are tools that cause political polarization and misinformation and undermine democracy.

Dalila is assigned to Remada, one of Tunisia’s southernmost towns near the borders with Libya. To her, serving as the sole representative of the only UN entity working in this remote area has been both a challenge and a privilege. Remada has long been left behind due to lacking development efforts. It witnesses recurrent protests denouncing the deteriorating economic situation and the limited access to opportunities, with unemployment rate reaching 33 per cent in 2020,  according to the Municipality of Remada.

Under the theme Connecting Sahelian Youth for Peace and Prosperity, the Youth Connekt Sahel Forum attracted over 1,000 youth and other participants from across the region (Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Chad, The Gambia, Guinea, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, and Senegal).

Within the framework of the joint project "Sustainable Development of the System of Social Protection of the Population: Promotion of Programmes on Social Integration and Inclusion," UNDP inaugurated a centre for employment and professional rehabilitation of persons with disabilities.

In Niger, three UN Volunteers in humanitarian affairs are facilitating the work of the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA). Oumou Moumouni, Fajimata Abba Gana and Farida Zakaria Abderrahmane are assigned to Niamey, Tillabéry and Tahoua regions respectively. In a sector that requires more women, Farida, Fatima and Oumou are more than welcome.  In some areas, the socio-cultural constraints are such that, despite the emergency, only women can interact with the women. So having these volunteers on our team is a huge help.

Nairobi, 8th December 2021 – For its 50th anniversary, the UNV programme celebrated volunteers across the world through national volunteer Awards. Kenya was one of the countries selected to host the Awards under the national Volunteer of the Year Awards (VOYA).

We live at a time of disruption, witnessing the effects of climate change and the COVID-19 pandemic, which threatens to reverse progress towards the achievement of the 2030 Agenda and 17 Sustainable Development Goals. The complexity of the issues we need to address on this path demands that we all work together, in much broader partnerships, connecting various areas of expertise to develop integrated development solutions.