Held during International Volunteer Year 2026, the Roundtable focused on how volunteer action can strengthen solidarity and practical cooperation in the region and globally.
The Republic of Korea has maintained a strong partnership with UNV under the Full Funding programme since 1986. Roundtable discussions focused on Korean youth and on retaining Korean talent through volunteer assignments.
Мероприятие проводится в контексте Международного года добровольцев (МГД) во имя устойчивого развития 2026 и нацелено на укрепление солидарности и практического сотрудничества в сфере волонтёрства как в азиатском регионе, так и на глобальном уровне.
Held during International Volunteer Year 2026, the Roundtable will focus on how volunteer action can strengthen solidarity and practical cooperation in the region and globally.
Gulbara Sultanova, Chair of the Civil Society Affairs Committee of the Ministry of Culture and Information, said, “UNV is our strategic partner. We are confident that further strengthening of our cooperation will lead to even more significant results.”
Мероприятие проводится в контексте Международного года добровольцев (МГД) во имя устойчивого развития 2026 и нацелено на укрепление солидарности и практического сотрудничества в сфере волонтёрства как в азиатском регионе, так и на глобальном уровне.
Held during International Volunteer Year 2026, the Roundtable will focus on how volunteer action can strengthen solidarity and practical cooperation in the region and globally.
In the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), peace work doesn’t always look like what you see on the news. It’s not just convoys on the move or leaders at the negotiating table. Much of it happens quietly—people tracking political shifts, bridging conversations across languages, or figuring out how to move staff safely when tensions spike.
At the United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO), UN Volunteers are part of this everyday effort. Often out of sight, they keep things running—shaping analysis, supporting coordination, interpreting conversations, and managing logistics in a country where conditions can change fast. Their work may not grab headlines, but without it, the Mission couldn’t function.
Reading political tensions before they escalate
Neema Atosha grew up in South Kivu, eastern DRC, a region marked by armed conflict and displacement. She says what she saw early on shaped her journey ahead. In 2022, she joined MONUSCO’s Political Affairs Division, where she is a Political Affairs Assistant. At first, she was based in Bukavu during the lead-up to the 2023 general elections.
“I left Namibia at 15 years old and went into exile. We were refugees during those years.” Kirsti Mukwiilongo was a teenager when she left her home in Namibia. It was the height of the liberation struggle, and safety lay beyond the border. Like many others, she moved between countries—Angola, then Zambia—finishing secondary school as a refugee. Those years marked her for life. “We were assisted by other countries, by other people,” she recalls. The experience stayed with her—shaping how she responds and what matters to her. “That gave me compassion. It gave me purpose.”
Years later, she did something few people do. She returned—not to her own safety, but to instability. This time, not as someone needing help, but as someone ready to carry weight.
Held during International Volunteer Year 2026, the Roundtable will focus on how volunteer action can strengthen solidarity and practical cooperation in the region and globally.
Partners will review results from UNV’s Full Funding and Special Voluntary Fund, exchange lessons, and explore new ways to work together as priorities evolve across Asia and in the UN system.
