Tracking progress towards the Global Goals in small island developing states

Thu, 01/18/2024 - 12:00

UN Volunteers with UNESCAP and UNRCO

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Teenari Tekeraoi, Deavina Ken and Uong Jameson Yalap are the three UN Volunteers tracking the progress of the Sustainable Development Goals in small island developing states in the Pacific. Their assignments are funded through the UNV Special Voluntary Fund, which underpins the organization's role as the United Nations system-wide service for engaging UN Volunteers in peace and development worldwide.

When Teenari Tekeraoi (Kiribati) began her assignment in June 2023, she was the first international UN Youth Volunteer from the Small Island Developing States in the Pacific. She joined the UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) as a Sustainable Development Monitoring Assistant, supporting Fiji, Kiribati and Tuvalu in reviewing and monitoring their national development progress.

Engaging with local talent for a community-oriented response to development challenges

Mon, 09/04/2023 - 12:00

UNV Regional Office for Latin America and the Caribbean

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The United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme supports UN partners to integrate talent from community level into their teams. This facilitates inclusion and representation, as well as the mainstreaming of community-oriented solutions.

In Peru, UNV partnered with two UN entities that host the highest numbers of UN Volunteers, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF), to carry out a talent outreach mission on the northern border of the country.

Streamlining volunteer engagement through the Unified Volunteering Platform

Thu, 10/12/2023 - 12:00

Shalmoli Das, Systems Specialist at UNV

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In October 2021, the United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme launched the Unified Volunteering Platform (UVP) as part of its digital transformation. This move aimed to reshape how the organization conducts volunteer mobilization, recruitment, deployment and contract management. The focus was on enhancing efficiency, accessibility and unified volunteer management.

The recent introduction of the UVP marks a significant turning point. This innovative platform has replaced a multitude of disconnected systems that were previously used to manage various aspects of volunteer recruitment. The result? A streamlined and unified approach that caters to UN Volunteers, candidates, United Nations partners, governmental bodies, and international organizations alike.

Supporting cost-effective nutrition for school children in Indonesia

Thu, 11/16/2023 - 12:00

UNV partnering with UNICEF

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Isna Aulia Fajarini is a national UN Volunteer Nutrition Officer with the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) in Indonesia. She supports the country's cost-effective nutrition programme for school-aged children – vitally needed for nutritional challenges among the youngest demographic in the country. An increase in the consumption of fast food and lack of physical activity has caused a shortfall in health and well-being, or Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) number three. Without improving the nutritional status of school-age children, Indonesia risks losing its economic development momentum.

Isna Aulia Fajarini joined the UNICEF Nutrition Team in June 2021, after getting her master’s degree in public health from Johns Hopkins University. Her knowledge of anaemia, babies with low birth weight and obesity helps her provide substantive support to school-based nutrition programmes for children in Tegal District in Central Java.

The programme targets some 2,000 fourth graders and comprises various elements from student and teacher-led nutrition education to expanding de-worming programmes, and beyond.