Protecting refugee women at greater risk of gender-based violence due to COVID-19

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Did you ever imagine that an unprecedented pandemic would affect the world during our lifetime? At the time of writing, the World Health Organization (WHO) has reported more than 3.5 million cases of COVID-19. Of these,1.5 million are in the Americas. Filippa Dahlback, a Swedish sponsored UN Youth Volunteer with the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) in Brazil, shares UNHCR’s approach to preventing sexual and gender-based violence in its COVID-19 response.

While the elderly, people with disabilities and refugees are all at high risk, COVID-19 has also led to a surge in sexual and gender-based violence. This is alarming for Filippa, who works with UNHCR on prevention and tailoured response.

Women are at risk of physical, psychological and emotional violence. These risks could increase due to confinement, increased anxiety and deterioration of mental health. --Filippa Dahlback, UN Volunteer Associate Protection Officer with UNHCR, Boa Vista

Volunteers assisting refugees and internally displaced persons with UNHCR

Striving to belong: Helping refugees restore their identity

Urvashi Bundel, UN Volunteer with UNHCR, Ethiopia
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Urvashi Bundel joined the UN Volunteers (UNV) programme in 2019 as an Associate Refugee Status Determination Officer at the Assosa sub-office of the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) in Ethiopia. On World Refugee Day, she shares what it is like to be a part of the refugee status determination process.

Identity, to me, is what we share when we introduce ourselves to others. It includes the traditions of our country of origin or the language we speak, our religious practices, family customs, hometown festivals and more. Now, imagine if your very identity was continuously challenged – only because you were forced to flee your place of origin due to precarious circumstances like war, political unrest or climate change. This is the reality that asylum seekers, refugees and anyone unwillingly displaced from home, face every day.

Assessing the socio-economic impact of COVID-19 on refugees and asylum-seekers in Albania

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Holly Langham (United Kingdom) serves as a UN Volunteer with the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) in Albania. She is actively contributing to a rapid socio-economic assessment of the impact of COVID-19 on refugees and asylum seekers. Working towards the effective integration of refugees and addressing the needs of the most vulnerable has always been a deep-rooted interest.

Holly finds working on refugee and asylum matters very engaging, especially as the country has long-term ambitions to join the EU and align its legal frameworks and systems accordingly.

Propagating health awareness online to ensure the safety of communities during COVID-19

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Afghanistan, like many other countries across the world, is in lockdown due to the Coronavirus pandemic. Creating awareness about the effects of COVID-19 in communities embroiled in conflict over the years is onerous.  UN Volunteers serving with the UN Children's Fund are propagating health awareness by engaging with target groups online.

UN Volunteer Basmeena Safi, a UN Volunteer Health Officer with UNICEF, is sparing no effort to prevent the spread of the virus and protect communities. A specialist in healthcare, Basmeena, has supported efforts to mitigate the spread of the virus by sensitizing communities about facts surrounding COVID-19 to stop misinformation.

The fight against COVID-19: ensuring the safety of communities in Papua New Guinea

Bringing the UN and youth together through technology and innovation to create social impact

Towards a gender and disability-inclusive COVID-19 response

Gift Govere, UN Volunteer, UNDP Zimbabwe
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Gift Govere is a UN Volunteer deployed under the Talent Programme for Young Professionals with Disabilities, jointly implemented by the UN Development Programme (UNDP) and UNV, and his assignment is part of a project supported by the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) of Germany. He supports a multi-stakeholder project in Zimbabwe for women and girls with disabilities. In the current COVID-19 context, Gift is helping UNDP adapt its programming to ensure a disability and gender-inclusive response and shares his experience and perspective.

I was recruited by UNDP in Zimbabwe to provide technical support to the UN Partnership on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and the Spotlight Initiative on disability-inclusive programming and interventions.

UN Volunteers making time for nature in China

Dried and Delicious: Earning an income from dried vegetables in Gokwe

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