UN Volunteers in Bosnia and Herzegovina: delivering results for people in need of international protection

UNV partnering with UNHCR
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In Bosnia and Herzegovina, an estimated 9,500 migrants and refugees are in need of humanitarian assistance, according to the UN Development Assistance Framework 2015-2020. At the time of the COVID-19 outbreak, the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) focused on the critical need to maintain essential services, while preventing the spread of COVID-19. The organization reports about new challenges its joint team took on, supported by UN Volunteers. 

UNHCR has benefitted from a number of international UN Volunteers over the years – they become an essential part of the team, bringing a wealth of fresh perspective and knowledge and positive energy. --Stephanie Woldenberg, Senior Protection Officer with UNHCR, Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Fortifying farming communities in drought-prone parts of Uzbekistan

UNV partnering with UNDP
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Jasurjon Ibragimov supports a climate adaptation project to fortify farming communities in drought-prone parts of Uzbekistan. Serving with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), he shares why education on climate change is imperative and needs to start early.

Jasurjon supports the UNDP project Developing the climate resilience of farming communities in drought-prone parts of Uzbekistan,1 funded by the Adaptation Fund of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).His assignment is centred on public relations, content development and organizing working sessions with stakeholders.

“One of the most interesting parts of my work is bringing project stakeholders together to work on new challenges arising during the implementation of the project,” says Jasurjon.

Volunteerism in the fight against COVID-19 in Africa

Njoya Tikum, Regional Manager, UNV Regional Office for East and Southern Africa
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Whenever disaster strikes, even before government and other humanitarian actors intervene, volunteers are usually on the frontline, helping with rescue and recovery efforts. When the Ebola epidemic ravaged West and Central Africa in 2014 or when Cyclone Idai hit Mozambique, Zimbabwe and Malawi in 2019, thousands of volunteers were at hand to help save lives.

In Africa, COVID-19 reinforces the communal value system of UBUNTU - expressing compassion, reciprocity and humanity in the interests of building and maintaining communities. This system has long been the hidden gem of Africa and the core value upon which most of the African society is built.

UN Volunteers go beyond the call of duty to mitigate the impact of COVID-19 in Malakal

Janet Adongo, UN Volunteer Public Information Officer with UNMISS
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Catherine Amboga-Rimmele, a Kenyan-born UN Volunteer from Germany, sits in a prefabricated container at the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) Field Office in Malakal. With a cluster of sewing machines for company, she expertly cuts through reams of fabric in preparation of the next phase of her current project.

"Like everyone else, I have been watching and reading about the chaos around the world caused by COVID-19 and I really wanted to do something to help the community here fight this pandemic," reveals Catherine. "I saw that there was a shortage of face masks. I love sewing and the idea dawned on me that I could actually make some here," she adds.

Volunteering to support humanitarian response in eastern Ukraine amidst the COVID-19 pandemic

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Civilian casualties in eastern Ukraine just reached their highest levels since September 2019 as a result of the current health crisis caused by the Coronavirus. The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), which has a well-established coordination mechanism, has become central to COVID-19 response in the country, supported by UN Volunteers.

National UN Volunteer Iryna Koval has been supporting OCHA as a Humanitarian Affairs Specialist since March 2019. Soon, she will start her new position as a coordination and monitoring consultant with the World Health Organization (WHO), a key partner in addressing COVID-19.

At the onset of the pandemic, OCHA and its partners re-oriented their work in eastern Ukraine to address the health emergency and the current need for humanitarian aid.

Digital innovation helps sustain community livelihoods during COVID-19

Sheku Tamba Davowa, UN Volunteer with UNDP
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Sheku Tamba Davowa (Sierra Leone) serves as a UN Volunteer with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Mbale, Eastern Uganda. Sheku, an environment and development practitioner with a background in agriculture, shares his experience as a Programme Management Specialist enabling communities and farmers to enhance their livelihoods in an environmentally-friendly manner.

I support a UNDP project on Integrated Landscape Management for Improved Livelihoods and Ecosystem Resilience in Mount Elgon. This aims to empower communities to manage their production landscapes in an integrated manner for improved livelihoods and ecosystem resilience.

Addressing the vulnerability of women in the COVID-19 crisis

Fanny Arendt, UN Volunteer with UN Women
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Women make essential contributions as frontline responders – and face particular vulnerabilities – during emergencies like the COVID-19 pandemic. In Asia and the Pacific, UN Women has been focusing on ensuring gender equality during COVID-19, also with the support of UN Volunteers like Fanny Arendt (Sweden). We share her story and perspective.

"Women and girls are disproportionately affected in times of crisis. It is essential to recognize the gendered dimension of pandemics, in order to strengthen COVID-19 responses at the national, regional and global level, " says UN Volunteer Fanny Arendt (Sweden).

Fanny serves as Programme Analyst for Governance, Peace and Security with the UN Women Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific in Thailand. She supports programmes preventing violent extremism, strengthening women’s leadership roles in peace and security efforts, and enhancing women’s access to justice.

Advancing inclusion and participation in the face of gender and other inequalities

Kevin Ochieng, UNV Communications, East and Southern Africa
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Inequality is a paradox in modern society. Yet, it is neither natural nor inevitable. It is entrenched in policies, laws and cultural norms. Facilitating access and enhancing the participation of marginalized peoples and groups is one way to ensure the system is responsive to their needs. Inequality can, therefore, be tackled by each one of us, including volunteers.

The 2019 Human Development Report noted that one of the most persistent forms of inequality is gender inequality. Rooted in social norms and exclusion, girls and women are more likely to have fewer opportunities and stay mired in a cycle of generational poverty.

Communicating sustainable solutions for biodiversity conservation

Ladu Lemi, UN Volunteer with UNEP
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Ladu Lemi serves as a UN Volunteer with the UN Environment Programme (UNEP). On the occasion of the International Day for Biological Diversity, he shares his experience delivering communications for environmental sustainability.

It is often said that experience is the best teacher. As a UN Volunteer helping communicate complex environmental issues, my everyday challenge is to make nature relevant to people’s everyday experiences and needs.

Our experiences and immediate needs shape our outlook on life. However, biodiversity and environmental issues are often too complex and difficult to relate to. Most people, in their daily routines, live and work in cities, spending the bulk of their time indoors, surrounded by concrete walls and engulfed in a world that seems largely man-made.

Volunteers raising awareness of COVID-19 in Liberia

Montserrado County, Liberia
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UNV supported 30 volunteers from Volunteers Without Borders by providing flyers and megaphones to facilitate an awareness-raising initiative in the vulnerable communities of Slipway, West Point and Clara Town, in Montserrado County. The volunteers mobilized Clara Town marketers, who provided a sound system that helped spread information on COVID-19, while the community chairperson accompanied the team throughout the entire activity.

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