Remarks by Olivier Adam, UNV Executive Coordinator, on the occasion of the UNDP/UNFPA/UNOPS Executive Board
- Agenda Item 5: United Nations Volunteers, UNV Strategic Framework, 2018-2021.
New York, 24 January 2018.
Thank you, Mr. Associate Administrator, for your introductory remarks. I am grateful to you and the Administrator for your leadership, and your strong support to volunteers, volunteerism and UNV.
Mr. President,
The report mentions that there is no comprehensive staffing strategy to ensure the right mix of civilian personnel in any operation. There are talents within the United Nations system that must be tapped, gaps to be filled through external recruitment and a range of other options that fall in between, such as the use of United Nations Volunteers, subcontracted personnel, commercial services, and nationally-recruited staff. The United Nations has turned to all of these sources of personnel throughout the past decade, but on a case-by-case basis rather than according to a global strategy.
The University Volunteer Scheme (UVS) was designed to complement the United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme’s community coordination under the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) within the People Centred Development Program (PCDP) in Papua and West Papua. These provinces have the lowest Human Development Index (HDI) rating in Indonesia. The main expected output under the revised PCDP was two university volunteer schemes developed and managed by partner universities in Papua and West Papua.
After Hurricane Irma hit the Caribbean, UNICEF recruited volunteers using the UNV Online Volunteer service and trained them to respond to messages on the situation and advice on how to stay safe. Seven volunteers were recruited and responded to 8,000 messages in 21 days.
They came in three. Hurricanes Irma, Jose and Maria battered their way through the Caribbean and Southern Florida last summer, with 185mph winds causing an estimated $67 billion worth of damage. Many homes, schools and hospitals were ripped apart, with communities working desperately hard to ensure people remained safe. One important way of ensuring people were prepared was getting potentially life-saving information to those in the path of the storms.
On the week that the world celebrated International Volunteer Day (IVD), volunteers “acted first” through a rubbish collection activity sponsored by UNV.
UNV and UN Women observe International Volunteer Day 2017 in Bangladesh. Volunteers as crisis managers and life savers at the time of need, their most defining quality is that they act first.
A team of UN Volunteers came together to touch the lives of the people they serve in South Sudan by embarking on a special personal donation drive to mark International Volunteer Day in Jonglei.
There are 27 volunteers serving in the Jonglei region for the United Nations Mission in South Sudan. They decided to make their special day about others rather than themselves in the spirit of volunteerism, which is all about giving.
The Red Cross of Serbia and the UN agencies in Serbia partnered up to jointly commemorate the International Volunteer Day under the global theme Volunteers Act First. Here. Everywhere.
A Volunteer Fair was organized in Pristina, Kosovo to mark International Volunteer Day on 5 December. Participants learnt about volunteerism and careers in development. A conference co-hosted by the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sport, UNICEF Innovation Lab, UNV and OSCE also focused on raising awareness about the importance of voluntary work for the overall well-being of the community, and praised the work of volunteers in Kosovo.
Around 150 young people and potential volunteers met UN agencies and local NGOs during the Volunteer Fair in Pristina. The event also allowed participants to register on the Kosovo Volunteer Platform designed by the UNICEF Innovations Lab. The aim of this platform is to connect non-profit organizations and passionate volunteers for future collaborations.
On the occasion of IVD 2017, UNV Sudan in partnership with the Sudanese Red Crescent, organized a one-day workshop in Khartoum, where 30 national volunteers from local volunteering organizations, NGOs and National Youth Forum were invited, along with UNV to participate in an emergency first aid training.
The UNV Field Unit Khartoum, and the Sudanese Red Crescent held a day-long emergency first aid workshop to commemorate the International Volunteer Day under the theme “Volunteers Act First. Here. Everywhere.”.
