Protecting vulnerable refugee children in Cairo, and helping them beat the odds

Farah Nassef, former UN Volunteer Child Protection Assistant with UNHCR
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This story is part of the #Volunteers4Refugees campaign, launched by UNV in partnership with UNHCR on World Refugee Day 2019. The campaign features stories of six UN Volunteers working with UNHCR in the Arab States, Europe and CIS for one mission: to help save lives and build better futures for those forced from home.

Farah Nassef, 26, knows how easy it is to lose everything and be driven out of your home.

“One of my relatives was forced to leave the country to avoid the forced military conscription of her sons. She left her house, friends, and the life she had built up for decades due to the devastating consequences of the war,” Farah explains.

UN Volunteers skilled-up for greater impact with UNICEF and the UN

Nairobi, Kenya
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The first workshop that took place in Nairobi was organized in partnership with UNICEF for 40 UN Volunteer Youth Advocates drawn from 28 countries across the globe.

During the two day workshop, the UNICEF volunteers were involved in learning on career planning and professional development. The UN Volunteer Youth Advocates also strengthened their capacities and professional skills in communications, leadership, conflict resolution, and teamwork.

UN Volunteers skilled-up for greater impact with UNICEF and the UN

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The first workshop that took place in Nairobi was organized in partnership with UNICEF for 40 UN Volunteer Youth Advocates drawn from 28 countries across the globe.

During the two day workshop, the UNICEF volunteers were involved in learning on career planning and professional development. The UN Volunteer Youth Advocates also strengthened their capacities and professional skills in communications, leadership, conflict resolution, and teamwork.

UNV and UNDP launch a new partnership platform to promote youth participation for SDGs in China

China
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Nearly 150 participants from government institutions, academia, and UN agencies attended the launching ceremony. Mr. Wang Jiarui, Chairman of China Soong Ching Ling Foundation, Mr. Hang Yuanxiang, Executive Vice Chairman of the China Soong Ching Ling Foundation, Mr. Olivier Adam, UNV Executive Coordinator, Mr. Zhang Yi, Deputy Director General of CICETE and Mr. Devanand Ramiah, UNDP China Deputy Residence Representative jointly launched the project.

Statelessness - UN Volunteers with UNHCR identify thousands of unregistered people in Côte d'Ivoire

UNHCR
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Janvier Okpo is a national UN Volunteer Protection Officer with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), deployed since June 2018 in Tanda, a small town located at 350km east of the Ivorian capital (Abidjan). In his daily work he meets with community members, local authorities, state agents and institutions established in the area to discuss and raise awareness about statelessness, an issue that affects many people.

Janvier goes from door to door to visit families on a regular basis, and during discussions he identifies some family members whose births have not been registered.

Six Volunteers - One Goal

Arab States, Europe & CIS
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Today, over 25 million people worldwide live outside their countries to escape violence and persecution. Refugees leave nearly everything behind to seek safety: their homes, their jobs, and sometimes even their families.

Countries surrounding the Mediterranean Sea have witnessed some of the highest levels of migrations over the past few years, leaving millions of migrants and refugees in need of critical assistance and life support.

Volunteer opportunities for refugees by refugees, in West and Central Africa

UNHCR and IOM, West and Central Africa
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This year, UNV has jump started initiatives to give refugees, particularly youth, the opportunity to volunteer for their communities. In partnership with UNHCR and IOM, UNV provides learning and career opportunities to refugees, through this new UN Refugee Volunteer modality.

Since the beginning of 2019, 286 UN Volunteers, including 154 nationals and 132 internationals support the protection of refugees and migration management with the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) and the International Organization for Migration (IOM). UN Volunteers positively impact the living conditions of the refugees, in Chad and 13 countries in West and Central Africa. 

This year, in addition, UNV is providing young refugees in

Volunteers create support for refugees from Venezuela

Sonia Silva, a former international UN Volunteer in Lago Agrio, Ecuador with UNHCR
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Many people in Latin America and the Caribbean currently become volunteers to support the Venezuelan refugees and asylum seekers. Sonia Silva, a former international UN Volunteer who served in Lago Agrio, Ecuador with UNHCR, shares how volunteering facilitates the adaptation of families on the move.

According to UNHCR and IOM’s latest report, the number of Venezuelans leaving their country has reached 4 million. Globally, the report also reveals that Venezuelans are one of the single largest population groups displaced, with a number of refugees and migrants that has increased by one million since November 2018.

UN Volunteers use engineering expertise to improve conditions in Cox's Bazar

Bangladesh
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Since 2018, UNV has partnered with the International Organization for Migration (IOM) in Bangladesh to provide humanitarian assistance to refugees coming into the Cox’s Bazar region. To date, four national UN Volunteers have been mobilized to work with IOM on site management for Rohingya refugees at the camp and surrounding areas.

In August 2017, the humanitarian situation in the Rakhine State of Myanmar triggered a large influx of Rohingya civilians to cross into Bangladesh to Cox's Bazar. Since then, an estimated 655,000 Rohingyas refugees have crossed into Bangladesh, increasing the total Rohingya population residing in the Cox's Bazar area to over 866,000. The speed and scale of the refugee influx has resulted in a critical humanitarian emergency that is being handled by UN agencies, other humanitarian partners and volunteers.

Refugees become change agents through volunteerism

UNHCR, Kenya
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Kakuma refugee camp, located in the Northwest of Kenya, plays host to approximately 191,000 refugees from 20 different nationalities, with the majority being from South Sudan and Somalia. Under the guidance of UNHCR, UNV and other developing partners have developed a pilot volunteer initiatives with refugees in the camps. These activities enhance community security and refugee protection through refugee engagement, with a particular focus on women and girls. Grace Oonge has been working as a national UN Volunteer for the project and shares with us her story during this year's World Refugee Day.

On 21 June 2017 Ojulu, a refugee from Ethiopia, first arrived in the Kalobeyei settlement. The move was part of a camp consolidation and closure exercise that saw the relocation of non-Somali refugees from the Dadaab complex to the Kakuma refugee camp in Turkana County.

“When I first arrived in Kalobeyei everything was new. I left my work, family, friends in Dadaab and was entering a new place,” Ojulu explains.

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