The number of people affected by humanitarian crises is unprecedented. In the past decade, over 1.5 billion people have been affected by natural disasters, and more than 65 million have been forcibly displaced – internally in their own countries or seeking shelter across borders. Worldwide, one in nine people go to bed on an empty stomach every night, and one in three suffer from some form of malnutrition.
Volunteers act first, saving lives and livelihoods
A young changemaker is smashing the taboo of HIV/AIDS in India
My journey as a UN volunteer started in December 2015 to help train young people in society- and community-building. I have been a part of several projects across Tripura since then – from building roads in flood-affected regions and building community halls in villages to holding counselling sessions in high schools. One programme that was of particular significance to me involved conducting HIV/AIDS awareness workshops across eight districts in the state.
The project came at a crucial time, because in recent years, the state has been failing to control the spread of HIV/AIDS, to the extent that the prevalence of the disease in Tripura has surpassed the national prevalence rate. Add to this societal taboos and misconceptions, and the situation is infinitely compounded.
UN Volunteers in Central Asia meet for regional training in Kazakhstan
The training, which occurred between 31 October and 3 November, included interactive sessions, group work, case studies, role modelling and competency design to better understand the complexity of sustainable development and to identify comparative advantages of volunteerism in implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
UN Volunteers in Central Asia meet for regional training in Kazakhstan
The training, which occurred between 31 October and 3 November, included interactive sessions, group work, case studies, role modelling and competency design to better understand the complexity of sustainable development and to identify comparative advantages of volunteerism in implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
‘Racing’ to stop violence against women
Natacha Montenegro (Switzerland) served as international UN Youth Volunteer with UN Women in Tajikistan to work as Basic Social Services Officer on a project supporting civil registration in the country. Having volunteered for a decade with several non-governmental organizations in Switzerland, India, Russia and England, she was very happy to join UN Women to try to change the patterns perpetuating gender-based violence against women.
According to a recent Oxfam study conducted in six districts in Tajikistan, 96.5% of men interviewed and 71.5% of women consider that women must tolerate violence for the benefit of the family. Needless to say, when I first read this report, only a couple of weeks after I began my assignment, I was shocked by these statistics.
At Executive Board meeting 2018, Member States applaud UNV for enhancing its ability to deliver
Mr Tegegnework Gettu, UNDP Associate Administrator, opened UNV’s session at the meeting. He highlighted the strong UND/UNV partnership and noted how through its engagements with UNDP, UNV is constantly demonstrating how volunteers are vital to the success of development initiatives at local, regional and national levels.
A united partnership to increase the number of voices against violence in Togo
Around the world, 6 out of 10 girls experience violence in their lifetime. In Togo, violence and harassment of a sexual nature, as well as early pregnancy in schools, are all obstacles to girls' schooling. The trivialization of this violence during adolescence perpetuates it in adulthood, reproducing an endless cycle.
"Voices Against Violence" in Togo is an $85,000 USD project that was funded and implemented by the United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme between October 2016 and April 2017. The project is based on an informal education program developed by the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts and UN Women. It aims to fight against gender-based violence by raising the awareness of young secondary students about the root causes of violence, ways to prevent it, and finding solutions.
Rapid response to sexual and gender based violence in emergency and humanitarian settings in West and Central Africa
The West and Central African regions are faced with complex emergency crises. In the Lake Chad Basin (LCB) some 17 million people in Cameroon, Chad, Niger and Nigeria, are affected by insecurity, food insufficiency, droughts, and diseases. A breakdown in civil order following disasters consistently increases the occurrence of sexual violence, exposure to sexually transmitted infection such as HIV, and unwanted pregnancies. Sexual and gender-based violence is higher in sites for those who are internally displaced such as refugee camps and conflict areas.
The Gender Based Violence Sub Cluster Report from West and Central African countries facing armed conflict revealed that the prevalence of sexual and gender-based violence has drastically increased since the last report in 2016. It is in this line that we jointly organized, in 2017, a regional capacity building workshop on gender mainstreaming, prevention and response to Gender-Based Violence (GBV) in emergency and humanitarian settings in Dakar, Senegal.
On a peacekeeping mission, you become part of history
My decision to enroll in the UN Volunteer roster was emboldened after seeing two female medical doctors reject their assignment offers in Liberia due to social pressures from their families—an unfortunate but common occurrence in Pakistan. I admit, the situation in Liberia at that moment was not very encouraging, but I felt bad seeing two qualified women from my country not able to follow their aspirations. That was the moment when I decided that I was going to enroll, and become a UN Volunteer.
I first became a UN Volunteer in 2004 when I accepted an assignment with the United Nations Operation in Burundi (ONUB) as a Support Officer. I was excited about the opportunity. I still remember practically jumping from joy in my office when I received the offer. My enthusiasm was quickly dampened by the words of caution from colleagues and friends—some of them calling me crazy for being happy to land a role in a warzone.
Volunteering, South-South and triangular cooperation
Volunteering is a universal human value that can be found in all societies. In southern Africa, for example, the concept of Ubuntu defines the relationships of mutual assistance between people. In Norway, the word dugnad describes a traditional system of cooperation. In the Arab world, the word tatawa'a represents voluntary assistance to others. In Niger, the word samariya is used to express the voluntary commitment of young people to community-based activities. In our various experiences, we all know a traditional form of volunteering.
Volunteering and South-South Cooperation share common ideals that make them perfect partners: solidarity, respect and equality. Both have an opportunity to derive mutual benefit from their alliance. The landscape of international volunteering, like that of international cooperation, has changed immensely in the past decades. Today’s programmes are no longer limited to the participation of traditional donor countries of the North.