Hanoi, Viet Nam: When Leika Aruga (Japan) arrived at her duty station as a UN Volunteer Programme Specialist in Governance for UN Women in May 2014, it was a critical moment for women’s rights in Viet Nam. Little did she know how much she would use her training and background in international law to secure the inclusion of women's human rights in Vietnamese laws.

Cairo, Egypt: My name is Mohammad Abbas. I am a national UN Volunteer in Egypt. An accountant for many years, I was really unhappy with my job. I wanted out. I got my chance in 2014. I became a Community Service Intern with the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). Interacting with people, guiding them, answering queries were all part of my job. In January 2015, I became UN Volunteer Reception Coordinator for UNHCR in Cairo.

Rumbek, South Sudan: As a UNV Human Rights Officer with the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS), the main part of my assignment is to monitor, verify and report human rights violations as per the Mandate (2241, 2015).

Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan: When I was doing my degree, I volunteered with a number of local NGOs and associations whose main activities focused on women and youth, as that is where I thought I could make a contribution and bring about change.

Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire: Sustainable Development Goal 5 aims to “achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls.” Volunteering offers an excellent way of empowering women, allowing them to show what they are capable of, while acquiring new skills and capacities. Volunteering also allows women to access sectors usually reserved to men, and to take on new roles, especially as leaders and managers. Women volunteers can serve as role models, and inspire others to follow in their footsteps. An additional reason to volunteer!

Nawalparasi, Nepal: Thirty-five years old and married with three children, I am Phool Kumari Giri, from Nawalparasi, Nepal. My traditional family structure and economic situation allowed me to pursue education only till the age of thirteen.

Makueni County, Kenya: Catherine Ngave, a national UN Volunteer in Kenya: I started volunteering at a young age in our community. We would volunteer to clean the market places and also fetch water for the elderly women in the village. I never knew it would lead to national volunteerism.

Quito, Ecuador:  During my one-year assignment in Quito, Ecuador, I supported the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN-Women). I focused on the programmes that aim to prevent violence against women and girls and to ensure the restitution of their rights.    Violence against women and girls is one of the most frequent violations of human rights. Some consider it a pandemic, as no country is exempt from it.

Lilongwe, Malawi:  “When I set out from Uganda in 2013 to take up my UNV assignment in Malawi as a Joint Procurement Coordinator, my family and I wondered what I could offer.  I did bring 17 years of national and international experience in procurement and supply chain management.  But when I learnt more about the nature of my assignment, relating to the ‘Delivering as One’ (DaO) reforms, I realized the role was the first of its kind.

Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire: As a master student in Canada, I studied Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration (DDR) processes in West African countries. While doing my internship with UNDP in Namibia, a colleague who was a UN Volunteer encouraged me to register online. I did not have a clue what the United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme was, but I took her advice anyway. About a year later, I was recruited to serve as UN Volunteer DDR Officer, which was an academic dream come true.