Multilingualism allows communication between the different Member States of the United Nations (UN) with different languages and cultures. In promoting tolerance, multilingualism ensures greater participation of all Member States in the work they perform within the Organization, as well as greater effectiveness, better results and greater participation. To promote the use of the six official languages and to guarantee the full and equitable treatment of all official languages, there are minimum standards for multilingualism of UN websites.

Ninety-six UN Online Volunteers mobilized through the United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme from across the globe engaged for the second time to collaborate with the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UN DESA) to process research surveys carried out across UN Member States for the UN E-Government Survey.

Damascus, Syria. / Mr Kurbanov will meet with United Nations entity partners to discuss the United Nations humanitarian and development response to the crisis in Syria and its impact in the region. While in Lebanon and Jordan, Mr Kurbanov will also meet with some of the 222 UN Volunteers deployed as part of UNV’s Syria crisis response across the region (in Jordan, Iraq, Lebanon, Turkey and Egypt.)

Damascus, Syria. / Mr Kurbanov will meet with United Nations entity partners to discuss the United Nations humanitarian and development response to the crisis in Syria and its impact in the region. While in Lebanon and Jordan, Mr Kurbanov will also meet with some of the 222 UN Volunteers deployed as part of UNV’s Syria crisis response across the region (in Jordan, Iraq, Lebanon, Turkey and Egypt.)

People around the world are facing an interconnected array of social, environmental and economic barriers to sustainable development. In this landscape, solutions for economic and human development require collaborative efforts by multiple sectors of society such as the private sector — a key player in the realisation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). When knowledge, technical expertise and innovative practices are applied to community investment, aligning economic development with human development, everybody wins.

Volunteering and South-South Cooperation share common ideals of mutuality, respect, and equality that make them perfect partners. Today there is great potential for them to combine for mutual benefit. The volunteering landscape has shifted and programmes are no longer confined to traditional Northern donor countries. New volunteering organizations have emerged in the Global South as volunteerism becomes increasingly mainstream, more organized, and better governed.

V-Force volunteers “discover their passion” for community development

UNV: What do you see as the intrinsic values volunteerism can bring to the human development agenda? Selim Jahan: Firstly, volunteerism is undoubtedly helping the human development agenda. Volunteers are working in areas such as education, health, water and sanitation, improving living conditions and, in a nutshell, providing people with all kinds of support. Volunteerism enhances human development, everywhere.

UNV: What do you see as the intrinsic values volunteerism can bring to the human development agenda? Selim Jahan: Firstly, volunteerism is undoubtedly helping the human development agenda. Volunteers are working in areas such as education, health, water and sanitation, improving living conditions and, in a nutshell, providing people with all kinds of support. Volunteerism enhances human development, everywhere.

Karol Alejandra Arámbula Carrillo (Mexico) has been a Online Volunteer since 2011. One of her motivations to join UNV’s Online Volunteering service was the desire to help organisations in other countries carry out their work, especially in the field of gender equality.