Since 8 November 2013, when Category 5 Typhoon Haiyan made a direct hit on 36 provinces of the Philippines, there has been a worldwide response by aid agencies, governments and civil society to help the densely populated nation of 92 million people recover. The latest Government estimates (at 20 November 2013) indicate that 13.25 million people were affected by Typhoon Haiyan, including over 4.4 million who were displaced.  More than four million people are living outside evacuations, while 387,450 are living in 1,552 centres.

"Volunteerism is a universal concept - the largest expression of global solidarity you can find," United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme Executive Coordinator (EC) Richard Dictus told a live audience of hundreds gathered in New York City, while countless virtual attendees tuned in around the world. The head of UNV was taking part in UNV's panel "Changing the World in 2.0: Volunteerism" on Sunday, 22 September 2013, the opening day of Social Good Summit, where his words seemed to strike a chord with listeners.

United Nations Volunteers, in partnership with different UN entities, supports the UN System efforts to shape the post-2015 agenda.

United Nations Volunteers, in partnership with different UN entities, supports the UN System efforts to shape the post-2015 agenda.

Kigali, Rwanda: In cooperation with 22 other African countries, the One UN in Rwanda held consultations in order to formulate a nationally owned post-2015 development agenda. The objective of the consultations was to stimulate an inclusive, bottom-up debate on the post-2015 development agenda. The idea was thus to facilitate a visioning process, which is based on people’s experiences and ideas for the future of the world they want to live in.

“Elimination and prevention of all forms of violence against women and girls” was the priority theme of the 57th Session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW57) held at United Nations Headquarters from 4 to 15 March. At this apt venue, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), UN Women and UNV presented the latest research from their Partners for Prevention Regional Joint Programme at the side event “Why do men use violence and how do we stop it?

The International Day of Zero Tolerance to Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) is on 6 February. According to data from the World Health Organization (WHO), an estimated 120 to 140 million women have been subject to this harmful and dangerous practice and 3 million girls continue to be at risk each year. Although in many countries this practice has been radically prohibited, there are places where genital ablation is still practiced, as it is considered an ancient ritual linked to cultural, religious and social factors within families and communities.

In Albania, the country with the highest percentage of youth in Southeast Europe, Roma youth face heavy discrimination. Their exclusion from sports competitions, school events, vocational training and community life often has a negative impact on their self-confidence.

According to Marie-Josée Jacobs, Luxembourg's Minister for Family and Integration and Minister of Development Cooperation and Humanitarian Affairs, once a young person becomes a volunteer, it changes their life and they remain engaged. Ms Jacobs was speaking at a press conference chaired jointly with UNV Executive Coordinator Flavia Pansieri at which a new Memorandum of Understanding between Luxembourg and UNV was signed.

In recent decades, most Latin American countries have made increasing commitments to gender equality. However, the commitments alone have not been sufficient to fully address gender gaps and inequality, as they require appropriate budget resources to ensure effective implementation. In response to this need, UN Women promoted Gender Responsive Budgeting (GRB) as a tool for linking women's and gender-equality public policies with budget allocations, and for strengthening the capacity of governments to implement the relevant policies.