UNV’s ability to rapidly deploy highly qualified volunteers in large numbers made a difference for UNMIL in the early days. UNV participated in a Technical Assessment Survey of the UN Department of Peacekeeping Operations before the Mission deployed. Closely involved in the Mission’s planning, UNV was able to deploy 48 volunteers in January 2004 alone, sending in 225 UN Volunteers by the end of the year.

The people of South Sudan deserve to enjoy life, deserve to have food, water, electricity, education and a prosperous future for their children. This is the spirit of volunteerism for me – volunteering to make people’s lives better. --Ia Saakadze, UN Volunteer Air Operations Assistant

UNMISS was established in 2011 after South Sudan became the newest country on earth and works to deter violence, provide refuge at Protection of Civilian sites across the country, facilitate humanitarian assistance and investigate human rights violations. It is an impartial partner at national and sub-national level to political, religious, traditional and community leaders to foster reconciliation.

Juba, South Sudan: I am working as a UN Volunteer Fire Safety Officer with the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS). My main field of work is Aviation, though I also have knowledge of structural fire safety. 

Bentiu, South Sudan: I am serving as a UN Volunteer Relief, Reintegration and Protection Officer with the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS). I had been a UNV intern sponsored by the Government of Italy in 2004 in Sudan with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), after which I worked for an NGO.

Last July, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme in Uzbekistan joined forces to launch a two and half year project supporting volunteers and other young enthusiasts who want to make a positive impact in their communities. We are pleased to say that nine months later the project is bustling with activity.

 

The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme have created a legal support website in Tashkent which is run by pro-bono legal clinicians and is designed to help the city’s residents obtain the legal advice and support they require. While a number of legal clinics are currently operating in the city, staffed by law students with the support of UNDP and their academic institutions, they lack the resources and tools required to address the needs of their clients.

Monrovia, Liberia: Joining the United Nations Mission in Liberia (UNMIL) as a UNV Judicial Systems Monitor in 2007 has allowed me to help further development not only for the people I serve in Lofa and Montserrado Counties, but also for myself. I have monitored, advised and reported on judicial processes at the Magistrates’ Courts, Circuit Courts and Supreme Court in civil and criminal matters, sometimes in very remote areas of Liberia.

The Ecological Boomerang project – or 'Eco-Boom', as people commonly refer to it – began its activities in Fergana in September. A joint initiative of UNV and the UNDP resource centre in Tashkent, and financially supported by UNV Uzbekistan under its IYV+10 Mini-Grant initiative, the project began its first training of trainers in October.