George Gachie, Kenya National UN Volunteer shares a moment with a local parliamentarian and UNV in Kibera slums, the community where he is leading a Participatory Slum Upgrading Project for UN-Habitat.
George Gachie, Kenya National UN Volunteer shares a moment with a local parliamentarian and UNV in Kibera slums, the community where he is leading a Participatory Slum Upgrading Project for UN-Habitat.

UNV and the private sector

Through its alliances with multi-national companies and business networks, the United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme has been strengthening volunteering to meet the talent needs of the United Nations and its Member States. At local, national and multi-national levels, growing numbers of private sector partners are joining forces with UNV through onsite and online corporate volunteering to support achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

The achievement of the SDGs requires enhanced cooperation among various stakeholders. UNV effectively fulfills its mission of mobilizing volunteers by establishing partnerships with multiple actors, which is vital for ensuring inclusivity. The private sector assumes a pivotal role in facilitating this process.

The private sector has extensive knowledge, expertise and operational capabilities. It is well-placed to complement efforts undertaken by governments, civil society organizations, academia, the United Nations system and other development partners to promote peace and sustainable development through volunteerism.

We must unite public and private investors around new concepts, solutions and instruments, and we need to do so at scale. I am speaking here of addressing major issues such as health, food, water, sanitation, education, women’s empowerment – and, of course, infrastructure. The world has the resources to deliver the 2030 Agenda. --United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres, Remarks at the UN Private Sector Forum, 18 September 2017

Why partner with UNV?

UNV plays a distinctive role in identifying, recruiting, and providing support to both on-site and online volunteers for the United Nations. In 2022, UNV successfully engaged 12,408 on-site UN Volunteers, 55 per cent of them women. These volunteers served in 166 countries, representing 179 nationalities.

Collaborating with 55 UN partners, UNV demonstrated its commitment to diversity, as 84 per cent of the volunteers originated from the global South. Among these volunteers, 62 per cent were national and 38 per cent were international UN Volunteers. Additionally, in 2022, UN partners, Member States and civil society partners requested support from 8,474 Online Volunteers. Refer to the UNV Annual Report 2022 for further information.

Through stronger partnerships with the private sector, UNV would be well positioned to ensure continuity and sustained impact, by providing the UN system with talent solutions to deliver on their mandates. The private sector could thus foster faster and more flexible responses to crises and development challenges.

Volunteers are not only building a better world for tomorrow, working in solidarity with communities. They are building a better world today. --Achim Steiner, Administrator of the United Nations Development Programme

How to partner with UNV


For further information, kindly refer to the UNV Annual Report 2022. Private sector partners may also contact UNV via the email address: partnershipsupport((at))unv((dot))org.

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