The United Nations Volunteers (UNV) offers global citizens an opportunity to volunteer across the three pillars of the United Nations (UN) system: development, peace and security, and human rights.
UNV actively collaborates within the UN system, as well as with Member States and civil society.
Wars in Gaza, Sudan and Ukraine; political volatility across the Sahel; natural disasters; and the drawdowns of UN peacekeeping operations required extra focus on the duty of care for UN Volunteers.
Against this backdrop, UNV has nonetheless managed to provide scaled, community-level volunteer action for sustainable development as well as response during emergencies.
In addition, UNV called for digital innovation and championed disability inclusion, delivering results in 169 countries worldwide.
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UN Volunteers make a difference
UNV's people-centred approach is exemplified by the resilience and solidarity of UN Volunteers in the achievement of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (2030 Agenda). In 2023, UNV expanded volunteering opportunities for global citizens to support UN initiatives worldwide. Attention was given to meeting UN partners' context-specific needs and ensuring UN Volunteers' personal and professional development while fully integrating them into the UN system.
Of the total number of UN Volunteers, 11,339 or 88 per cent were from the Global South. Of these, 8,027 served as national UN Volunteers in their countries of origin, while 3,350 served as international UN Volunteers in other countries of the Global South. This demonstrated the commitment of UN partners and UNV to engaging local volunteer talent in peace and development worldwide, as well as to South-South cooperation.
Statistical overview
UNV mobilized a record-breaking number of 12,840 UN Volunteers, marking a 4 per cent increase from 2022. The increase demonstrated the indispensable role played by UN Volunteers and showed their extensive reach at the local level.
They served in diverse field-related and technical roles including
Community development
Medical service
Human rights
Information management
Humanitarian assistance
Monitoring and evaluation
Water and sanitation
and more
Aviation
Based on data collected from Volunteer Reporting Applications submitted to UNV, more than one-third of UN Volunteers (36 per cent) contributed to Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 16 - peace, justice and strong institutions - reflecting a high number of UN Volunteers in fragile contexts. This was followed by SDG 5, gender equality, at 20 per cent; and SDG 3, good health and well-being, at 19 per cent. Another 19 per cent focused on Goal 17, partnerships for the goals. As well, 14 per cent contributed to Goal 10, reduced inequalities, pointing to the breadth of UNV's efforts towards inclusion, equal representation and eliminating discrimination.
UN Volunteers, in their opinion, mostly contributed to:
36%
20%
19%
19%
The largest number of UN Volunteers served in sub-Saharan Africa (5,299). Latin America and the Caribbean had the next-largest contingent (2,762), followed by Asia and the Pacific (1,931), the Arab States region (1,649), and Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States (1,224).
Moving towards gender parity
Sustaining strong performance under the UN System-wide Action Plan on Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women, UNV achieved outstanding results in leadership and communication for gender equality and the empowerment of women, and the representation of men and women in its personnel.
UNV achieved gender balance in the international professional category, while men were underrepresented in the national officer and general staff categories. Exceeding the target, 73 per cent of the UNV staff came from the Global South.
The proportion of women UN Volunteers increased to 57 per cent (2 per cent growth from 2022). Notably, in 2023, 49.8 per cent of UN Volunteers on the African continent were women, whereas this was 48 per cent in 2022.
UNV's commitment to gender parity was reflected in several of its partnerships:
UNICEF
A joint initiative with United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) enrolled talented young Arab women (24 to 32 years of age) across the region as UN Volunteers. UN Volunteers under this initiative in Iraq and Jordan raised awareness on sanitation and hygiene, talent acquisition and communications. In addition, UN Volunteers enrolled at the University of Jordan in Women's Studies supported the gender team with UNICEF MENA with the aim to increase the number of women experts in the job market.
UNDP
In Afghanistan, UNV and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) encouraged gender equality and women's self-sufficiency through a project where women UN Volunteers with graduate degrees in technical and vocational training helped create opportunities for community women through education and training.
UNDP, UNFPA, FAO
Together with UNDP, United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the UN in a joint SDG project in Sri Lanka, women national UN Volunteers, served as peer educators distributing 1,000 maternity and 1,000 hygiene kits in 12 underserved low-income communities. A knowledge platform for women was created to educate community members on family planning and gender-based violence.
UNFPA, UNICEF
In collaboration with UNFPA and UNICEF, women UN Volunteers in four states of India supported midwifery training institutes aimed at providing specialized services for maternal and newborn care. In five other states that have UNDP SDG Coordination Centres, national UN Volunteers contributed to government efforts in evidence-based decision-making and working towards the SDGs, including gender-based budgeting and collecting and analysing gender disaggregated data.
WHO
The flagship programme, Africa Women Health Champions, with the World Health Organization (WHO) Regional Office for Africa entered into its second phase in 2023, providing essential health services to 47 African countries and contributing to gender parity for the WHO workforce. As part of this initiative, 134 women UN Volunteers served with the WHO Africa region, representing 31 nationalities and 27 professional areas of public health.
New faces from many places
In recruiting UN Volunteers, the focus was, inter alia, on Member States, countries and territories that previously had limited or no representation. The targeted efforts led to the recruitment of UN Volunteers from Kiribati, the Marshall Islands, Palau and Tonga.
The average age of a UN Volunteer was 35, and the overall age range was from 18 to 78 years. There were 167 UN Volunteers aged 60 and above. There were 2,012 UN Youth Volunteers between 18 and 26 years of age, signifying UNV's commitment to Youth 2030: The UN Youth Strategy.
Online
volunteering
UN entities, Member States and civil society partners posted requests for 14,050 Online Volunteers.
The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) relied on the talents of 100 Online Volunteers in Niger to run social media campaigns in French and English to raise awareness regarding the rights of refugees, most of whom are from Burkina Faso, Mali and Nigeria. UNFPA marshalled 586 Online Volunteers to highlight women's reproductive rights in Guinea and Niger and another 552 in Niger to combat fake news against the backdrop of political instability. Niger was also where 125 Online Volunteers assisted WHO in raising awareness of breast cancer and 105 Online Volunteers teamed with UN Women in championing women's rights.
Locations and Roles of UN Volunteers
UN agencies UN Volunteers served withUNDP and UNV
UNDP saw the highest number of UN Volunteers - 3,309 - among all UN agencies, funds and programmes. UN Volunteers, primarily nationals of their countries of assignment, were assigned in 124 countries.
To support underprivileged communities in hard-to-reach geographical terrains in Bangladesh, 44 UN Volunteers assisted 7,500 people in accessing climate financing grants through local banking systems. In Brazil, UN Volunteers served alongside national justice councils to reduce prison overcrowding.
In Ecuador, 45 UN Volunteers from the largest indigenous confederation in the Amazon region contributed to the PROAmazonía programme, conserving 789,099 hectares of forests and water basins, including restoring 15,023 hectares of the Amazon region in the country. UN Volunteers also supported youth-led enterprises in communities across Kenya through training sessions.
The UNDP Crisis Bureau partnered with UNV to pair national talent from 10 countries with international expertise through the Global Policy Network rosters. Ten UN Volunteers were recruited in such tandem teams as information management officers and economists in Djibouti, Ecuador, Gambia, Guinea-Bissau, Haiti, Liberia, Mali, Tanzania, Ukraine and Zambia.
Duty of care for UN Volunteers
The proportion of UN Volunteers who reported that their assignments led to personal and professional growth held steady at 92 per cent, compared with the annual target of 93 per cent. Also of note, 87 per cent of UN Volunteers said they were satisfied with their volunteer experience – a 1 per cent decrease compared to 2022. The perception of safety and security by UN Volunteers in highly charged crisis contexts was a major reason for the decline in volunteer satisfaction.
By expanding educational initiatives and nurturing an environment for knowledge exchange among UN Volunteers, UNV played a vital role in advancing their personal and professional growth. UNV supported UN Volunteers by increasing learning opportunities that best matched the results of a global learning needs assessment and the UN-UNDP competency framework.
Consequently, 10,647 UN Volunteers participated in 162 online and on-site learning events, and 6,800 UN Volunteers enrolled in self-paced learning activities cumulatively, representing a 72 per cent increase in participation compared to 2022. UN Volunteers gained essential core and cross-functional skills covering areas such as preventing sexual exploitation, abuse and harassment, anti-racism, diversity, equity and inclusion.
Expanding opportunities for UN Volunteers with disabilities
Displaying strength through inclusion
UNV champions the inclusion of persons with disabilities in the UN workforce. In 2023, 187 UN Volunteers with disabilities served with 27 UN entities and five UN missions, with a majority working in association with UNDP, UNICEF and UNFPA. While Germany, Sweden and Switzerland remained active funding partners in promoting an inclusive and responsive United Nations through volunteerism, more than 70 per cent of UNV assignments for UN Volunteers with disabilities were funded by the entities themselves.
There were 127 Online Volunteers with disabilities who served with 16 UN entities across six regions; a majority engaged with UNFPA, UNDP and UN Resident Coordinator Offices (UNRCOs). Online Volunteers mapped digital volunteering trends in the Asia-Pacific region. Similarly, in East and Southern Africa, Online Volunteers edited and translated books on autism and ethnicity. In West and Central Africa, they supported youth information campaigns. Online Volunteers in Latin America and the Caribbean transcribed audio recordings into text, and in the Arab States, they contributed to public information on sexual violence against women and girls. In Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States, Online Volunteers supported administrative tasks for local communities.
UNV undertook an internal assessment of implementing the United Nations Disability Inclusion Strategy (UNDIS), marking the progress made in 2023. A disability-specific strategy was recommended, with potential assistance from the Special Voluntary Fund, to increase inclusion initiatives and build on best practices from the Full Funding programme. In addition, the reviewers recommended modifying internal policies to attract, recruit, retain and promote persons with disabilities and work with other UN entities to expand this model.
Diversity Mosaic: 77 Inspirations
In 2023, UNV published a book entitled Diversity Mosaic: 77 Inspirations, which contains the stories of 77 UN Volunteers with disabilities who are serving with UN entities in dozens of countries.
View here
Delivering on the 2030 Agenda through volunteerism
Integrating volunteering and strengthening policies
In 2023, UNV continued to focus on knowledge exchange and research on volunteerism, as well as the integration of volunteering in the advancement of the 2030 Agenda. There was a significant increase of 28 per cent in the number of countries that integrated volunteerism in Voluntary National Reviews in 2023, from 9 per cent compared to 2022. In addition, the UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Frameworks results and reporting, which referenced volunteers, were also on the rise at 33 per cent compared to 24 per cent in 2022. The emerging trend pointed to the recognition of volunteerism and UNV's advocacy outreach to Member States and UN entities.
In addition, volunteer initiatives, often led by civil society, focused on health care, education, climate action, disaster risk reduction and citizen participation in community sustainability. The Member States that integrated volunteering into development plans, policies and strategies included: Ireland; Chile for educational access; the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Timor-Leste and Zambia for health response; Lithuania for equal opportunities for women; Fiji, Guyana, Portugal and Saudi Arabia for climate action and disaster risk reduction; and Rwanda for child protection.
Five of the 15 published UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Frameworks during the year that integrated volunteerism into results and reporting were: Cambodia for increased civic participation and decision-making; Chad for volunteers creating job opportunities for at-risk populations; Madagascar for climate change risk mitigation measures; Papua New Guinea for crisis prevention and conflict resolution; and Senegal for monitoring of actions for better accountability of public policies.
Brokering knowledge on volunteerism
UNV's Knowledge Portal remained a primary source of volunteering data for partner institutions. In 2023, the portal consolidated a wide range of information, including laws, policies, volunteer modalities, knowledge products, and an information exchange section encompassing webinars and virtual discussions. In total, 23 diverse pieces on volunteerism were published.
UNV produced a technical note for Member States for a step-by-step analysis of the scope and scale of volunteer contributions in the Voluntary National Reviews. Another technical note for UN entities provided practical suggestions on integrating volunteerism in the UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Frameworks.
UNV extended technical assistance to 18 UN country teams – Bahrain, Cambodia, Chad, Colombia, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Iraq, Kazakhstan, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritania, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Rwanda, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Timor-Leste, Türkiye and Ukraine. This comprehensive support included evidence-based analyses to integrate volunteerism into the Common Country Analyses and the UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Frameworks.
In Chile, UNV partnered with UNRCO to implement the 2030 Agenda by training volunteers to help young people build their skills, promote peace and human rights, and strengthen justice for marginalized populations. Similarly in Senegal, UNV collaborated with UNDP to open dialogues between the government and volunteer organizations, ensuring their voices were included in the National Development Plan. In Türkiye, UNV together with UNDP and UNRCO integrated volunteerism for awareness of social assistance, eradicating poverty, reducing disaster risks and promoting volunteer culture among the elderly. In Zambia, UNV helped nurture the National Youth Policy, recognizing the importance of youth in strengthening the state-people relationship.
Efficiency gains and financial reporting
Improving institutional effectiveness
Against the backdrop of a challenging year, UNV contributed to financial efficiency and business process simplification. UNV diversified its donor base, improved gender representation and employed a targeted approach to deepen its candidate base via its newly created talent acquisition team.
UNV continued to simplify business processes with a dual objective – improve the experiences of volunteers and partner entities and become even more productive in 2024–2025.
UNV over-achieved on its 29-day target on the deployment of national UN Volunteers. It took 23 calendar days to deploy a national UN Volunteer, while it took 72 calendar days to deploy an international UN Volunteer – a decrease from 78 calendar days in 2022. This was made possible by UNV's continued digital transformation and business process simplification, which enabled UN entities to respond to humanitarian emergencies by swiftly deploying UN Volunteers.
UNV took stock of its partnerships with UN entities through a partner survey in which 98 per cent of the respondents expressed satisfaction with services provided by UNV, and 91 per cent reported that UNV recruitment processes were efficient and timely.
UNV financial reporting for 2023
The financial value of UNV activities totalled $311.6 million in 2023 – an increase of $24 million or 8 per cent from $287.6 million in 2022. During the year, UNV continued to strengthen its organizational agility through sustained investment in digital excellence and by effectively streamlining business processes and workflows while also containing costs. UNDP's core contributions remain a significant funding source to ensure UNV's field presence and build up its corporate performance.
- Expenditure overview 2022-2023
- UNV financial overview 2015-2023
- Expenses 2022-2023
- UNDP core contributions to UNV 2014-2023
- Special Voluntary Fund and other resources, contributions and interest 2022-2023
Expenditure overview 2022–2023 (million USD)
Financial volume
* The decrease in management expenditures compared to 2022 is mainly due to an asset capitalization transaction of USD 1.13 million. This was inadvertently processed in 2023 and will be corrected in 2024.
Full Funding programme
In 2023, contributions to the UNV Full Funding programme totalled $19.3 million. Fully funded UN Volunteers were supported by the Governments of Australia, China, Czechia, Finland, France, Germany, Iceland, Ireland, Japan, Kazakhstan, Luxembourg, Norway, the Republic of Korea, the Russian Federation, Saudi Arabia, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland, as well as the Agency for Volunteer Service, Hong Kong (SAR China).
Iceland and Saudi Arabia joined as new funding partners to the programme in 2023. In addition to Member States, UNV collaborated with academic institutions to fully fund national volunteer assignments with partners such as King Mongkut's University of Technology Thonburi in Thailand and Mount Kenya University in Kenya.
Full Funding programmeSpecial Voluntary Fund
UNV continued to leverage the Special Voluntary Fund SVF to conduct volunteer research; promote volunteerism; drive innovation; foster gender parity, diversity and inclusion; as well as for emergency response. In 2023, the Special Voluntary Fund contributions reached $4.6 million with 13 donor Member States: Bangladesh, China, Czechia, France, Germany, India, Ireland, Kazakhstan, Sweden, Switzerland, Thailand, Türkiye and Spain, the latter of which joined as a new donor thanks to UNV's outreach efforts to diversify the Special Voluntary Fund's donor base.
Special Voluntary Fund
UN entities hosting UN Volunteers 2023
Preparations for the 2025 State of the World’s Volunteerism Report
Moving forward:
2024
UNV will focus on consolidating the progress made during 2022-2023 and enhancing its impact on the 2030 Agenda. Prioritization of these efforts will be determined by the findings and recommendations of the midterm review of the UNV Strategic Framework.
UNV will actively mobilize and integrate volunteers into the UN system, promote gender parity, intensify efforts to reach out to talented individuals, and increase volunteer opportunities for individuals with disabilities.
UNV will deepen its partnership with UN country teams, integrate volunteerism into Common Country Analyses and UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Frameworks and also begin preparations for the 2026 International Year of Volunteers.
