In 2013, the first UNV Interns funded by the Government of Germany deployed to duty stations around the world. The fifteen young Germans are serving one year assignments in Algeria, Bangladesh, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Cambodia, Cote d’Ivoire, Ecuador, Guatemala, Haiti, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Nepal, Peru, Philippines, Rwanda, and Timor Leste.
Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina: After young people from Italy, Switzerland, the Czech Republic and other countries have gone all over the world to serve as UNV Interns, we the first generation of German UNV Interns deployed to our countries of service in 2013.
I am one of the 15 pleased young volunteers who were selected by UNV and GIZ (Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit) for this great opportunity to serve in UNV Internship assignments funded by the Government of Germany. All of us now work as UNV Youth Networks and Volunteering Analysts in 15 different countries. These include Algeria, Bangladesh, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Cambodia, Cote dIvoire, Ecuador, Guatemala, Haiti, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Nepal, Peru, Philippines, Rwanda, and Timor Leste.
Before departing to our duty stations, we had a two-day briefing at UNV headquarters in Bonn. There we were introduced to the main parts of our work, sharing some sessions with UNV post-2015 national coordinators from 19 countries who were also being briefed in Bonn. In them, we met our first colleagues, heard about in-countries situations and also shared a lot of fun together. We all enjoyed an international evening with a lot of regional food and music.
I arrived in Bosnia and Herzegovina in March and I really love it. After the first days of exploring my new assignment and also the new city I will live in for the next 12 months Sarajevo, the capital of Bosnia. I am enjoying getting into my job, meeting the young people I work with and finding ways to strengthen civil society within my work with youth.
For me, volunteering means getting to know people, helping others and investing in the world´s future. Within my assignment as a UNV youth volunteer, I can bring people together and work in a team to promote and implement the Millennium Development Goals.
Bio:
As a UNV Intern, Anika Schachtschneider (25), born and raised in a little village in Germany, has found a way to explore the world. After completing a bachelor degree in political sciences and sociology, Anika continued her education in South-Eastern European studies. Before going to Bosnia and Herzegovina, Anika worked and lived in Russia and Croatia.