Mariam Diarra is one of the 49 UN Community Volunteer Midwives recruited by UNFPA to improve the quality of health services in community health centres located in six rural communities in Mali — Koulikoro, Ségou, Sikasso, Mopti, Gao and Timbuktu. The programme aims to achieve three key outcomes: zero preventable maternal deaths, zero unmet needs for family planning and zero gender-based violence and other harmful practices, such as child marriage.

Three years ago, I left Italy to join the WFP team in Mali, a magnificent country of around 19 million inhabitants. As I had visited the country while attending the Bamako Sub-Regional Conference on Female Genital Mutilation in 2006, I was excited to rediscover the its unique culture, beautiful nature and vibrant marketplaces. 

To me, volunteerism is a very fascinating journey of exploring myself, diverse cultures, communities and the world at large. In January 2016, I felt I should pass on my skills further to a more global community. Having acquired a Bachelor’s degree in Procurement and Logistics Management with CIPS, I decided to register for Online Volunteer opportunities with the United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme.

I didn’t know much about Mali. But after eight years spent between legal research and advocacy in different countries, I needed to be more in the field, closer to people, to understand how to implement the law. 

What is unique about UN Community Volunteers is that they are from the community. They know the community; they are embedded in the community; they know the community dynamics. [We had] the opportunity to use this 'instrument' and have a direct impact on communities. --Jo Scheuer, UNDP Resident Representative in Mali

Volunteers have played a critical role in the response to HIV since the earliest days of the epidemic. UNAIDS recognizes their importance, values their engagement and will continue to support their contribution in joining global efforts to end AIDS. --Tim Martineau, UNAIDS Deputy Executive Director, Management and Governance, a.i.

The volunteers occupy various functions within the fifty sections of MINUSMA. Among them are medical staff, human rights specialists, electoral advisers, air movement specialists and logisticians. Like an orchestra, everyone plays their part in this large ensemble in order to restore peace. The experiences and life paths of these UN Volunteers differ, but cardinal values animate them and bring them together. They have the merit of being committed, dynamic and of offering solutions.

In 2018, the UN Development Programme (UNDP) launched a job creation programme for 3,000 young people in Mali. Daouda Michel Sawadogo (Burkina Faso) is based in Mopti and served under this programme as an international UN Volunteer Youth Specialist. Idleness makes young people easy prey for armed groups who can then easily recruit them.  The challenge is to help them find an occupation that meets their aspirations. --Daouda Michel Sawadogo, international UN Volunteer Youth Specialist