Partners in China have commended the opportunities provided through the United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme to Chinese youth to share skills, broaden knowledge and gain exposure to global affairs as UN Volunteers. These sentiments were expressed upon the deployment of the second cohort of UN Volunteers fully funded by China, through a

The big problems of the world are usually solved in partnership – and the problems confronting sustainable development are no different. The global response to COVID-19 has given us many examples of partnerships in action.

Martin and a team of Online Volunteers working on the project are excited to help Ukrainian pioneers uncover biomimetic solutions to their problems. They are part of the national Biomimicry Challenge* organized by UNDP's Accelerator Lab project, with the assistance of the Biomimicry Institute. This all-Ukrainian competition seeks to find ideas inspired by natural systems.

In my current role as an Associate Compound Management Officer with UNHCR Somalia, I have been working closely with the UNHCR technical team in fast-tracking the construction of UNHCR accommodation and office facilities. Since I joined UNHCR, I have supported and coordinated efforts to ensure that the staff facilities are ready for occupancy within the stipulated timelines.

The project is implemented in partnership with the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and the United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme and 11 UN Volunteers are actively involved in its execution in the three countries. Eight national UN Volunteers manage training, five of these in Cameroon and three in Chad. In Gabon, three national volunteers handle communications, information technology and monitoring and evaluation.

What does volunteering mean to you? Volunteering stems from respect and reverence for life itself. Our quality of life is contingent upon the kind of society we create and promote, and volunteerism is that vital link between the individual and society. Compassion and empathy are the fundamental basis for these links because they break boundaries between self and others.

Through the United Nations Peacebuilding Fund (PBF), which is the UN’s primary financial instrument to sustain peace in countries at risk of or affected by violent conflict, the UN system is supporting Sudan’s transition towards peace after decades of conflict. UN Volunteers are part of this effort.

A new project in Burkina Faso offers hope in prison in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic  In Burkina Faso, UNODC, UNV and IOM launched a project supporting the prevention of risks of deterioration of social cohesion and peace in the context of the response to COVID-19 at points of entry and in places of detention, with funding from the UN Peacekeeping Fund.