My real exposure to international development through volunteering

Titta Maja-Luoto, former UN Volunteer in Lao PDR
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My name is Titta Maja-Luoto, from Finland. I am a former UN Volunteer, now in a senior policy role with the Government of Finland. I am presently the Director General of the Department for Policy Development in the Ministry for Foreign Affairs. My career in international development started many years ago, and being a UN Volunteer has been a big part of it.

I always wanted to work in the UN system but didn't have the experience. So after completing my graduate degree in social sciences, I started working with a Finnish non-governmental organization as a gender focal point. My university degree in gender and the new gender role seemed like a match made in heaven.

A few years into that, I came across an opportunity as a UN Volunteer. It was for a pioneering strategic gender mainstreaming programme. I recall we were a group of 12 volunteers supporting the UN Development Programme's (UNDP) regional gender advisors.

UN entities demand immediate release of staff detained in Yemen

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Information for UN Volunteers, UN partners and UNV personnel in times of crisis

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Well-being

  • Mental health: To safeguard your mental health in times of crises, refer to the whole health mental health solution offered by Cigna Health Services. Through the International Employee Assistance Programme, you can reach out for confidential support.

Championing child protection, mental health and psychosocial support in the DRC

Angelique Gatsinzi, UN Volunteer Child Protection Officer
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Angelique Gatsinzi (United Kingdom) has made considerable contributions to defending the rights of children and young people. She is a UN Volunteer Child Protection Officer with the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), The 37-year-old has reshaped UNICEF's approach in the country to meet the challenges faced by adolescent girls, such as gender-based violence, child marriage and barriers to education.  

Upon joining UNICEF's Child Protection team in 2019, Angelique dedicated herself to strengthening child protection systems, with a particular emphasis on reinforcing the social service workforce.

Enaida Alispahić with Down syndrome is supporting UNDP's ReLOaD2 project

UNV partnering with UNDP
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Despite the different understandings of society, people born with Down syndrome can perform various duties in order to integrate more efficiently into society. Two young people engaged as United Nations Volunteers as part of the Regional Programme on Local Democracy in the Western Balkans 2 (ReLOaD2) are the proof.

Collaborating with people with Down syndrome is very rare or almost never happens in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Non-governmental organizations estimate that slightly more than a thousand people with Down syndrome live in Bosnia and Herzegovina, while only three to four of them are permanently employed.

Standing up for gender equality through Online Volunteering

UNV partnering with UN Women
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Each year, starting from 25 November, we mark 16 Days of Activism against Gender-based Violence. Witnessing a severe gender disparity, UN Women in Tajikistan is working towards achieving gender equality, setting global standards and ensuring that each and every woman and girl benefit from them. To support their cause, two Online Volunteers engaged through UNV collaborated with UN Women, bringing additional resources to the team.

In 2022, UN Women conducted an ethnographic review of harmful social norms and practices and support for mass advocacy initiatives to prevent violence against women and girls in the country. This mapped both harmful and positive practices, attitudes and behaviours that influence violence against women and girls.

Online Volunteers with UNDP raise awareness of HIV, health and development issues

UNV partnering with UNDP
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Health inequalities arise through social, economic and environmental determinants. By underlining health as a driver and outcome of development, the UN Development Programme (UNDP) is committed to helping countries address major health challenges. To improve health outcomes and promote global awareness and engagement in critical health initiatives, UNDP HIV, Health and Development in Türkiye has collaborated with over two hundred Online Volunteers over the past two years.

"Our team specializes in the development of investment cases for health, spanning non-communicable diseases, tobacco and alcohol control, air pollution, primary health care, health tax revenue and road safety," states Luis D'Souza, Policy Analyst with UNDP HIV, Health and Development, Türkiye.

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