Volunteers driven by solidarity and willingness to help others celebrate IVD in Peru
Volunteering means to do your bit, driven by solidarity and willingness to help others. The efforts that are being made to promote volunteerism, make its contributions to sustainable development visible and recognize the work of every volunteer in different sectors of Peru and worldwide are multiple. Thus, this year, on 5 December we celebrated the 20th edition of International Volunteer Day (IVD).
Fifty years ago, the United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme was born, with the purpose of contributing to peace and development in the world through volunteerism.
Twenty years of recognizing volunteerism around the world
How can volunteerism contribute to a more just and equitable world where no one is left behind? The year 2001 was the first time when the 5th of December was recognized as an official date to celebrate the hundreds of thousands of volunteers worldwide. Twenty years on, this is the right time to reflect on the advances in promoting and protecting volunteers and other factors that further volunteerism.
When people get involved in addressing the problems they face, the solutions are more achievable and sustainable. Today, volunteerism is a crucial factor to face the most painful challenge in the world—the challenge of inequality, the effects of which have become even more profound with the COVID-19 pandemic.