Forty UN Volunteers in East and Southern Africa trained on leadership and management

Nairobi, Kenya
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In the last week of September 2018, 40 UN Volunteers of 26 nationalities serving in 15 countries across the East and Southern Africa region gathered in Nyeri, Kenya, for a capacity development training on leadership, management and communications. The event, organized by the UNV East and Southern Africa Regional Office (ESARO), was designed to be part of a leadership journey for the participants broadly aimed at developing a critical mass of volunteer leaders to help improve the UN Volunteers’ overall experience in the region.

The training was implemented through UNV Regional Capacity Development and Learning Facility (CDLF), a facility developed to support UN Volunteers' learning needs. The participating UN Volunteers enhanced their managerial and leadership skills for success in their assignments and contribution to Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) while facilitating learning and experience sharing between UN Volunteers from different locations. The participants also utilized UNV’s online learning system, eCampus, as a platform for off-site engagements among themselves.

Russian UN Youth Volunteers prepare for deployment to assignments in Africa, Asia and the CIS

Moscow, Russian Federation
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Last week, 14 UN Youth Volunteers from the Russian Federation took part in an assignment preparation training (APT), before embarking on their UNV journeys in 13 countries around the world.

This four-day long event served as the starting point for the implementation of the agreement between the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme, signed earlier this year, through which the Russian Federation will deploy fully funded Russian UN Volunteers with UNV.

Sharing skills to build healthier communities in Tuvalu

Ronald Achidri
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The islands of Tuvalu are a long way from Uganda, where Ronald Achidri was born and received his medical training. Ronald served as a doctor in Uganda for two years and in South Sudan for four years, specializing in strengthening health systems and the implementation of HIV and tuberculosis (TB) programmes. Now, he is supporting the Ministry of Health of Tuvalu as a UN Volunteer.

The desire to prevent deaths from infectious diseases like TB and HIV/AIDS in vulnerable groups brought Ronald across the world. 

Through volunteerism, Dr Achidri has used his knowledge and skills to help people affected by TB in Tuvalu and ensure they have access to care, support and proper treatment. He has helped to scale up HIV testing and counselling among key populations as well as offering preventive treatment and services both at the health facilities and through outreach sessions.  

Mexico moves forward with its National Situation Analysis on Volunteerism

Mexico City, Mexico
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As part of the implementation of the plan of action presented by the UN Secretary-General (A/70/118) to integrate volunteering for the next decade and beyond, UNV is facilitating the preparation of five regional synthesis reports, as an input to the 2019 regional consultations in preparation for the global technical meeting in 2020.

Mexico moves forward with its National Situation Analysis on Volunteerism

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As part of the implementation of the plan of action presented by the UN Secretary-General (A/70/118) to integrate volunteering for the next decade and beyond, UNV is facilitating the preparation of five regional synthesis reports, as an input to the 2019 regional consultations in preparation for the global technical meeting in 2020.

Africa on the move: accelerating Africa’s progress through youth volunteerism

Youth 2030: The United Nations Youth Strategy
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The new United Nations Youth Strategy "Youth 2030" was launched this week as world leaders gathered for the 73rd session of the United Nations General Assembly. This comes at an opportune time, as Africa has seen an increasing proportion of young people, often known as the youth bulge, in the last few decades. This bulge is expected to continue, with approximately 60 per cent of the world's anticipated population growth by 2050 projected to occur in the region.

A large youth population offers astounding potential. With masses comes the power to influence democratic governance and stimulate economic growth. However, a multitude of risks come with a huge youth population, especially one that is unemployed, underserved and disgruntled. From illegal migration to violent extremism, a potential resource can easily degenerate into a significant challenge, not just for the region, but globally.

UN Volunteer gives a voice to Gaza's unheard civilians

Alaa Abu Ramadan
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Alaa Abu Ramadan is a 26-year-old national UN Volunteer in Gaza, State of Palestine. She has been working with the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs since May 2017, helping in preparing reports on the humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip and verifying data on incidents affecting civilians.

"I was born in Gaza and I have always lived in the Strip," Alaa explains. "I was aware of the situation that civilians are facing here, as I have experienced it in my daily life. But through my volunteering experience with OCHA, I became acquainted with a large amount of data, statistics, and reports that have deepened my knowledge of the problems affecting the Strip: from unemployment to the shortage of electricity, water, drugs, and so on."

Providing life-saving healthcare for refugees in Jordan

Saima Khan
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In Rukban camp in Jordan, the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) and the United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme provide medical services to a displaced population of more than 38,000 people. These are seeking asylum in an extremely harsh environment, where most of the basic needs are almost nonexistent. As a qualified medical doctor with rich practical experience in the field, Saima Khan provided essential emergency medical assistance to persons in need of basic assistance.

Saima graduated from Rawalpindi Medical College in Pakistan and obtained her diploma and Master’s degree in Public Health from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. After completing her studies, Saima worked as Gender Officer in UNHCR Afghanistan, as well as Medical Officer in University Teaching Hospital in Lusaka, Zambia.

Saima joined UNV in Jordan in May 2017 as UN Volunteer Associate Public Health Officer at UNHCR, and recently finished her one-year assignment.

UNV and the UN Secretariat sign Memorandum of Understanding to strengthen their collaboration

New York, United States of America
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Under-Secretary-General for Management Ms Jan Beagle signed the agreement with UNV Executive Coordinator Olivier Adam. 

This umbrella agreement facilitates the deployment of UN Volunteers to a variety of UN operations that fall under the auspices of the Secretariat and will help to streamline the deployment of UN Volunteers, both in the field and at headquarters locations, as well as the engagement of UN Online Volunteers.

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