To support UNHCR in delivering its mandate, more than 310 UN Volunteers have served with in the Arab States during the period 2016-2019, over 50 per cent of them women. This group of diverse and well-trained practitioners strengthened UNHCR’s capacity to provide protection and critical emergency assistance for refugees, instilling hope and trust in hard times.

Identity, to me, is what we share when we introduce ourselves to others. It includes the traditions of our country of origin or the language we speak, our religious practices, family customs, hometown festivals and more. Now, imagine if your very identity was continuously challenged – only because you were forced to flee your place of origin due to precarious circumstances like war, political unrest or climate change. This is the reality that asylum seekers, refugees and anyone unwillingly displaced from home, face every day.

Holly finds working on refugee and asylum matters very engaging, especially as the country has long-term ambitions to join the EU and align its legal frameworks and systems accordingly.

I was recruited by UNDP in Zimbabwe to provide technical support to the UN Partnership on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and the Spotlight Initiative on disability-inclusive programming and interventions.

Online volunteers have been crucial to upscale the impact of Youth Co:Lab’s regional programmes. Coming from different countries and ethnicities, these online volunteers bring a variety of skills to the table. They have applied their skills and knowledge through a range of activities, including proofreading and translating communications materials, conducting research supporting COVID-19 related efforts. 

UNV supported 30 volunteers from Volunteers Without Borders by providing flyers and megaphones to facilitate an awareness-raising initiative in the vulnerable communities of Slipway, West Point and Clara Town, in Montserrado County. The volunteers mobilized Clara Town marketers, who provided a sound system that helped spread information on COVID-19, while the community chairperson accompanied the team throughout the entire activity.

Currently, 40 UN Volunteers are deployed with the UN Support Office for Somalia (UNSOS) and 12 UN Volunteers with the UN Assistance Mission in Somalia (UNSOM). They serve from different locations in Somalia and Kenya. This is a significant increase over the years from 18 UN Volunteers in 2015. With an average age of 42 years and a gender ratio of 30 per cent women, UNSOS is making significant progress towards achieving gender parity among UN Volunteers.

Where are you based?

I support a UNDP project on Integrated Landscape Management for Improved Livelihoods and Ecosystem Resilience in Mount Elgon. This aims to empower communities to manage their production landscapes in an integrated manner for improved livelihoods and ecosystem resilience.