Our rallying cry as the United Nations is to leave no one behind. --Lionel Laurens, UNDP Resident Representative, speaking at the launch of the COVID-19 mass community outreach campaign

"Sometimes just the simple act of listening to a person, listening to their case, is a light of hope [for them]," says Karen Uzcategui Mojica, a UN Volunteer since July 2019. Karen's dedication to the refugee community was evident throughout the interview for this article, as she explained the intricacies of her work.  As a UN Volunteer assigned to the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR), Karen serves refugees, asylum seekers, persons in need of international protection, returnees, internally displaced persons and persons at risk of statelessness.

Oscar has 5 years of experience within UNV and was part of the team in charge of handling the mobilization of large number of citizens for this major event. Together with Ivonne Harvey, also a UN Expert Volunteer, and other committed public servants from the BSP team, he puts its knowledge and expertise at the service of the Peruvian citizens without any hesitation. Ivonne, who has a Ph.D. in Education, had the mission of facilitating learning materials to the new volunteers, as well as ensuring they had the right level of training.

Due to the global COVID-19 outbreak, 91 per cent of the worldwide student population have not been attending their schools and other academic training locations, which have closed their doors in order to mitigate the pandemic’s direct impact. This measure took effect in Guinea on 24 March 2020, after a joint statement of the Ministers in charge of National Education and Training, and affects more than six million pupils and students all over the country.

The United Nations system is gearing up its efforts to support national COVID-19 response plans in West and Central Africa. UNV is no exception. UN Volunteers add value to UN and government efforts, like Dr Philemon Niyitegeka (Rwanda), a UN Volunteer Technical Assistant in Mobile Care Strategies, serving with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Togo.

In the Central African Republic, radio broadcasts are a useful means to share public information, especially to the most remote populations. UN Volunteers assigned with the MINUSCA’s radio are on the frontline to raise awareness aboutt the COVID-19 pandemic. These dedicated UN Volunteers share current up-dates on COVID-19 via radio programmes, while advocating for prevention and protection measures.

The COVID-19 pandemic will have devastating effects on UN programme countries, reversing many positive gains in sustainable development. The negative social and economic impact particularly affects people most often left behind; such as women, children and those with disabilities.  In support of countries and UN partners in the COVID-19 response, the United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme is investing its own resources to immediately deploy 70 UN Volunteers to countries severely affected by the crisis.

Two weeks ago, Peruvians - with the exception of some heroes - were called to stay at home to prevent COVID-19 from spreading and reaching the most vulnerable populations. However, confinement does not imply standing idly by. This is well understood by many young people, who are willing to offer their unconditional help during these times which have already made their mark on the history books.

Over the past two years, more and more UN Volunteers have been serving with WHO in support of its operations in the Arab States (from 8 in 2018 to 50 in 2020). Today, these UN Volunteers are part of the organization’s efforts to support an effective COVID-19 response by governments of the region, serving in functions varying from technical support and public information, to general administration, financial and personnel management.