Remarks by Olivier Adam, UNV Executive Coordinator, on the occasion of the UNDP/UNFPA/UNOPS Executive Board - Agenda Item 5:  United Nations Volunteers, UNV Strategic Framework, 2018-2021. New York, 24 January 2018. Thank you, Mr. Associate Administrator, for your introductory remarks. I am grateful to you and the Administrator for your leadership, and your strong support to volunteers, volunteerism and UNV. Mr. President, Excellencies and Distinguished Members of the Executive Board,

Mr. Dominic Allen, Chief of the UNV Office in New York, opened the event welcoming the over 100 participants from Member States, UN entities and other interested partners, including serving and former volunteers.  Mr. Allen acknowledged the immense contribution of volunteers and the significant role that volunteers play as first responders in the aftermath of crisis and as mobilizers and campaigners in crisis prevention and preparedness.

The main causes of forest and land degradation in the country include deforestation, inappropriate agricultural practices, forest fires, over-grazing and demographic pressures. A survey conducted by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) reported that the annual deforestation rate between 2003 and 2010 had been 1.73 per cent. If this alarming trend were to persist, 17.3 per cent of the forest in the country would disappear by 2021 and all forests in Timor-Leste by 2071.

For COP 23, UN Volunteers has recruited more than 650 volunteers to support a wide range of operational tasks throughout the event. They all attended a full-day training on October 30. Follow the involvement of volunteers during COP 23 here (hover over the image and scroll down):

UNV Executive Coordinator Mr. Olivier Adam spoke today at the IVCO Conference in Seoul in a panel discussion on global advocacy to achieve Sustainable Development Goal 17 on revitalizing global partnerships for sustainable development. The need to establish an enabling environment for volunteerism “to fully contribute to the realisation of any future sustainable development agenda” was the overarching theme of this year’s IVCO.

UNV Executive Coordinator Mr. Olivier Adam spoke today at the IVCO Conference in Seoul in a panel discussion on global advocacy to achieve Sustainable Development Goal 17 on revitalizing global partnerships for sustainable development. The need to establish an enabling environment for volunteerism “to fully contribute to the realisation of any future sustainable development agenda” was the overarching theme of this year’s IVCO.

In partnership with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the United Nations Volunteers (UNV) deployed 41 national and international UN Volunteers, 5 of them UN Youth Volunteers, to serve in environmental initiatives in Africa. Youth volunteers are the backbone of environmental action, raising awareness on climate change, responsible consumption and production, and preservation of land, forests and water resources.

In Mongolia, agriculture employs 35 per cent of the total labour force and, more importantly, it accounts for over 70 per cent of employment in rural areas. The livestock sub-sector accounts for almost 10 per cent of export earnings and approximately 80 per cent of total agricultural production. The agriculture and food sectors offer the best opportunity to grow inclusive employment (Ministry of Labour, 2014). There is a clear need to match the agro-industry’s increasing demand for a skilled ‘employable’ workforce with ‘decent work’ opportunities.

The training is a way to inform and prepare the youth volunteers to better understand the role of UN Youth Volunteers in the context of the United Nations. The Governments of Korea, Ireland, Luxembourg and China are funding the volunteer assignments of these UN Youth Volunteers. After their training, they will serve in Myanmar, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Ethiopia, Fiji, Ghana, India, Indonesia, Kosovo, Mongolia, State of Palestine, Panama, Sri Lanka, Timor Leste, Zimbabwe, Viet Nam, Senegal, Kenya, Malawi, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia and Thailand.

“The UN could not deploy, and Security Council mandates could not be delivered, without UN Volunteers,” said Olivier Adam, United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme Executive Coordinator, recounting UNV’s value proposition in the words of UN partners, the Department of Field Support (DFS) and the Department of Peacekeeping Operations (DPKO), as he led a side event to the meeting of the Executive Board of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the United Nations