United Nations Volunteers

The United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme is the UN organization that contributes to peace and development through volunteerism worldwide. Volunteerism is a powerful means of engaging people in tackling development challenges, and it can transform the pace and nature of development. Volunteerism benefits both society at large and the individual volunteer by purposefully creating opportunities for participates through strengthening trust, solidarity and reciprocity among citizens.

UNV contributes to peace and development by advocating for recognition of volunteers, working with partners to integrate volunteerism into SDGs, and mobilizing an increasing number and diversity of volunteers, including experienced UNV volunteers, throughout the world.

Serving as a National UN Volunteer Specialist

National UN Volunteers are Chinese nationals (including Hong Kong SAR and Macao SAR permanent residents) who serve inside mainland China. They are recruited for specialized inputs to development programmes administered by UN and partner Chinese Government agencies in China. The UNV programme recruits candidates with relevant experience in these sectors locally. Popular assignment categories include programme / project development, administration, communications, community development, education, environmental protection, disaster prevention, public health, HIV/AIDS and poverty reduction.

What is provided to a national UN volunteer?

• Settling-in-Grant calculated on the duration of assignment which is paid at the beginning of the assignment;
• Volunteer Living Allowance (VLA) intended to cover basic living expenses, which is paid each month;
• Travel on appointment and at the end of assignment, if different than home location;
• Life, health and permanent disability insurance;
• Annual leave;
• Resettlement allowance calculated based on the duration of assignment which is paid upon satisfactory completion of the assignment.

Requirements

1. University degree or higher technical diplomas in a relevant field;
2. At least 2 years of relevant working experience;
3. At least age 22 (no maximum age limit);
4. Good working knowledge of both English and Mandarin Chinese,
5. Strong commitment to values and principles of volunteerism;
6. Ability to work in a multi-cultural environment;
7. Ability to adjust in difficult living conditions;
8. Strong interpersonal and organizational skills;
9. Prior volunteering and/or working experience in a developing country is an asset.

For more information please visit links below:

How to serve as a National UNV：https://www.unv.org/become-volunteer/volunteer-your-country

National UNV recruitments：https://jobs.partneragencies.net/erecruit.html

UN Youth University Volunteers

The UN Youth Volunteers Programme is a new initiative which aims to facilitate the engagement of university students in global peace and sustainable human development through volunteerism, bringing the voice of youth into the development discourse and helping young people to realize their full social, economic and human potential. UN Youth University Volunteers contribute in a meaningful way to the work of the United Nations, supporting field offices and headquarters on a range of programmes and projects related to food security, peacebuilding, women’s rights, climate change adaptation, and other global issues.

Since 2004, 67 student volunteers from Japan and 277 student volunteers from Spain have participated. Since 2015, 23 student volunteers from Hong Kong SAR have served on 6-month assignments throughout SE Asia.

For more information about UNV HongKong Universities Volunteer Programme please click. 

Key Points:     

• 6-month assignments for undergraduate students and 12-month assignments for graduate students.
• UN Youth University Volunteers are aged 18 to 29.
• One partner university in a country acts as a focal point, recruiting students from their own institution, as well as from a range of other universities, and providing pre-departure training.
• Assignments take place in UN programme countries and at headquarters and UN Youth University Volunteers are hosted by UN entities.
• Specific posts are identified in consultation with various UN agencies within the frameworks of the UNDAF in a given country and UNV’s Strategic Framework 2014-2017.
• UN Youth Volunteers engage in support, knowledge management, communications, programme support and other activities, gaining valuable work skills in a UN setting.

Online Volunteers

UNV’s Online Volunteering service connects development organizations and volunteers over the Internet and supports their effective online collaboration. It gives development organizations access to a broader pool of knowledge and resources to enhance their capacities, while it offers individuals worldwide additional opportunities to volunteer for development and contribute to the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals.

The Online Volunteering service has enabled more than 1,000 non-profit development organisations (including CSOs, government institutions, academic institutions and United Nations agencies) to benefit from the support of more than 12,000 individuals from 182 countries (60% women, 40% from developing countries in 2007) who:

1. Provide technical expertise (e.g. advice on waste disposal, contract drafting)
2. Support project and resources management (e.g. project planning, volunteer management)
3. Contribute to knowledge management (e.g. data collection, database development)
4. Facilitate communication and networking (e.g. newsletters production and translation,  moderation of online discussion groups)

For more information please visit links below:

How to serve as an Online UNV：http://www.onlinevolunteering.org

National UNV recruitments：https://www.onlinevolunteering.org/en/opportunities

Documents 

The Plan of Action for the Next Decade and Beyond (2016-2030) --English (195.7 kB)

Beijing Volunteering Project Final Report- January 2016--Chinese (3.7 MB)

2015 UNV Newsletter--English (7.2 MB)

CICETE, UNV & BVF COLLABORATION PROJECT IN VOLUNTEER SERVICE: REVIEW AND PROSPECT—English & Chinese（68.0 MB）

Contact UNV China: 010-85320911