12 February 2004

UN Volunteers and OneWorld to bolster Southern voices

BONN/LONDON, 12 February 2004 -- The UN Volunteers (UNV) programme and OneWorld International have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to strengthen ties and foster an enhanced flow of information through online volunteering. Both organizations hope to expand the delivery of information and exchange of experiences and best practices within and about the volunteering sector.

"We want to see the OneWorld Volunteers Editors Programme stand as a shining example of what can be achieved through online volunteering," Ad de Raad, Executive Coordinator, a.i. of the UN Volunteers programme said. "The sharing of knowledge and experience between our institutions, our partners and networks will increase the flow of volunteering related information and by doing so, promote volunteerism in every corner of the globe. Furthermore, it also demonstrates one of the most important aspects of voluntary action, reciprocity."

The UN Volunteers programme will make available to OneWorld its platforms - www.worldvolunteerweb.org and www.onlinevolunteering.org, to promote and support recruitment for OneWorld's Online Editors Programme which provides opportunities for volunteers in developing countries to have a voice in the portal www.oneworld.net. Peter Armstrong, Director of OneWorld International said, "Working with online volunteers is new territory for OneWorld, and the UN Volunteers programme has been tireless in providing valuable advice. We are excited by this new prospect of our respective global networks working together to explore the deeper potential that undoubtedly exists"

OneWorld publishes Country Guides edited by online volunteers who are asked to write an introductory article about one particular country and to conduct additional research to update appropriate links to partner content, and to select and maintain a rotating feature topic. A volunteer editor should have strong interest in the international dimension of the country's affairs from the perspective of human rights and sustainable development. Interested applicants must be a resident of a developing country, and currently editors for Colombia, Ghana, Botswana, Ethiopia, Rwanda, Zimbabwe, and Nepal are being sought.

OneWorld is dedicated to harnessing the democratic potential of the Internet to promote human rights and sustainable development.

Based in Bonn, Germany, UNV is the volunteer arm of the UN system supporting peace, relief and development initiatives in nearly 150 countries. Created by the UN General Assembly in 1970 and administered by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), UNV works through UNDP country offices and a network of international organizations to mobilize more than 5,000 UN Volunteers annually, 70 percent of whom come from developing nations. It also supports thousands of other individuals participating in the work of the United Nations for development as online volunteers. The United Nations General Assembly has designated UNV as focal point for the follow-up to the International Year of Volunteers, a further opportunity to promote the ideals of volunteerism around the world.

For more information, contact: Bill Gunyon, Project Manager - OneWorld Volunteer Editors OneWorld International London; tel: (44 20) 7239 1400 email: Bill.Gunyon@oneworld.net

Michael Hagens, External Relations Group - UN Volunteers programme; tel: (49 228) 815 2223; email: Michael.Hagens@unvolunteers.org