UNAIDS and United Nations Volunteers further joint collaboration

UNAIDS and the United Nations Volunteers Programme (UNV) have signed a memorandum of understanding to foster closer collaboration between the two organizations.

Under the new memorandum of understanding, UNAIDS and UNV will work together to promote volunteering and engage United Nations Volunteers who are committed to supporting people living with and affected by HIV.

“Volunteers have played a critical role in the response to HIV since the earliest days of the epidemic,” said Tim Martineau, UNAIDS Deputy Executive Director, Management and Governance, a.i. “UNAIDS recognizes their importance, values their engagement and will continue to support their contribution in joining global efforts to end AIDS.”

Over the past 10 years, 97 United Nations Volunteers have served with UNAIDS across 36 countries, working to stop new HIV infections, ensure that everyone living with HIV has access to treatment, protect and promote human rights and produce data for decision-making.

“HIV is much more than a health issue. It is an issue of development and social justice, which cuts across so many of the Sustainable Development Goals,” said Olivier Adam, Executive Coordinator of UNV. “This is where UNV comes in—our volunteers are uniquely placed to engage people and deliver on the 2030 Agenda through global, regional, national and community-level implementation.”

International UN Volunteer Tobias Volz joined the UNAIDS Country Office for Nepal, Bhutan and Bangladesh in 2018, where he helped to develop and implement Live2Luv, a youth-led social media initiative that gives young people in Nepal a platform to voice their concerns, ask questions and challenge taboos about sexual and reproductive health.

Original source: UNAIDS
Published on 09 March 2020