First group of UNITeS/UN Volunteers fielded in developing countries - 7 September 2000

"UNITeS will train groups in developing countries in the uses and opportunities of information technology, and stimulate the creation of additional digital corps in the North and South. We are currently exploring external sources of funding to support UNITeS. … I encourage Member States to review their policies and arrangements in this area, to make sure that they are not denying their people the opportunities offered by the digital revolution."
UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan in his Millennium Report

Five months after UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan announced his vision for a high tech volunteer corps in the UN's Millennium Report, the initiative has hit the ground running and 23 professionals have now taken up assignments as UN Volunteers in developing countries, providing service as a part UNITeS.

The project, carried out through the work of volunteers, aims to bridge the digital divide by helping people in developing countries make practical use of information and communications technology (ICT). The United Nations Volunteers programme is the facilitating and coordinating agency for UNITeS, the United Nations Information Technology Service.

Prior to the start of this week's UN Millennium Summit in New York -- the largest-ever gathering of world leaders -- 11 international and 12 national UN Volunteers started sharing their skills in 10 countries as a part of the official launch of UNITeS.

These initial volunteers serving through UNITeS are posted in Benin, Botswana, Burundi, Central African Republic, Ecuador, India, Jordan, Namibia, South Africa and Tanzania. Six additional posts are in the pipeline for Bhutan, Jordan and Mongolia. Many of these Volunteers affiliated with UNITeS come from the South, either working at home or abroad. The programme encourages nationals of developing countries to become volunteers.

The first UNITeS Volunteer post, filled by an Indian national, began on 1 August. In collaboration with the Orissa state government and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), a new project was launched in the state to use ICT to bolster rehabilitation efforts in the wake of last year's devastating Super Cyclone. A technical specialist will work with seven national ICT facilitators in setting up small information units along the coastline, where agencies carrying out rehabilitation activities can benefit from information on the Internet and local networks.

A number of online volunteering assignments have also been targeted under the UNITeS umbrella. These are provided via the Netaid Online Volunteering service, which is managed by UNV, currently the Mercy Corps.

Institutions from both the South and the North expressing interest in helping develop the UNITeS initiative include governments, civil society, the private sector, development agencies and academia. UNITeS builds on a number of existing initiatives, including those of NetCorps Canada International and NetCorps Americas.

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