UNV Kosovo: News Releases

Update on UNMIK policies for UN Volunteers
By Angela Griep

On Thursday 11 March the UN Volunteers Office in Kosovo organized a full day of lectures on UNMIK policies, with speakers invited from SRSGs office, the Department of Justice, OSCE, EU and KFOR. Special guests were SRSG Mr. Harri Holkeri and Deputy Special Representative for the Interim Civil Administration Mr. Francesco Bastagli. Around 150 UN Volunteers attended the ‘unmik update’ in the auditorium in Main HQ Pristina.

“We wanted UN Volunteers to be updated on UNMIK policies and to get an overview on development and current challenges in the mission”, explains Sharmini Sherrard, UNV Programme Manager the purpose of the day. 13 speakers from different parts of UNMIK gave a short briefing on various topics including the Millenium Development Goals, political developments in Kosovo, standards, the judicial system, reconstruction, human rights, democratization, the upcoming elections in October 2004 and KFOR policies.

The events highlight was the presentation by SRSG Harri Holkeri and Deputy Special Representative for the Interim Civil Administration, Mr. Francesco Bastagli who addressed the UN Volunteers despite the simultaneous visit of Mr. Jean-Marie Guéhenno, Head of the Department of Peace Keeping Operations. In his speech Mr. Holkeri thanked UN Volunteers for their ongoing contribution to the mission. He pointed out the various functions within UNMIK and expressed appreciation for their expertise and experience in their respective field. Emphasizing their work on the grass root level with local communities he called UN Volunteers the ‘human face’ of the mission.

As the head of UNMIK’s Pillar II, under which most UN Volunteers serve, Mr. Bastagli stated that the UN Civil Administration couldn’t operate without UN Volunteers and described them as ‘a pillar in the Pillar’. He summarized major achievements within Pillar II and pointed out remaining problems and challenges such as standards, returns and capacity building. He ended with a special thanks to the volunteers saying: “We might not tell you too often, but we do appreciate and value your work for UNMIK.”

The feedback coming from the UN Volunteers at the end of the day was very positive. Many said that the ‘UNMIK update’ gave them a great overview on UNMIK’s work as well as a chance to get in closer contact with people from the other pillars. They suggested following up with similar workshops focusing in greater depth on the relevant issues in their respective field. Most speakers who attended the UNMIK update agreed with the UN Volunteers and offered to be available for another meeting.

The day ended with a Happy Hour in UNMIK Terrace where facilitators, participants and speakers socialized in order to exchange ideas and give feedback. The UNV Office Kosovo now plans to follow up on the UNMIK update and to offer smaller and more focused workshops as the volunteers suggested.

For more information about this News Release, contact:
Angela Griep, UNV Public Information Officer, Email griep@un.org