United Nations Volunteers (Bhutan)

Bhutanese Volunteers go to Africa

The first week of the Water Female Sheep Year saw the departure of two Bhutanese nationals to Africa, to offer their services as United Nations Volunteers.  Mr. Tashi Dhendup, from Edi in Zhemgang Dzongkhag, accepted a short-term assignment as UNV Audit Coordinator, under the United Nations Organisation Mission to the Democratic Republic of the Congo. 

As he collected his plane ticket ready for his departure from Bhutan on 4th March 2003, he expressed his appreciation for being temporarily released from his civil service post in the Royal Audit Authority.  He said that, through sharing his skills with his counterparts in the Democratic Republic of Congo (previously known as Zaire), he expected to learn from the experience, and to return to Bhutan with new ideas.

Also taking up the UNV mantle is Mr. Udai Gurung, from Sipsu, in Samtse Dzongkhag.  He departed on 9th March to serve for six months as UNV Procurement Assistant with the United Nations Mission in Sierra Leone (UNAMSIL)

UNV Programme Officer Chris Whitehouse noted that through UNDP's UNV programme, over 300 international specialists have come to Bhutan since the early 1980s.  However, with Bhutanese nationals now better equipped and more highly skilled, it is not surprising that more and more Bhutanese should be accepted for UNV assignments overseas.  With these two departures, a total of twenty Bhutanese nationals will have taken up UNV assignments abroad since the first one went to Malawi in 1994. 

During a visit last year to Bhutan of UNV Honorary Ambassador Takehito Nakata, a number of senior government representatives including the Honourable Prime Minister noted the value of having Bhutanese nationals serving overseas as UNVs.  There are currently over twenty Bhutanese nationals on the UNV roster awaiting placement, many of whom have applied through the internet, and it is hoped that yet more Bhutanese will apply.  The minimum requirement for acceptance is five years' post-qualification work experience in one of 538 specialist fields.