Bhutanese UN Volunteer evacuated from Afghanistan

Thimphu: Following the tragic incident that Taliban militants attacked the UN guest house and killed five UN staff including two UN volunteers in Kabul, 600 UN international staff were temporality evacuated from Afghanistan. One of them was Lhap Thering from Bhutan, working for the UNDP electrical project in Kabul. He is now back in his home country spending a peaceful moment with his family before he returns to Afghanistan in February.

“Leaving Afghanistan was a relief. It was impossible to live a normal life. Coming back to Bhutan feels like being free”, said UN volunteer, Lhap Thering.

Three Bhutanese have been serving in Afghanistan as UN volunteers since 2005. Two of them are still in Afghanistan. One is Dhoj Gurung, UNV Finance Officer, stationed in Bumyng region, other one is Rinzin Wangchuk, UNV Engineer, stationed in Kabul.

Around 8,000 UN Volunteers are currently serving worldwide, including 25 Bhutanese. Most of them are involved in peacekeeping, conflict prevention and peace building; some are involved in sustaining peace and advancing human development, supporting electoral processes and governance reforms.

The United Nations Volunteers programme is the UN organization that contributes to peace and development through volunteerism worldwide. Volunteerism is a powerful means of engaging people in tackling development challenges, and it can transform the pace and nature of development.
Lhap Tsering is available for interviews. Please contact UNV office #322424 if you are interested in his story. We will also be able to put you in contact with Rinzin Wangchuk, UNV Engineer, stationed in Kabul.

For queries, please contact UNV officer Maki Mizuno maki.mizuno@undp.org (17110103), or UNDP communication intern Rebecca Jafari, rebecca.jafari@undp.org (17973523).