The United Nations Information Technology Service (UNITeS) is a new global volunteer initiative that sends volunteers to developing countries to teach about technology. UN Secretary General Kofi Annan introduced UNITeS to the world in his April 2000 Millennium Report. It is managed by the UN Volunteers program, an organization within the UN that places about 5,000 volunteers every year in development and humanitarian projects around the world.

What Is UNITeS?

"It is the only global volunteer initiative aimed specifically at addressing the critical issue of the digital divide in developing countries," says Manuel Acevedo, director of UNITeS.

UNITeS helps organizations interested in incorporating information and communication technology (ICT) into their international development activities. For example, Jordan's government is embarking on an ambitious program to establish a national network of Jordanian Information Technology Community Centers. UNITeS has collaborated with the country in this far-reaching program from its earliest phases.

In Mongolia, a group of volunteers is working with the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) to enhance the ICT capacities of students and the educated workforce. UNITeS volunteers are also involved in content development and electronic publishing with NGOs as well as network installation/management and education policy, introducing ICT applications to educational fields. And a volunteer is working with Pro-Humana, a Chilean NGO, to establish the first national online volunteering program.

UNITeS' Orissa Super Cyclone Rehabilitation project in India was selected as a finalist in the Stockholm Challenge, a nonprofit awards program administered by the City of Stockholm for global cutting-edge ICT projects. The project's primary objective is to provide information services to institutions involved in the rehabilitation effort resulting from a cyclone that destroyed 19,000 villages and affected nearly 13 million people.

Who Volunteers?

Volunteers with UNITeS are recruited from industrialized and developing countries, sometimes serving within their own country in the developing world.

Depending on the country and project, volunteers with different backgrounds are needed. There are some minimum requirements, including experience with both computers and the Internet at an advanced user level. Technical experience is also needed, which could include experience within an industry -- health, education, urban development, communications -- or higher-level experience in hardware or software applications. An example of a desirable candidate might be a nurse who uses databases to track patients or someone with experience volunteering at a rural community technology center.

Speaking a second language is a definite plus. Prior volunteer experience is helpful, as is teaching or training experience. In addition, volunteers need to have a commitment to serving in a developing country, which often means working under difficult conditions. They must demonstrate a high level of maturity and ideally have worked in diverse cultures. As Acevedo says, "It's tough work, long hours and the pay is, well, just a stipend...so people looking for combining charitable work with tourism should not look to UNITeS as a means of doing it."

"We are particularly interested getting more women to apply as volunteers under UNITeS," he notes.

UNITeS Assignments

Assignment lengths vary, but most positions are for at least one year. Geographically, needs are quite spread out, but a slight majority are from south-Saharan Africa, according to Acevedo.

"The amount of time it takes between a candidate submitting a CV and actual placement of a candidate depends on two things: how many openings we have with existing projects at a given moment and funding for the volunteers," Acevedo says.

UNITeS replies to all emails within one week to acknowledge receipt, and volunteers hear within several weeks if they have been accepted as possible candidates. Actual placement, however, can take months.

How to Apply

Go to the UNITes Web site (www.unites.org), and after reviewing carefully, email UNITeS with your name, mailing address, resume and a cover letter explaining how you learned of UNITeS and your relevant work/computer experience.

Tips for navigating the process:

• Be sure your resume highlights your ICT skills and how you have applied them. Also highlight how you used computer technology as part of your job or a relevant volunteer experience.
• Highlight your experiences working with diverse cultures
• Use a reliable, long-term email address for contact.
• Read the UNITeS FAQs before you send your resume!

Creative Funding

Acevedo notes that some individuals have made use of scholarships and grants to take volunteer assignments under UNITeS. Because funding is UNITeS biggest constraint at present, committed individuals have supported their costs in creative ways, like soliciting national volunteer organizations, such as the Peace Corps.