The coordinator of the United Nations (UN) Volunteers Program in Brazil, Dirk Hegmanns, commented Monday, December 5, that only the combined efforts of local governments, the UN, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and volunteers will permit the number of people who live in situations of extreme poverty in the country to be cut in half by 2015.
This is one of the Development Goals of the Millennium, approved in 2000 by the UN’s 191 member-states, including Brazil.
"Within our national and even global strategy, the volunteer’s role is fundamental for reaching these development objectives. Without citizen involvement, we will not attain this goal anywhere," Hegmanns observed.
He participated in the seminar, "Volunteer Work and the Goals of the Millennium," held in Rio de Janeiro. The event is part of the commemoration of International Volunteer Day, December 5.
UN data reveal that there are 42 million volunteers currently active in Brazil and that 83% of the Brazilian population view this type of work as a strategic tool in the struggle for citizenship.
ABr