And the

It is a pleasure for me to take part in this opening ceremony of the International Year of Volunteers in a world were solidarity and voluntary service is most needed.

Volunteering is about the millions of individuals world-wide who give their time and skill for the well-being of their neighbours, community or society at large; from traditional customs of mutual self-help to community responses in times of crises. Their contribution to development and human relief is difficult to overestimate.

The UN recognises the importance of volunteers’ contribution to development. The Secretary-General, of the UN, Kofi Annan, said during the launching of IYV in New York last week that "at the heart of voluntarism are the ideals of service and solidarity and the belief that together we can make the world better; in that sense, we can see that voluntarism is the ultimate expression of what the UN is all about."

This recognised importance of the value of volunteerism is one of the reasons the general assembly of the UN proclaimed 2001 as the International Year of Volunteers.

Volunteers are active in all walks of life, indeed, during the recent natural disaster of the floods, when so many people lost their homes and belongings, we admired the excellent work of the Cambodian volunteers of the Red Cross and other organizations. They provided support and relief to the victims in close co-ordination with Government, UN and other relief organizations.

The UN has also its own volunteer programme –UNV. Since 1971, more than 20,000 volunteers from over 140 different countries, have offered their services. In Cambodia, when the country needed a democratic elected government, the contribution of nearly 700 UN Volunteers, working around the clock between 1992 and 1993, to help organize free and fair elections was crucial.

Now, seven years later, when the co-operation agenda has moved away from emergency issues, more than 50 UN Volunteers support the efforts of Government, NGOs and UN to reduce extreme poverty and foster human development.

It is important that governments and development organizations recognise the importance of voluntary services for the success and the impact of their programmes. I hope more organizations will begin to incorporate this enormous potential in their business plans and strategies.

The year 2001 is also the start of the International Decade for a Culture of Peace and Non-violence for the Children of the World. Since the convention of the rights of the Child was adopted by the UN, children and their right have been a major concern for the UN. In fact the Cambodian Human Development Report this year concentrates on children and refers to their right to "survive and develop to their full potential." Children have also the right to "the highest attainable standards of health care", and, therefore, I am extremely happy that the rehabilitation of this Children Mental Care hospital, has been chosen as a concrete example of volunteer's contribution to development. I wish the hospital continued success in all their future endeavours.

Finally, we hope that the International Year of Volunteers 2001 will give the volunteers the recognition they deserve and motivate more people to contribute their voluntary services to build a better society for all.

Thank you.