Nov

Kitega in the News

Washington — The Kitega Community Centre in rural Uganda has emerged as a global model for volunteer networking, capturing a top United Nations award for online volunteering in each of the last two years.

When its coordinator, David Clemy, took over the center, which focuses on local health issues, he didn’t have the money to hire help. But using a United Nations online service, he soon enlisted 70 skilled volunteers who work from their locations around the world. Last year, 10,000 people completed 15,000 assignments for development organizations through the United Nations Volunteers (UNV) online service.

Internet capabilities are affecting volunteer efforts of other established service organizations in America and abroad. “The Peace Corps mission of ‘bringing the world back home’ hasn’t changed in 50 years, but for the first time, our volunteers in host countries around the world are relying on the Web to connect with Americans at home in ways that they’ve never been able to before,” said Peace Corps spokeswoman Kristina Edmunson.