Stela Valigy: ‘My Life Has Never Been Normal’
Photo: Carolina Lessa
31st March 2023
Stela Valigy tells her 34-year journey as a civil servant at the United Nations until her retirement. A story of dedication, resilience, absence and “saudade” - a noun in Portuguese to describe the feeling of deeply missing something, someone or a place.
Melissa was 11 years old and Ivan 17 when Stela Valigy left her home country to serve in the United Nations Observer Mission in Angola (UNOMA), in 2000. Prior to that, she worked for twelve years as a national staff at the UN Development Programme (UNDP) in Maputo, Mozambique.
In Luanda, Stela was assigned as the Personal Assistant of Mussagy Jeichande, the Secretary-General’s Representative and Head of the UN Office in Angola. The mission she was serving aimed at contributing to peace, reconciliation, and stability amidst the civil war in Angola, which took place from 1975 to 2002.
“I had to support the SRSG that was in constant contact with the Secretary-General in New York by proofreading the daily report on the progress of the mission. Because of the difference in time zones, I used to work until 3 am and go back to the office at 7 am. It was a huge responsibility. It required my devotion,” said Stela.
More than 3,500 km away from home, Stela tried her heart out to raise Ivan and Melissa from distance. She would control if they had eaten, at what time they had gone to bed, whether they were doing their homework, their grades on exams, whom they were hanging out with, and at what time they were returning home. Child rearing and schooling were done by phone.
“I remember calling my daughter and she said she was too busy to talk with me. UN Kids became independent too soon and their lives got out of my control”, said Stella who tried to go back home at least once per month. “At some point, they got used to my absence and started to appreciate everything I could provide them with, such as a bike or the opportunity of traveling.”
When the mission in Angola was downsized, in 2003, Stela was invited to serve as a Human Resources Assistant at the United Nations Organization Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (MONUC). A brand-new country, a different culture, and totally different weather. “I have always lived on the coast and there are no beaches in Kinshasa. I had to adjust to the high temperature”.
Stela when serving in the Republic Democratic of Congo between 2003 and 2011.
The temperature was Stela’s least problem. Kinshasa is an unstable city and a UN non-family duty station. So, robberies, violence, and unrests are part of the city’s dynamic. One day, Stela had to take refuge in her office as a result of unrest, in which the discontent population invaded and destroyed UN staff homes. For three whole days, she worked to the sound of mortar strikes with no access to fresh food and shower.
“Despite all the suffering, the Congolese people would sing and dance instead of cry”, she remembered.
In 2011, Stela was invited to join the United Nations Regional Service Centre Entebbe as a Human Resources Assistant in the International Benefits and Payroll Service Line. She did not hesitate to say “yes” after so many years of serving in hardship. She was one of the first staff to join the Centre, attracted by Uganda’s weather, people, and food. In Entebbe, she took root and has stayed for over 12 years.
On 28 February 2023, Stela retired after 34 years of working for the United Nations. She has left, but her legacy will live on with the RSCE and its more than 16,400 clients. “Your satisfaction is our priority”: This was the slogan Stela created after a contest launched by the Chief to decide on the Centre’s motto. “With much pride, I can say that I won. It means that the Centre must serve at its maximum capacity to satisfy its clients”, she explained.
When asked to deliver a message to the staff that will remain, she remembered her time as a national staff in Maputo. “My life has never been normal, but national staff have the opportunity to lead a normal life and have a work-life balance. Being an international staff is not just about earning more money. You have to live with the burden of being away from your family and not having control over your children’s education”.
It is time for her to rest and look after those she has lived away from for too long.
“I will support orphanages, the elderly, and travel. Travel a lot. I also want to do for my granddaughters what I have never done to my children. I want to be more present and help with their education. But I believe I’ll be the one learning from them at this time”, she laughed.
Access on issuu.com/regionalservicecentreentebbe/docs/rsce_newsletter_edition_10/s/21864532
