Soaring debt levels compounded by high inflation and rising interest rates have dashed job-seekers’ hopes in developing countries, the International Labour Organization (ILO) warned on Wednesday.
Effective governance of outer space is necessary to propel innovation and achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), UN Secretary-General António Guterres said in a new policy brief published on Wednesday.
UN Secretary-General António Guterres has strongly condemned the latest satellite launch by the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK), his spokesperson said in a statement on Wednesday.
The head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) on Tuesday urged the UN Security Council to unambiguously support five principles aimed at preventing a nuclear accident amid the war in Ukraine, now in its 15th month.
A large group of UN-appointed independent human rights experts on Tuesday called on the Belarusian authorities to immediately release all those being held on “spurious charges”, simply for exercising their fundamental rights to peaceful assembly, association and expression, to be released without delay.
Racism is a global problem, and every country must take a stance against it, General Assembly President Csaba Kőrösi said on Monday, addressing the latest meeting of a UN platform to improve the safety and quality of life of people of African descent worldwide.
Action on the ground must match diplomacy’s steadily advancing gains towards ending the 12-year-old war in Syria, where violence is once again, killing a growing numbers of civilians, the top UN official in the country said on Tuesday.
A total of 4.9 million people in Haiti – nearly half of the country's population – are experiencing high levels of acute food insecurity, according to a new UN-supported report.
Global warming’s devastating effects on the world’s sea ice, icebergs and glaciers – part of what is known as the cryosphere – need to be better understood and mitigated, according to the World Meteorological Organization (WMO).
For the first time since fighting broke out in Sudan on 15 April, humanitarians have been able to reach desperate families trapped in the conflict’s epicentre, Khartoum, with food assistance, the UN’s World Food Programme (WFP) said on Tuesday.
During a visit to Tokyo, the UN Special Envoy for Yemen, Hans Grundberg, met with the Parliamentary Vice-Minister for Foreign Affairs, Kei Takagi, and other senior government officials. The discussions tackled ongoing efforts to support the parties in reaching an agreement on a nationwide ceasefire and the resumption of an inclusive, comprehensive political process under UN-auspices.Grundberg thanked Japan for its steadfast support of the...
Hunger is set to worsen in 18 “hotspots” worldwide including Sudan, where fighting is putting people at risk of starvation, the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the World Food Programme (WFP) warned in a report published on Monday.
Since 1948, more than two million uniformed and civilian personnel have served at UN field missions across the world. Their contributions are being highlighted on the International Day of United Nations Peacekeepers, observed on Monday.
New York, 29 May 2023
United Nations peacekeepers are the beating heart of our commitment to a more peaceful world. For 75 years, they have supported people and communities rocked by conflict and upheaval across the globe.
Today, on the International Day of United Nations Peacekeepers, we honour their extraordinary contributions to international peace and security.
...Every recipe has a story, from Pakistan’s signature chicken korma to kaldu kokot cooked on Indonesia’s Madura Island. The UN Human Rights Office (OHCHR) has set the table for an innovative campaign that brings seven recipes to life, tackling a wave of hate speech against migrants and refugees by serving up the rich diversity of food and culture they bring with them to Malaysia.
Fatoumatta Fatty’s commute on an old, malfunctioning wheelchair takes up to two hours during rainy season in The Gambia, but she is happy joining her co-workers at a sanitary pad production centre, where she takes pride in making products that help women overcome “period poverty” across the country.
In the summer of 2022, 70 Gambian babies and young children died from kidney failure after ingesting cough syrup spooned out by their caregivers. The World Health Organization (WHO) issued a global alert that four tainted paediatric products had originated in India, as local health authorities continue to investigate how this tragedy unfolded.
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The UN convened the first ever global meeting with education ministers from around the world to explore risks and rewards of using chatbots in classrooms, announcing on Friday a new roadmap to chart a safer digital path for all.
The United States’ National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) predicts “near-normal hurricane activity” in the Atlantic this coming storm season, said the UN weather agency on Friday, forecasting between five and nine major storms that could become hurricanes.
The food security situation in Yemen’s government-controlled districts “slightly improved” during the first five months of this year, but acute malnutrition is on the rise, UN agencies warned in a new report released on Friday.
Humanitarians reached 5.4 million people in Ukraine with desperately needed aid by April this year, including cash assistance, food, health services, and medicines, the UN said on Friday.
Allowing space for everyone to speak up, is critical for a free and fully functioning society said the UN human rights chief on Friday, warning that a safe environment online has never been more essential.
With hunger spreading worldwide and tobacco responsible for eight million deaths each year, countries should stop subsidizing tobacco crops and help farmers grow food, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Friday.
The UN and humanitarian partners are mobilizing to reach as many people as possible while the stuttering ceasefire between warring military factions is being respected, said the UN Spokesperson on Thursday.
The UN political affairs chief on Thursday appealed for the Security Council to ensure reliable funding for African Union (AU) efforts towards greater peace and security on the continent.
UN Special Representative, Pramila Patten, expressed her ‘deep concern’ on Thursday over increasing allegations of sexual violence against women and girls being carried out in camps for the internally displaced (IDPs) around Goma, in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).
The UN’s 87,000-plus peacekeepers worldwide are “a beacon of hope and protection” for vulnerable civilians, in an increasingly dangerous and uncertain world, the UN chief said on Thursday, recognizing that last year, another 102 ‘blue helmets’ fell in the line of duty.
One of the world’s most wanted genocide fugitives has been arrested after being on the run for more than two decades, the UN tribunal prosecuting war crimes committed in Rwanda announced on Thursday.
UNDER-SECRETARY-GENERAL ROSEMARY A. DICARLO’S
REMARKS TO THE SECURITY COUNCIL ON
PEACE AND SECURITY IN AFRICA
[PREDICTABLE, SUSTAINABLE, AND FLEXIBLE RESOURCES]
New York, 25 May 2023
Thank you, Madam President,
I am grateful for the opportunity to brief the Security Council on United Nations support for African Union (AU) peace operations.
And I am very pleased to speak to you on Africa Day, alongside Commissioner for Political Affairs, Peace and Security of the African UnionCommission, Mr. Bankole. Today we mark the signing sixty years ago of the charter of the Organization of African Unity, the precursor of the AU. I salute the countries of Africa today for their growing unity and solidarity.
Madam President,
Cooperation between the African Union and the United Nations has grown significantly since the signing of the 2017 Joint UN-AU Framework for Enhanced Partnership in Peace and Security. We have joined efforts and worked closely including in the Central African Republic, Somalia, South Sudan, and Sudan.
We have addressed a range of peace and security issues: conflict prevention and conflict resolution initiatives, peacekeeping and peacebuilding, the climate emergency, and women,peace and security among others.
Recently, for example, the UN and the AU supported ECOWAS efforts to restore constitutional order in Mali, Burkina Faso and Guinea. Today, the UN, AU and the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) are supporting efforts to bring peace and a civilian-led order to the Sudan.
Over the last twenty years, the AU has shown its readiness to speedily deploy peace support operations in response to armed conflicts on the continent. With its missions in Burundi, the Central African Republic, the Comoros, Mali, Somalia, and the Sudan, the AU contributed to the maintenance of continental peace and security, in line with Chapter VIII of the UN Charter.
Those missions demonstrated significant political will and commitment, but they also faced some recurrent problems. Challenges included funding shortfalls and the absence of requisite operational and logistical capabilities, as well as force enablers and multipliers.
While the support the UN and other partners have provided has been useful and appreciated, it has also often been unpredictable.
Perhaps the most novel form of cooperation between our two organizations has been UN support to AU peace enforcement missions in Somalia. In 2007 the UN Security Council approved the AU Mission in Somalia (AMISOM). In 2009 this Council mandated partial support from assessed contributions to ensure that AMISOM had sustainable and predictable support to carry out its mandate.
AMISOM was instrumental in supporting Somali forces in their efforts to stabilize the country, and I would like to pay tribute to the fallen soldiers in AMISOM and in Somalia. Last year, AMISOM became the AU Transition Mission in Somalia (ATMIS), with the objective of handing over security responsibilities to Somali Security Forces by the end of December 2024.
Madam President,
As we look at different parts of the continent, it is obvious that the need to put AU peace operations on solid footing is increasingly pressing.
The AU and the Regional Economic Communities and Mechanisms have in recent years scrambled to respond to the changing nature of conflict in Africa—from the Sahel to Somalia, from Mozambique to Eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, among other situations.
Armed violence invariably and significantly harms civilian populations and often spills over across borders. In Africa and elsewhere, risinginsecurity is characterized by an increasing use of asymmetric tactics and sophistication of armed extremist groups and expanding influence of transnational organized crime. These connected phenomena require commensurate global approaches and responses.
The Sahel is particularly affected. This is why, the Secretary-General and the Chairperson of the AU Commission jointly invited the former President of Niger, Mahamadou Issoufou, to lead an independent panel to assess the situation in the Sahel. We anticipate its recommendations on responses to the region’s complex challenges this fall.
Madam President,
The imperative of providing predictable, flexible and sustainable financing for AU-ledpeace support operations is well known to this Council. In 2015, for example, the report of the Independent High-level Panel on Peace Operations, concluded that the lack of sustained, predictable and flexible funding mechanisms to support AU peace operations undermines their sustainability and effectiveness.
Recognizing this common challenge, theSecurity Council expressed, in resolution 2378 (2017), its intention to further consider practical steps to establish a mechanism through which AUpeace operations could be partly financed through UN assessed contributions on a case-by-case basis.
The Council has before it today a report of the Secretary-General with recommendations on securing such support for AU-led operationsmandated by the Security Council and an update on progress made since 2017. The report was prepared in collaboration with the AU, Member States and partners.
We are pleased to note that the AU, in close cooperation with the UN and other partners, has made significant progress to fulfil the commitments set out in Council resolutions 2320 (2016) and 2378 (2017).
Most notably, the AU has worked to address the financial challenge of its operations, including by committing to increase its own financial contributions by revitalizing its AU Peace Fund.
The AU, in cooperation with the UN and the European Union, also moved to develop and operationalize a compliance framework to meet international human rights and humanitarian law obligations as well as conduct and disciplinestandards.
Madam President
AU peace operations should be considered as part of the range of responses to crises in Africa, alongside established UN mechanisms.
The report in front of you outlines a standardized consultative planning and mandating process, through which the UN, the AU and subregional configurations can assess together the required response to an emerging crisis.
This process would reassure the Council that a given situation has been systematically assessed by all the relevant entities. It would thus help the Council decide whether assessed contributions can be accessed.
The report presents the joint mission model and the support packages delivered by the UN as the two most practical options for ensuring the funding AU-led operations need, authorized on a case-by-case basis.
Madam President,
The case for adequately financing AU-ledpeace support operations is beyond solid. We are therefore hopeful that the Security Council will agree to provide its backing, including allowing access to UN assessed contributions.
As the Secretary-General has stated, concrete action on this longstanding issue will address a critical gap in the international peace and security architecture and bolster the efforts of the African Union to tackle peace and security challenges on the continent.
Thank you, Madam President.
The UN’s Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) has endorsed the addition of 18 new sites from around the world to its network of outstanding Geoparks, showcasing some of the most beautiful sites of natural beauty around the globe.
The robust growth that many African countries experienced before COVID-19 was lost to the pandemic, UN Secretary-General António Guterres said on Wednesday, highlighting the need to scale up efforts towards a single trade market on the continent.
The UN’s top advocate on ending violence against children, joined UN agencies on Wednesday in highlighting the urgent need to protect the rights of young people on the move, amid spiralling crises worldwide.
Swift action is needed to prevent flare ups of Israeli-Palestinian violence and avert a looming food crisis, the top UN official in the Middle East told the Security Council on Wednesday.
A hundred and ninety-three countries have unanimously approved the creation of a global greenhouse gas monitoring mechanism, the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) announced on Wednesday.
