A newly released World Health Organization report finds that nearly a billion people worldwide live with a mental disorder. It identifies public health crises, inequality, war and climate change as major health threats, and shows that depression and anxiety spiked more than 25 per cent in 2020.
The following statement was issued today by the Spokesman for UN Secretary-General António Guterres:
Today is World Elder Abuse Awareness Day, and this year’s theme is “Combating Elder Abuse”. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), every year, one in six people aged 60 and older experience some form of abuse.
Almost one third of the food insecure South Sudanese that the World Food Programme (WFP) planned to support in 2022 will be without humanitarian food assistance due to funding shortages. WFP said that the suspension of aid comes as South Sudan faces a year of unprecedented hunger.
The following statement was issued today by the Spokesman for UN Secretary-General António Guterres:
The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees today said the number of Nicaraguan refugees and asylum seekers in Costa Rica has doubled in the last eight months, reaching more than 150,000 people. This represents 3 per cent of Costa Rica’s total population of 5 million.
A three-month flash appeal to provide vital assistance for 542,000 people affected by Tropical Storm Ana, which hit Malawi late in January, has been launched in the country. It seeks $29.4 million and focuses on the six hardest-hit districts — Chikwawa, Nsanje, Phalombe, Mulanje, Chiradzulu and Balaka.
The following Security Council press statement was issued today by Council President Vassily A. Nebenzia (Russian Federation):
The High Commissioner for Human Rights, Michelle Bachelet, today urged the President of Tunisia, Kaïs Saïed, to restore the High Judicial Council, warning that its dissolution would seriously undermine the rule of law, the separation of powers and independence of the judiciary in the country.
In the Democratic Republic of the Congo, following Tuesday’s attack in Ituri province, United Nations peacekeepers are patrolling the area with reinforced troops to provide security around the Savo displaced persons site and are facilitating medical supplies and evacuations to Bunia for wounded civilians.
World Wetlands Day, observed on 2 February, is being celebrated under the theme “Wetlands Action for People and Nature”, highlighting the importance of actions to ensure the conservation and sustainable use of wetlands for human and planetary health.
The High Commissioner for Human Rights expressed alarm at the continued disappearance of six people abducted in Kabul two weeks ago in connection with recent women’s rights protests. It called on the de facto authorities to report the findings of their investigation and do their utmost to ensure the safe, immediate release of these individuals.
In tsunami-hit Tonga, the United Nations continues to support the recovery, providing satellite phones for Government staff to communicate while the underground communications cable undergoes repairs. On Tongatapu, the main island, 90 per cent of power has been restored and aid distribution continues.
On Myanmar, nearly one year after the takeover, the High Commissioner for Human Rights urged the international community to intensify pressure on the military to stop its campaign of violence against the people of the country and to insist on the prompt restoration of civilian rule.
Briefing the Security Council today on Afghanistan, the Secretary-General’s Special Representative there noted that, six months after the takeover by the Taliban, the country is hanging by a thread.
The International Organization for Migration (IOM) warned today that the deteriorating drought conditions in Somalia could displace more than 1 million people by April if urgent action is not taken now. IOM noted that water scarcity in some parts of the country is the worst in 40 years.
United Nations international experts arrived today in Peru to carry out a rapid assessment of the social and environmental impacts of an oil spill disaster. The team started working today and expects to continue for two weeks.
The following statement was issued today by the Spokesman for UN Secretary-General António Guterres:
The new Permanent Representative of Burkina Faso to the United Nations, Seydou Sinka, presented his credentials to the Secretariat today.
One billion children are at extremely high risk of suffering the effects of the climate crisis, according to a new report from the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF). Environmental shocks may be particularly severe in the Central African Republic, Chad and Nigeria, jeopardizing access to education and basic services.
