The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) says more children and women were abducted for ransom between January and August 2021 than during the entire 2020. UNICEF estimates based on official sources say 71 women and 30 children were abducted in the first eight months of 2021, and 59 women and 37 children in 2020.
In Afghanistan, the World Health Organization and United Nations Children’s Fund today announced house-to-house polio vaccinations will resume 8 November across the country for the first time in three years, targeting more than 3.3 million children who were previously out of reach.
The Security Council decided this evening to extend the mandate of the United Nations Integrated Office in Haiti (BINUH) to 15 July 2022 and request the Secretary-General to assess its mandate, including whether and how it could be adjusted to address Haiti’s ongoing challenges.
The Secretary-General spoke at the opening ceremony of the fifteenth session of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD 15) in Barbados and repeated his call to donors and multilateral development banks to allocate at least 50 per cent of their climate support towards adaptation and resilience.
Haiti’s Foreign Minister today called upon the Security Council to strengthen the capacity of the United Nations special political mission in that country in supporting Government efforts in the areas of security and protection of civilians.
The United Nations team and its partners in Haiti are responding to the needs of some 500,000 people affected by the August earthquake. Despite constraints, 13 emergency medical teams have been established, over 35 metric tons of supplies have been deployed and $330,000 in emergency cash has been transferred.
Ahead of the historic Food Systems Summit on 23 September, the Secretary-General emphasized the moral imperative of achieving the Sustainable Development Goals by 2030, stressing that a well-functioning food system can help prevent conflict, protect the environment and provide health and livelihoods for all. “In food, there is hope,” he said.
About 540,000 children in the area impacted by last month’s earthquake in Haiti now face the possibility that water-borne diseases will re-emerge, UNICEF warns. The agency is working with Haitian authorities and civil society partners to improve access to water and sanitation, with the aim of reaching 500,000 people.
Acting without a vote, the General Assembly adopted three resolutions today, two proclaiming World Wetlands Day and World Cotton Day, respectively and the third expressing solidarity with the people and Government of Haiti in the aftermath of the devastating 14 August earthquake in that country.
The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) in the Democratic Republic of the Congo are concerned about the impact on children of new cases of the bubonic plague in the eastern province of Ituri. They say the plague has been reported in areas that had not seen a case in more than 15 years.
The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) warned that the first day of school has been indefinitely postponed for 140 million first-time students around the world, due to the pandemic. The consequences of school closures – notably learning loss, heightened risk of dropping out and child labour – will be felt by the youngest learners.
Humanitarian officials in Myanmar said today they will continue to call on security forces to ensure the protection of civilians, as the number of people killed in political violence tops 1,000. They strongly condemn the widespread use of lethal force, arbitrary detention, torture, and enforced disappearances.
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.
Today marks three years since the death of former Secretary-General Kofi Annan. As the current Secretary-General said, Kofi was one-of-a-kind, a man who embodied United Nations values. Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed said that, on this day three years ago, the world lost one of its moral voices.
The following statement by UN Secretary-General António Guterres was issued today:
The International Organization for Migration (IOM) said today it urgently needs $27 million to continue providing emergency shelter for internally displaced people in Tigray. With more than 2.1 million people internally displaced, some have fled Ethiopia and sought refuge in neighbouring Sudan, the agency reported.
United Nations personnel in Lebanon are responding to a fuel tank explosion in the northern district of Akkar, which killed 28 people and injured over 80 others on 15 August. The incident comes as the country grapples with a deepening crisis and electricity shortages have forced hospitals to operate at reduced capacity.
The following statement was issued today by the Spokesman for UN Secretary-General António Guterres:
The United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) has launched a new Peace Fellows programme to increase participation in the country’s peace process. It brings together representatives from all 10 states and three administrative areas to share information about the 2018 Peace Agreement, with a focus on education.
The General Assembly adopted a decision today on the organization of work for the general debate of its upcoming seventy-sixth session, while more broadly paying tribute to the late President of Haiti, Jovenel Moïse, who was assassinated on 7 July in a brutal attack that speakers roundly condemned in the strongest terms.
