Sudan: UN warns of soaring displacement and looming floods

Sudan: UN warns of soaring displacement and looming floods

At Tuesday’s regular briefing at the UN Headquarters, in New York, Spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric relayed warnings from the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian affairs (OCHA), citing urgent concerns across the country. “Across Sudan, we continue to be deeply concerned about the humanitarian impact of the ongoing fighting, which is escalating displacement and driving […]

‘The margins of the budget’: Gender equality in developing countries underfunded by $420 billion annually

‘The margins of the budget’: Gender equality in developing countries underfunded by $420 billion annually

“The money simply is not reaching the women and girls who need it most,” UN Women said in a news release issued on Monday.   This estimate comes in the midst of the Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development underway in Sevilla, Spain. There, world leaders are working to revitalize the international financing structure […]

Gaza: Families deprived of the means for survival, humanitarians warn

Gaza: Families deprived of the means for survival, humanitarians warn

“As humanitarian assistance and basic services dwindle, people in Gaza have been increasingly deprived of the means for their survival,” UN Spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric told reporters at the UN Headquarters in New York. It has been 17 weeks since any fuel has entered Gaza, according to Mr. Dujarric – a critical shortage that forced the […]

50 years of CITES: Shielding wildlife from trade-driven extinction

50 years of CITES: Shielding wildlife from trade-driven extinction

Originally conceived in 1963 at a meeting of the International Union for Conservation of Nature, the Convention entered into force in 1975, as the first global agreement of its kind. It continues to serve as a vital tool to help prevent the rapid decline of species.   Why CITES matters? The urgency of CITES’ mission […]

Spain and Brazil push global action to tax the super-rich and curb inequality

Spain and Brazil push global action to tax the super-rich and curb inequality

Presented during the UN’s 4th International Conference on Financing for Development, taking place this week in Sevilla, the proposal highlights a growing problem: the richest individuals often contribute less to public finances than ordinary taxpayers, thanks to lower effective tax rates and legal loopholes. “Our countries need more and more public revenues to meet their […]

Iran crisis: UN stays and delivers

Iran crisis: UN stays and delivers

“In the early morning hours of 13 June, a number of attacks took place in Tehran, and other parts of Iran,” said Stefan Priesner, UN Resident Coordinator in Iran. “Then over the next 12 days there were multiple attacks by either side…we know that there have been at least 627 people killed and almost 5,000 […]

Children’s lives ‘turned upside down’ by wars across Middle East, North Africa, warns UNICEF

Children’s lives ‘turned upside down’ by wars across Middle East, North Africa, warns UNICEF

Alarmingly, 110 million children in the region live in countries affected by war, with homes, schools and health facilities damaged or destroyed in fighting. “A child’s life is being turned upside down the equivalent of every five seconds due to the conflicts in the region,” said Edouard Beigbeder, UNICEF Regional Director for the Middle East […]

Northern hemisphere heatwave underscores value of early-warning alerts

Northern hemisphere heatwave underscores value of early-warning alerts

Three days after Spain’s national weather service confirmed a record 46°C reading in the southern town of El Granado, there’s been little let-up in stifling day and night temperatures across the continent and beyond. In Barcelona, a road sweeper reportedly died on Saturday after completing her shift, prompting an investigation and widespread public appeals to […]

Gaza: UN urges Israel to allow fuel into Strip

Gaza: UN urges Israel to allow fuel into Strip

“Amid ongoing Israeli military operations, scores of people have reportedly been killed and injured, including while waiting for food,” the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said. “Over the weekend, there were numerous reports of attacks hitting homes, as well as schools hosting displaced people,” it added. Catastrophic hunger OCHA noted that […]

Gaza: ‘Unbearable’ suffering continues, UN official tells Security Council

Gaza: ‘Unbearable’ suffering continues, UN official tells Security Council

Briefing ambassadors in the Security Council, Assistant Secretary-General for the Middle East Khaled Khiari said more than 1,000 Palestinians had been killed since mid-June alone, many of them while seeking aid. Citing figures from the Gazan health authorities, he reported that the total number of Palestinian fatalities since 7 October 2023 had surpassed 56,500. “The […]

After the big development pledges in Seville, UN says action starts now

After the big development pledges in Seville, UN says action starts now

That’s where the Sevilla Platform for Action (SPA) comes in – a major step to begin implementing the Seville Agreement without delay. It features over 130 concrete actions to support the renewed global financing framework that world leaders just adopted at the international conference. They will help countries mobilise resources for an SDG investment push, build developing […]

It’s time to finance our future and ‘change course’, Guterres tells world leaders in Sevilla

It’s time to finance our future and ‘change course’, Guterres tells world leaders in Sevilla

António Guterres issued his clarion call noting that sustainable development powered by international cooperation, is now facing “massive headwinds.” Addressing the opening session of the 4th Financing for Development Conference (FFD4) in baking hot Sevilla, Spain – basking in record high June temperatures – the Secretary-General noted multilateralism itself is also feeling the heat, while […]

Funding shortages threaten relief for millions of Sudanese refugees: WFP

Funding shortages threaten relief for millions of Sudanese refugees: WFP

In an alert, the UN agency warned that it faces having to make “drastic cuts” to life-saving food assistance, which may “grind to a halt” in the Central African Republic, Egypt, Ethiopia and Libya in the coming months as resources run out. WFP noted that the situation for many Sudanese refugees is already dire, more […]

LIVE: World leaders in Sevilla launch ambitious push to finance the future

LIVE: World leaders in Sevilla launch ambitious push to finance the future

From rising debt and shrinking investment, to the aid funding crisis and struggles to meet ambitious development goals, the global financial system is failing the people it’s supposed to serve: that’s the challenge facing world leaders gathered in Spain’s sweltering southern jewel of Sevilla this week, as the  UN’s 4th International Conference on Financing for […]

Guterres welcomes peace deal between DR Congo and Rwanda

Guterres welcomes peace deal between DR Congo and Rwanda

The accord is “a significant step towards de-escalation, peace and stability in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Great Lakes region,” he said in a statement that evening. A breakthrough amid crisis Since the 1990s, eastern DRC has been plagued by dozens of armed groups who have terrorized the population. The Government […]

Faith in finance: Indonesia’s innovative path to sustainable development

Faith in finance: Indonesia’s innovative path to sustainable development

The Southeast Asian country has already raised close to $12 billion in thematic bonds, including blue bonds and Islamic investment instruments over the last seven years. These efforts have been supported by development partners, including the United Nations. Putut Hari Satyaka, is the Deputy Minister for Development Financing and Investment at Indonesia’s Ministry of National Development Planning […]

1 31 32 33 34 35 145