Fodder cutters are fearsome machines with huge circular blades spinning at high speed, powered by small generators. Operated by rural workers in several developing countries, including India, Pakistan and Kenya, they pose a constant risk – many have had hands or arms amputated following accidents. The consequences are devastating. Tasks that shape daily life – […]
While there is no official estimate of how prevalent fraud is in the $195 billion global fisheries and aquaculture sector, empirical studies suggest that 20 per cent of the trade may be subject to some type of fraud, according to FAO. Menu of misinformation Some studies suggest that up to 30 per cent of seafood […]
This is occurring as the risk from pandemics, drug-resistant infections and fragile health services are on the rise, said the WHO Director-General. Addressing the WHO Executive Board in Geneva, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus stressed the impact of workforce reductions last year due to “significant cuts to our funding,” which have had significant consequences. “Sudden and severe […]
The UN agency’s new global guidance on evidence-based policies and interventions shows that healthy food in schools can help children develop healthy dietary habits for life. “The food children eat at school, and the environments that shape what they eat, can have a profound impact on their learning, and lifelong consequences for their health and well-being,” […]
The statement, released on Saturday, also includes a rebuttal of the US administration’s reasoning for the measures. In response to government statements that the WHO has “trashed and tarnished” and insulted it, and compromised its independence, the agency notes that “the reverse true,” and that the WHO has always sought to “engage with the United […]
Established in 1945 under the UN Charter, the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) was designed to ensure that peace and security would be backed by economic stability, social progress and international cooperation. Eight decades after its first meeting in London in early 1946, ECOSOC remains a central – if often working out of the spotlight […]
For decades, scientists, policymakers and the media warned of a “global water crisis,” implying temporary shock – followed by recovery. What is now emerging in many regions, however, is a persistent shortage whereby water systems can no longer realistically return to their historical baselines. “For much of the world, ‘normal’ is gone,” said Kaveh Madani, […]
The UN advocates for the universal abolition of the death penalty. The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, ratified by 175 countries, protects the right to life and stipulates that, for countries that have not abolished capital punishment, it be imposed only for the ‘most serious crimes’ in exceptional cases. OHCHR said the sharp increase in capital […]
The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) confirmed on Wednesday that 2025 was one of the three warmest years on record, continuing the streak of extraordinary global temperatures. After analysing eight international datasets, the organization said that global average surface temperatures last year were 1.44°C above the 1850 to 1900 average. Two of these datasets ranked 2025 as […]
Addressing heads of state, ministers and international partners, President of the UN General Assembly Annalena Baerbock said today’s hunger crisis is not the result of scarcity, but of inequality, conflict and policy choices. Last year, more than 670 million people experienced hunger, and 2.3 billion faced moderate or severe food insecurity. “That is billions wondering […]
“Water-related hazards continue to cause major devastation this year,” said Celeste Saulo, WMO Secretary-General. “The latest examples are the devastating monsoon flooding in Pakistan, floods in South Sudan and the deadly flash floods in the Indonesian island of Bali. And unfortunately, we see no end to this trend.” Ms. Saulo highlighted that these emergencies have […]
The world is retreating from gender equality, and the cost is being counted in lives, rights, and opportunities. Five years from the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) deadline in 2030, none of the gender equality targets are on track. That’s according to this year’s SDG Gender Snapshot report launched on Monday by UN Women and the UN […]
Latest data shared by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) indicates a 55 per cent likelihood that sea surface temperatures in the equatorial Pacific will cool to La Niña levels from September to November. About 90 per cent of the excess heat from global warming is stored in the ocean, making ocean heat content a critical indicator of climate change. “For October […]
Keeping sea routes safe today while also addressing emerging challenges was the focus of a debate in the UN Security Council on Monday which was convened by Panama, president for the month of August. Arsenio Dominguez, Secretary-General of the International Maritime Organization (IMO), told the Council that last year, a workforce of just 1.9 million […]
Backed by the new Awaza Programme of Action, the Third UN Conference on Landlocked Developing Countries or LLDC3 will push for freer transit, smarter trade corridors, stronger economic resilience and fresh financing to lift development prospects for the 570 million people living in those countries. For landlocked nations, geography has long dictated destiny. Trade […]
While the UN-backed International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) reported that there had been no damage to Japan’s nuclear facilities after an 8.8 magnitude quake was recorded off Russia’s Kamchatka Peninsula, coastal communities have been taking no chances and evacuating to higher ground or moving further inland. Alerts were sent out within a few minutes of the […]
Delivering closing remarks at the UN Food Systems Summit +4 Stocktaking Moment (UNFSS+4) in Addis Ababa, co-hosted by Ethiopia and Italy, Ms. Mohammed praised the growing momentum behind food systems transformation. But she also warned that with just five years left to 2030, “hunger and malnutrition persist. Climate shocks, conflict, debt, and inequality are widening […]
The report estimates 8.2 per cent of the global population (673 million individuals) experienced hunger in 2024, down from 8.5 per cent in 2023 and 8.7 per cent in 2022. Latin America and Asia saw improvements, with the prevalence of undernourishment falling by 1.2 percent in Asia and 1 percent in Latin America and the […]
Briefing the Security Council on Thursday, Khaled Khiari, Assistant Secretary-General for the Middle East, said the OIC remains an “indispensable” partner in efforts to promote peace, uphold international law and deliver durable political solutions in a range of crisis contexts. Headquartered in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, the OIC has 57 member states and five observers, representing […]
The report, to be released later this month, reveals how between 2020 and 2024, the world experienced a dramatic increase in food prices driven by a combination of COVID-19 inflation, the war in Ukraine restricting movements on food and commodities, and increasing climate shocks. “The episodes described in this publication bring up what we […]