Month: March 2023
To save a million species, World Wildlife Day underscores crucial role of partnerships
“One million species teeter on the brink of extinction, due to habitat destruction, fossil fuel pollution and the worsening climate crisis. We must end this war on nature,” UN Secretary-General António Guterres warned in his message for the Day. The scores of species of fauna and flora under threat from human activities include some that…
Read More5 things you need to know the world’s least developed countries
The conference of Least Developed Countries or LDCs takes place every 10 years and this year’s meeting from 5 to 9 March 2023, known as LDC5, will focus on returning the needs of the 46 designated countries to the top of the global agenda and supporting them as they strive to get back on track…
Read MoreCrimes against humanity likely committed in Nicaragua, says independent rights probe
Unveiling their first report to be delivered to the Human Rights Council on Friday, the Group of Human Rights Experts on Nicaragua urged the international community to impose sanctions on those responsible. The experts concluded that President Daniel Ortega and Vice President Rosario Murillo “put into practice these crimes” which continue today. ‘Widespread and systematic’ “Based on this investigation,…
Read MoreFood rationing for Rohingya refugees a ‘matter of life and death’: rights expert
The development follows the UN World Food Programme (WFP)’s announcement that it would be cutting back on assistance to those sheltering in the vast Cox’s Bazar camp complex from 1 March because of a lack of funding. “These rations cuts are a stain on the conscience of the international community,” said Tom Andrews, UN Special Rapporteur on Myanmar. “I have…
Read MoreFirst-ever World Seagrass Day focuses on conservation
Seagrasses are marine flowering plants that are found in shallow waters from the tropics to the Arctic Circle, covering over 300,000 square kilometres of the ocean floor. Although not as colourful as coral reefs, or mysterious as mangrove forests, they provide a wealth of benefits to humans and marine life. ‘Blue forest’ benefits Seagrass meadows…
Read MoreIn Niger, UN deputy chief highlights power of partnership to forge schools for the future
Amina Mohammed was visiting the École Pays-Bas, in a suburb of the capital Niamey, which less than two years ago, burned to the ground, after the straw it was made from caught fire, amid searing temperatures and a suspected electrical wiring fault. A total of 21 children died in the inferno – nine boys, and…
Read MoreRight to development can save world from ‘destructive spiral’: Türk
Adding her voice to the High Commissioner’s call for action, UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed warned in a video message that the right to development has “yet to be realized by billions of people” who were “hurting (while) the planet is burning. The world cannot wait.” Marking the 35th anniversary of the UN Declaration on the…
Read MoreGuterres stresses UN commitment to Iraq during first visit in 6 years
“I am here in a visit of solidarity to underscore the commitment of the United Nations to support Iraq in the consolidation of its democratic institutions and advancing peace, sustainable development and human rights for all Iraqis,” Mr. Guterres told journalists in Baghdad, after touching down late on Tuesday. After “decades of oppression, war, terrorism, sectarianism and foreign interference” in…
Read MoreAfghanistan still a grave humanitarian crisis, senior aid official says
Ramiz Alakbarov, UN Deputy Special Representative and Humanitarian Coordinator for Afghanistan, updated journalists in New York on developments in a country where 28 million people now depend on aid to survive. Immense humanitarian needs “Afghanistan remains the world’s largest humanitarian crisis in 2023, notwithstanding, of course, the recent devastating earthquakes in Türkiye and Syria,” he…
Read MoreUN human rights chief calls on all nations to abolish death penalty
The biennial panel’s theme is human rights violations relating to the use of the death penalty, in particular with respect to limiting the practice to only the most serious crimes. Promise of the Charter Volker Türk said this is ultimately about the United Nations Charter’s promise of the highest standards of protection of all human…
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