The “Green Revolution” is believed to have saved millions of lives in India during the 20th century, introducing new scientific techniques that led to a surge in yields, providing food and livelihoods. But the use of synthetic fertilisers and pesticides came at a huge cost, both to the environment and...
“Industrial development is critical to strengthening economies, fighting poverty, and creating jobs and prosperity,” declared UN Secretary-General António Guterres in his message to the event, delivered by the senior UN official in Saudia Arabia, Mohamed El-Zarkani. Lifting the burden of poverty Delegates from governments, private sector and civil society have...
The special report on health and climate change, published by the UN World Health Organization (WHO) and the Brazilian Government, warns that one in 12 hospitals could face climate-related shutdowns. It calls for urgent action to protect health systems in a rapidly warming world. This follows Thursday’s launch of the...
This includes more than 1.12 billion people living in slums or informal settlements. An additional 300 million face absolute homelessness, lacking any form of stable shelter, UN-Habitat estimates. Living without The crisis is particularly acute in rapidly urbanising regions such as Africa and the Asia-Pacific. As cities grow, housing development...
“We can’t lose sight of the forest because we’re tussling over individual trees,” said Simon Stiell, urging delegates to wrap up “less contentious issues” as early as possible this week, so there is enough time for the major political decisions. COP29 opened in the Azerbaijan capital this past Monday with...
This waterway, a silent witness to the turmoil of the municipality of Mapiripán, has seen it all – the wildlife trafficking, the coca harvests that fuelled conflict, the human bodies left behind amid a heinous massacre and the relentless erosion of the rainforest it once nourished. Now, Sandra hopes it...
What is the World Urban Forum? The World Urban Forum (WUF), a major UN conference on sustainable urban development, was set up in 2001 to address global urbanisation, one of the most pressing issues facing the world today. Since then, a forum has been held every two years and this...
Everyone has a right to food. World Food Day, marked annually on 16 October, is being celebrated in more than 150 countries and over 50 languages. Stay tuned throughout the day as we take you to Rome for the main event at 10am local time at the headquarters of the...
Speaking at the closing of the Global Refugee Forum, the Secretary-General said that protection and help for these most vulnerable of people, was “an obligation shared by all of humanity”. He was speaking after three days of intensive activity geared to finding solutions and building partnerships, which saw pledges from multiple...
And a busy stage it was. The big week of UNGA’s 78th session was triple focused on health, climate change, and turbocharging the race midway to realizing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). While world leaders’ report cards on this global stage have traditionally headlined past UNGA sessions, recent years have...
Those were some of the takeaways from a high-level special event held on the sidelines of the UN Food Systems Summit +2 Stocktaking Moment on Africa’s food sovereignty and resilience, organized by the Interdepartmental Task Force on African Affairs (IDTFAA). Representatives from governments, the UN, the African Union and others, exchanged views...
António Guterres expressed “deep solidarity” with all of those who have become victims of the full-scale Russian invasion of February last year. Violation of the Charter “The position of the United Nations, which I have consistently expressed, is crystal clear: Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is a violation of the UN...
