Until fighting stops and development takes root, communities and entire regions will continue to face hunger, United Nations Secretary-GeneralAntónio Guterres told the Security Council on Thursday, underscoring the link between conflict and famine.
Despite Morocco’s many legal advances in women’s rights, its lack of effective implementation and the existence of legislative loopholes undermines its reputation as an open, tolerant, and progressive country. In recent months, Morocco’s human rights record has come under the scrutiny of international organizations, notably the UN Human Rights Council latest UPR. Morocco’s questionable human rights—and specifically, women’s rights—abuses are a liability to its role as a US ally, a relationship that offers trade, investment, military, and diplomatic benefits to the nation.
Women in the Middle East and North Africa are better educated than ever before, but legal and social barriers are hampering their access to jobs and careers, costing the region billions of dollars a year, experts said Wednesday.
Source: GlobalVoices
Despite a 50 per cent drop in AIDS-related deaths since the peak of the epidemic, new HIV infection declines among adults are lagging, prompting the United Nations to launch a 10-point plan that lays out immediate, concrete steps countries can take to accelerate progress.
Source: UN Women
Remarks by UN Under-Secretary-General and Executive Director of UN Women, Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, for the inaugural Annual Sonke Lecture at Johannesburg, South Africa on 2 October, 2017
Source: UN News Center
A nutrition crisis, exacerbated by continuing violence, instability and displacement, is threatening the lives and futures of thousands of children in Mali, the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) warned today.
The United Nations health agency is rapidly scaling up its response to a plague outbreak in Madagascar that has spread to the capital and port towns, infecting more than 100 people in just a few weeks.
Voicing concern over tensions in Cameroon, the United Nations human rights wing has urged the Government and dissatisfied groups to engage in a meaningful political dialogue to fully address long standing grievances.
Rape and sexual slavery have been used as weapons of war across Central Africa Republic, with armed groups carrying out brutal attacks with impunity, human rights campaigners have warned.
“Peace is not a one-day affair or event, it requires our collective effort,” said South Sudan’s Vice President, General Taban Deng Gai, while addressing the General Assembly at the UN.
Source:UN Women
Opening Remarks by UN Under-Secretary-General and Executive Director of UN Women, Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, at the plenary session of the Five Days of Violence Prevention Conference at Johannesburg, South Africa
Source: The New Yorker
The Mbeubeuss landfill, on the outskirts of the Senegalese capital, Dakar, feels almost volcanic to visitors. Mountainous piles of waste encircle wide craters, where trash fires spew smoke and spit ash into the sky. The odor is nauseating: decaying foods and clothes, burnt plastic and tires. Sporadically, the scent of decomposing human flesh emerges from the fetor.
3 October 2017 – United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres today appointed Natalia Kanem of Panama to head the UN’s women’s health agency.
In a legal first for Botswana, the country’s High Court has ruled that a transgender man should be allowed to hold official documents that reflect his gender identity. The judgment is a huge victory for transgender people in Botswana, who face considerable challenges when their gender identity is not reflected in official papers.
Thirty three people have been arrested by the Egyptian authorities as part of a crackdown on gays after a rainbow flag was raised at a recent concert, according to activists and rights group, Reuters reported yesterday.
So where’s the sexual and reproductive health in emergency response?
Millions of people around the world have been displaced from their homes this year. They are running from natural disasters – hurricanes, mudslides, floods, wildfires, drought – and some that are at least partially man-made – violence, famine, epidemics. As theses crises continue to increase in frequency and severity, we must be prepared.When an emergency occurs, aid agencies spring into action, providing clean water, food, and temporary shelter to those who are affected. Some may also provide urgent medical care, treating physical injuries caused by the disaster. These efforts are obviously critical, and must continue – but they are not enough.
Source: AllAfrica
The Democratic Republic of the Congo's Personal Representative on Sexual Violence and Child Recruitment, Madam Jeanine Mabunda, launched the Principles for Global Action to tackle the stigma of sexual violence in conflict at the 72nd United Nations General Assembly in New York, at a program organized by the UK's Foreign and Commonwealth Office, Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict Initiative. "This launch gives us confidence that the world is stepping up to tackle these issues and we stand in solidarity with everyone here today," Madam Mabunda said.
Source: UN News Center
With tens of millions of human trafficking victims worldwide, “now is the time to stand together and stamp out this abominable practice,” Secretary-GeneralAntónio Guterres today told a high-level meeting at which Member States adopted a political Declaration reaffirming their commitment to implement a United Nations action plan to end the scourge.