“This year marks the 20th anniversary of the Indian Ocean Tsunami – one of the deadliest disasters in recent history. More than 230,000 people lost their lives,” Mr. Guterres said in his message for the day. The Secretary General highlighted that approximately 700 million people worldwide remain at risk from tsunamis,...
These pressing issues necessitate urgent action and World Cities Day, celebrated on October 31, offers a platform to reflect on the unprecedented challenges that they face. Designated by the United Nations General Assembly through resolution 68/239, it aims to elevate the international community’s focus to promote sustainable development and tackle the...
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...
In a message marking Sunday’s International Day for Disaster Risk Reduction, António Guterres highlighted the severe impact of disasters on children. “When disasters strike, they unleash enormous devastation on individuals, societies and economies. The ripple effects of death, destruction and displacement are unimaginable. Today, disasters are often supercharged by the...
In a new alert, UNRWA highlighted how Gazans’ shelters have become a target for insects and rodents after more than 11 months of war – echoing deep concerns among humanitarians about the lack of basic hygiene items that have left families unprotected from communicable diseases. Echoing those warnings, top independent...
“Yet, out of millions of publications each year, fewer than five per cent are made available in accessible formats for visually impaired persons in developing countries,” he added. The global superstar, who lost his sight shortly after birth, was designated as a Messenger of Peace in 2009 with a focus...
Four people, including two girls under the age of 10, were killed in the incident, which occured in the Croix de Bouquet district. Four other family members were kidnapped. ‘Unprecedented’ escalation in crime Similar attacks occurred in the same neighbourhood a week ago, said Bruno Maes, UNICEF Representative in Haiti,...
The world must prepare for the next pandemic and act on lessons learned from COVID-19, UN Secretary-General António Guterres said in a message on Wednesday to mark the International Day of Epidemic Preparedness....
That’s according to Izumi Nakamitsu, High Representative for Disarmament Affairs, who briefed the Security Council on Friday, quoting the latest figures available. “This is more than 700 people a day, or one person dying from small arms every two minutes”, she said. She added that “small arms and light weapons...
This year’s commemoration pays tribute to the people and organizations that have been on the frontlines of the disease – from fighting stigma and discrimination, to advocating for access to affordable interventions and community-led services. They “have left an indelible mark on the world with their activism,” said WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. ...
The annual observation on 29 November marks the day in 1947 that the UN General Assembly adopted a resolution on partitioning Palestine into two independent States, one Arab and one Jewish. The 1948 displacement of Palestinians from land that became Israel – known as the Nakba (“catastrophe” in Arabic) –...
And as the UN emergency relief coordination office, OCHA, reported that people in the south were queuing for kilometres to obtain cooking gas and resorting to burning window frames and doors for cooking, it added that the four-day humanitarian pause agreed upon by Israel and Hamas has been “largely maintained”. Under...