UN News stories

17 stories found over the past 45 days
In Mozambique, Ban calls for push to achieve Millennium Development Goals

20 May 2013 – Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today emphasized the importance of countries stepping up their efforts to achieve the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) before their 2015 deadline and stressed developing countries like Mozambique have the most to benefit from accelerated action.

The latest buzz: eating insects can help tackle food insecurity, says FAO

13 May 2013 – While insects can be slimy, cringe-inducing creatures, often squashed on sight by humans, a new book released today by the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) says beetles, wasps and caterpillars are also an unexplored nutrition source that can help address global food insecurity.

UN regional forum urges greater cooperation among Asia-Pacific governments

02 May 2013 – Wrapping up a development policy forum in Thailand, the head of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission in Asia-Pacific (ESCAP) today called for greater economic integration and cooperation in the region to counter the growing threat posted by severe natural disasters and economic shocks.

Amid hunger strike, UN rights experts urge US to close down Guantánamo detention facility

01 May 2013 – With some 100 prisoners at the Guantánamo Naval Base on a hunger strike, a group of United Nations independent human rights experts today reiterated their calls on the United States to shut down the detention centre.

Israeli and Palestinian leaders must move beyond words and take concrete action on final status issues, Ban tells UN meeting

29 April 2013 – Welcoming renewed international engagement in the Middle East peace process, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today said that building on that support required Israeli and Palestinian political leaders to “move beyond words” and tackle final status issues in a constructive spirit.

UN launches initiative to achieve ‘zero hunger’ in Asia and the Pacific

29 April 2013 – The United Nations today launched the Zero Hunger Challenge in Asia and the Pacific, calling on governments, farmers, scientists, business, civil society and consumers to work together to end hunger in the region where the majority of the world’s undernourished people live.

Burundi: UN experts warn of negative consequences of coffee privatization

18 April 2013 – The World Bank-led privatization of the coffee industry in Burundi that began in 2008 is having a negative impact on farmers, two United Nations independent experts warned today, calling for the suspension of the policy pending an assessment based on human rights.

FORESTS: Amazon treaty body hailed as model for regional conservation efforts

18 April 2013 – An eight-member grouping of countries working to ensure sustainable development and improve the lives of local communities in South America’s Amazon – home to the world’s largest tropical rainforest – has been hailed as a model for regional cooperation at the tenth session of the United Nations Forum on Forests (UNFF10).

Ahead of talks with World Bank, Ban briefs press at UN Headquarters

17 April 2013 – Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon briefed correspondents in New York today on a range of issues before beginning two days of top-level meetings in Washington tomorrow aimed at stepping up cooperation between the United Nations and the World Bank, the institution dedicated to providing financial and technical aid to developing countries around the world.

Mali: UN food agency ‘urgently working’ to aid communities despite insecurity

16 April 2013 – The continuing conflict in Mali combined with the country’s impending “lean season” is threatening to aggravate hunger in the Sahelian nation, the United Nations food aid agency warned today, adding that it was “urgently working” with partner organizations to help affected families, particularly in the country’s North.