17 October 2018 — The world’s population is set to grow by 2.2 billion between now and 2050, the UN said on Wednesday, and more than half of that growth - 1.3 billion - is likely to be in sub-Saharan Africa, where women’s rights are hampered by limited access to healthcare and education, along with “entrenched gender discrimination”.
17 October 2018 — Highlighting that for the United Nations, eliminating poverty in all its forms remains one of the greatest global challenges and priorities, UN Secretary-General António Guterres stressed the fundamental connection between eradicating poverty and upholding equal rights for all.
16 October 2018 — “In our world of plenty, one person in nine does not have enough to eat”, said United Nations chief António Guterres on Tuesday, marking World Food Day. With this year’s theme, “our actions are our future”, the UN and its partners, held events and launched information campaigns worldwide, to amplify one message: achieving zero hunger by 2030 is possible, provided we “join forces”.
16 October 2018 — The struggle over natural resources often lies at the heart of violent conflicts, fuelling strife in many parts of the world, United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres said on Tuesday, urging governments and everyone with a stake in valuable resources, to think hard about how they are managed and exploited.
15 October 2018 — Foreign direct investment (FDI) has dropped 40 per cent year-on-year so far, the UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) said on Monday, but the $470 million decline is happening mainly in wealthy, industrialized nations, especially in North America and Western Europe.
15 October 2018 — Agricultural policies should work to maximize the contributions of rural migration to economic and social development, while minimizing the costs, says a major new report released on Monday by the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).
13 October 2018 — Checking global warming and preventing some of the worst-case scenarios of runaway climate change “is still possible,” the United Nations Secretary-General said on Saturday, urging greater action and ambitions.
13 October 2018 — United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres has called for a surge in investment, long-term financing and global stability to overcome the obstacles to inclusive, resilient and environmentally sustainable global growth.
Women account for a substantial proportion of the agricultural labour force, including informal work, and perform the bulk of unpaid care and domestic work within families and households in rural areas. They make significant contributions to agricultural production, food security and nutrition, land and natural resource management, and building climate resilience. This year’s theme, “Sustainable infrastructure, services and social protection for gender equality and the empowerment of rural women and girls,” places empowerment of rural women at the heart of fulfilling the vision of the Sustainable Development Goals.
This year marks the 70th anniversary of the proclamation of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The theme of the Day is “Coming together with those furthest behind to build an inclusive world of universal respect for human rights and dignity.” It is important to recall the fundamental connection between extreme poverty and human rights. The 2018 global Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI) reveals how the human rights of poor people around the world are often abused or neglected. It identifies how people are being left behind across three key dimensions: health, education and living standards.
The Africa Dialogue Series (ADS 2018), which replaces the “Africa Week” held in previous years, will provide a platform to explore and promote critical debates operationalizing the peace, security, human rights, humanitarian and development nexus in Africa. In this context, the Series is structured to be highly interactive and inclusive of a wide range of participants, including Member States, high-level representatives of African regional and subregional organizations, and the United Nations system, as well as the private sector, civil society, academia, think tanks, the Diaspora and other key stakeholders.
Her Majesty Queen Máxima of the Netherlands is the UN Secretary-General’s Special Advocate for Inclusive Finance for Development. As Special Advocate, Queen Máxima champions universal access to affordable, effective, and safe financial services for the poor. In a recent interview with BBC World News, she says innovative technology is a “game-changer in financial inclusion,” particularly among rural dwellers and the poor, who are also disproportionally excluded from the formal financial sector. She has collaborated with the Better than Cash Alliance, UNCDF and the World Bank on a new compendium Igniting SDG Progress Through Digital Financial Inclusion.
World Food Day is celebrated on 16 October. This year's theme is "Our Actions are our Future. A #ZeroHunger world by 2030 is possible." FAO is calling on children and teens all over the world, from age 5 to 19, to use their imagination and create a poster that illustrates their idea of Zero Hunger. In Sowing the Seeds of Change, FAO has produced four new guides that explain the challenges facing us as we strive for a world with zero hunger. They have been developed and written specifically for tomorrow’s adults so that they can not only study the issues but turn their own ideas into actions for a better future.
