The Security Council decided today to extend, until 15 July 2022, the mandate of the United Nations Mission to support the Hudaydah Agreement (UNMHA) established on 16 January 2019 following intra-Yemeni peace consultations held in Stockholm, Sweden.
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) cited a tight window for farmers in hunger-stricken northern Ethiopia to get crops in the ground ahead of upcoming seasonal rains. It appealed for $30 million in urgent support, noting that farmers have seen seeds and animals looted and credit lines disappear.
The Ministerial Forums for the High-Level Dialogue on Energy ended today, with commitments announced by India’s major power supplier, NTPC; Power Africa pledging to the electrification of more health centres; and Student Energy aiming to mobilize $150 million to train 35,000 young energy leaders in 100 countries.
A new World Health Organization (WHO) report calls for immediate, binding action to protect children, adolescents and expectant mothers at risk from exposure to toxins in discarded electrical or electronic devices, or e-waste. As many as 12.9 million women and some 18 million young people work in the informal waste sector.
Intensive diplomatic efforts by the United Nations and other partners to broker a ceasefire and restart a political process in Yemen have failed to produce tangible progress, the United Nations mediator for that country said today, describing a five-year dearth of direct talks between warring parties as “a shocker”.
United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet warned today that a further escalation in violence is unfolding across Myanmar, saying there appear to be no efforts towards de-escalation, but rather a build-up of troops in key areas, contrary to commitments the military made to end the violence.
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees said it continues to receive reports of systematic forced return of Mozambican families from the United Republic of Tanzania. The Agency urged Mozambique’s neighbours to respect access to asylum for those fleeing widespread armed conflict in the northern part of the country.
Political and logistical gridlock in assessing the risk of an oil spill or explosion in the Red Sea are increasing the likelihood of a new humanitarian and environmental crisis in Yemen, and beyond, the Security Council heard today from high-level officials reporting on the FSO Safer.
The Federal Government of Somalia, in consultation with the United Nations, declared a drought on 25 April, with moderate to severe drought conditions impacting 80 per cent of the country. Seasonal rains then began in late April and early May, triggering flash flooding that impacted 400,000 people, of whom 101,300 were displaced.
UNICEF announced today it has signed a long-term agreement with Moderna to supply vaccine for the COVAX facility. Through the agreement, the agency and its partners will have access to up to 34 million doses for some 92 countries and territories in 2021. This is the fifth vaccine-supply agreement it has signed.
The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) is calling for more international support for the people of Afghanistan amid continued violence that has internally displaced over 100,000 people so far this year. UNHCR’s $123.5 million humanitarian appeal for 2021 is only 24 per cent funded.
Despite a decline in the numbers of migrants arriving in Europe via the central Mediterranean route in recent years, hundreds — including at least 632 so far in 2021 — continue to die, finds a new report of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Office, which cites risks created by policy decisions.
In the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the eruption of Mount Nyiragongo near Gomas has caused 13 deaths and destroyed the homes of 5,000 people, humanitarian colleagues report. The United Nations is assisting with water, shelter, health and family reunification, and peacekeepers are set to clear the main roads into Goma.
Humanitarian officials in Somalia say a “double climate disaster”, marked by drought followed by torrential rains, has killed at least 25 people in two weeks. Warning that 2.7 million people in the country are already food insecure, they note that the Humanitarian Response Plan is currently only 19 per cent funded.
Relentless military escalation by Ansar Allah in Yemen’s northern Marib region, along with import restrictions at Hudaydah, the closure of Sana’a International Airport and the absence of a political process are depriving people of hope that an end to the conflict is possible, the chief United Nations mediator told the Security Council today, calling on parties to make the concessions needed to conclude a peace deal.
The Organization released today $65 million for the humanitarian response in Ethiopia, comprising $45 million from the United Nations-managed Ethiopia Humanitarian Fund and $20 million from the Central Emergency Response Fund, as the security situation in Tigray remains volatile.
An annual report released by the Global Network against Food Crises warns that the number of people facing acute food insecurity and needing urgent life- and livelihood-saving assistance hit a five-year high in 2020 in countries beset by food crises.
The United Nations team in Madagascar is helping authorities to address record-high food insecurity and surging severe acute malnutrition caused by droughts, sandstorms and caterpillar plagues in the south of the island. Authorities and the United Nations launched a flash appeal in January for nearly $76 million.
The Democratic Republic of the Congo, with support from the World Health Organization and other partners, has launched a yellow fever vaccination campaign targeting more than 16.3 million people in the country, the first such drive against the disease in Africa this year.
The World Food Programme (WFP) reached an agreement with Venezuela to begin operations to serve nutritious meals to the most vulnerable children, particularly in pre-primary and special education schools, reaching up to 185,000 children by year-end. WFP aims to provide daily meals to 1.5 million students by the end of the 2022-2023 school year.
