Thursday,
April 22, 2010

AFGHANISTAN BOARD OF INQUIRY REPORT HAS BEEN FINALIZED

• The Board of Inquiry
  report on the 28 October 2009 attack on the UN guest house in Kabul has
  been finalized. The relevant findings of the report are being presented
  to the Afghan authorities, both here in New York and in
  
  Afghanistan, and other relevant stakeholders will likewise be
  informed.
   

• We are also trying to
  arrange a briefing with a senior UN official as soon as possible, once
  all the stakeholders have been informed.

SECRETARY-GENERAL MARKS 40^TH ANNIVERSARY OF EARTH DAY IN TIMES
SQUARE

• The Secretary-General participated in a special
  commemoration of the 40th anniversary of Earth Day in Times Square.
   

• In his remarks, he said that Earth Day has helped
  create a sense of shared responsibility for our environment and our one
  and only home. He added that we must learn to live in balance with the
  planet that sustains us and that there is a better, cleaner, greener,
  healthier way to do things.
   

• The Secretary-General is also marking International
  Mother Earth Day, which is celebrated today by the UN. In a
  
  message, he says that, too often, we have drawn on nature’s capital
  without putting back.  He adds that we are now beginning to see the
  consequences of failing to safeguard our investment.
   

• The Secretary-General says that without a
  sustainable environmental base, we will have little hope of attaining
  our objectives for reducing poverty and hunger and improving health and
  human well-being.

SECRETARY-GENERAL CONCERNED ABOUT STANDOFF IN
THAILAND

• Asked about letters from the “red shirt”
  movement in Thailand, the Spokesperson confirmed that two letters were
  delivered by protesters to the UN offices in Bangkok today. He said that
  the United Nations had no immediate response.
   

• However, Nesirky said,
  the Secretary-General is very concerned about the continuing standoff
  and tensions in Thailand, and the potential for this to escalate.  He
  appeals to both the protesters and the Thai authorities to avoid further
  violence and loss of life and to work to resolve the situation
  peacefully, through dialogue.  This is a moment requiring restraint on
  all sides.

D.R. CONGO:
U.N. ANNOUNCES REINFORCEMENT OF TROOPS IN EQUATEUR PROVINCE

• The Special Representative of the Secretary-General
  for the
  
  Democratic Republic of the Congo, Alan Doss, on Wednesday visited
  the town of Mbandaka, in the Equateur Province.
   

• While there, Doss announced a reinforcement of UN
  troops in the region. He said that the strengthening of the UN military
  and police force, working with their Congolese counterparts, will help
  to bring calm and security to the population.
   

• During the visit, Doss also met with various
  members of the provincial government and UN military and humanitarian
  staff.

NEW WEBSITE
WILL TRACK AID PLEDGES MADE TO HAITI

• A new online portal has been launched to promote
  the efficient use of the more than $9 billion in aid pledged to Haiti,
  at the donors’ conference on 31 March.
   

• The initiative is part of the United Nations
  Development Programme's (UNDP)
  support to the Haitian Government and partners to address the challenges
  linked to the management of external aid. UNDP says that the portal will
  help hold donors to their promises and ensure transparency and
  accountability of the use of their funds.
   

• The system, which is also supported by the United
  Nations Office of the Special Envoy for Haiti, tracks the money from
  pledge to impact and will include contributions and support from NGOs
  and the private sector. The information is available in French and
  English at
  
  www.refondation.ht
   

• Asked about the amount of money that is being given
  to personnel of the UN peacekeeping mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH),
  the Spokesperson said that questioning the amount that is spent on
  peacekeeping personnel is like saying that a country’s firefighting
  department shouldn’t spend its budget on firefighters. He noted that UN
  operations go through transparent budgetary processes.
   

• Asked about a boat that is housing UN Mission
  personnel, the Spokesperson said that the World Food Programme has
  explained how it issued tenders for that boat.

U.N.
ENVIRONMENT PROGRAMME ANNOUNCES 2010 CHAMPIONS OF THE EARTH AWARDS

• The UN Environment Programme (UNEP)
  
  announced today the six winners of the 2010 Champions of the Earth
  Awards -- the United Nations’ highest awards for environmental
  leadership. The awards recognize individuals who embody commitment and
  vision towards environmental leadership through their action and their
  influence.
   

• The winners are: Bharrat Jagdeo, President of
  Guyana and passionate forestry and ecosystem infrastructure proponent;
  Mohamed Nasheed, President of Maldives and international climate change
  campaigner; Prince Mostapha Zaher, Afghanistan’s Director-General of the
  National Environmental Protection Agency and avid sustainability
  advocate; Dr. Taro Takahashi, Japanese earth scientist and pioneer of
  research into how the oceans cycle carbon; Zhou Xun, Chinese actress and
  popular green life-style guru; and Vinod Khosla, American venture
  capitalist, green energy entrepreneur and co-founder of Sun
  Microsystems.

OTHER
ANNOUNCEMENTS

SECURITY COUNCIL HOLDS DEBATE ON WORKING METHODS:
The

Security Council today is holding an open debate to discuss its working
methods. There are 53 speakers inscribed.

U.N. LAUNCHES NEW CAREERS PORTAL: The UN is
launching today a new human resources system called

Inspira, an IT platform where job openings in the Secretariat will be
posted.  Job openings for the field will be available at a later date. The
new website profiles 150 staff members and shows what the Organization does,
where it works, what it looks for in staff and what it offers as an
employer. 

*** The guest at the Noon Briefing was John Ging,
Director of UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA)
Operations in Gaza.