AFRICA/CLIMATE
Early this morning, the Secretary-General addressed virtually the Leaders’ Dialogue on the Africa COVID-Climate Emergency, convened by the African Development Bank and the Global Center for Adaption.
In his remarks, he said that as the world confronts a pandemic, a recession and a climate crisis, the United Nations climate conference, COP26, in November, provides a compelling opportunity for Africa to turn ambition into reality.
He reiterated the five actions needed for a breakthrough on adaptation, which include increased funding from G7 members and integrating climate risk policies into investment decisions.
“African countries continue to contribute little to global emissions,” he said, “yet Africa is on the front lines of dramatic climate impacts, from floods to cyclones and drought that can wipe out decades of development gains overnight.”
He also encouraged all international partners to come forward with pledges to support the African Adaptation Acceleration Program. Once again, the Secretary-General urged countries to align their COVID-19 recovery packages with the Sustainable Development Goals and the Paris Agreement.
Lastly, he reiterated the UN’s commitment to working with African governments to secure the support they need to chart a prosperous and a sustainable future.
DEPUTY SECRETARY-GENERAL/E9 DIGITAL LEARNING INITIATIVE
For her part, the Deputy Secretary-General, Amina Mohammed, spoke at the consultation of Ministers of Education of the E9 Digital Learning Initiative in a session entitled “Scaling up Digital Learning to Accelerate Progress Towards SDG4.”
The E9 are Bangladesh, Brazil, China, Egypt, India, Indonesia, Mexico, Nigeria and Pakistan.
This initiative focuses on supporting teachers, investing in skills, and narrowing the digital divide, which are three of the five priorities of the 2020 Global Education Meeting Declaration.
In her remarks, Ms. Mohammed noted that, before COVID-19, access to quality education was already profoundly unequal. Financing gaps were immense and learning was not equipping young people with the skills needed to excel in today’s world.
She said as we look to the future, it is clear that there is no going back to the education we had before the emergency. The Deputy Secretary-General stressed that, if we are to realize the ambition of SDG4, then we need to pursue pandemic recovery efforts that transform education.
MYANMAR
On Myanmar, our colleagues on the ground today say they remain deeply concerned about the impact that the continuing violence is having on the country’s health and education systems.
Since the 1 February, there have been at least 28 attacks against hospitals and health personnel and seven attacks against schools and school personnel.
Attacks against health volunteers and against ambulances are preventing lifesaving help from reaching civilians wounded by security forces.
MALI
A quick update from Mali – our colleagues on the ground tell us that the 34 peacekeepers wounded in Friday’s attack in Aguelhok continue to receive medical treatment.
Nine of the 34 were evacuated to Dakar, in Senegal, where they are currently being treated for serious injuries in hospital.
MALI/SECURITY COUNCIL
Speaking at the Security Council this morning in a prescheduled meeting, the Head of Peace Operations, Jean-Pierre Lacroix, said that Friday’s attack on the Mission’s camp in Mali was a reminder of the challenges facing the country and the broader Sahel region.
This tragedy, he added, is also an illustration of the bravery and determination of the UN peacekeepers to support the Malian population. The Chadian peacekeepers’ heroic defense inflicted a serious setback on the attackers, Mr. Lacroix said.
He reiterated the Secretary-General’s call on all those concerned to scale up and strengthen the international community’s response to the issue of terrorism and violent extremism in the Sahel region. He also called on Mali’s transitional government to devise a comprehensive approach to improve the security situation.
Turning to the country’s political situation, Mr. Lacroix welcomed recent progress, but also called on all concerned to accelerate the pace of reforms. Any sustainable improvement of the security situation in Mali is predicated, in no small part, on the success of the current political transition, he said.
SOUTH SUDAN
From South Sudan, as you know, the Secretary-General’s Special Representative, David Shearer, will soon leave his position after four years in the country. He will be succeeded by Nicholas Haysom.
He expressed his admiration for the South Sudanese people, who he called tough, resilient, and remarkably patient.
Mr. Shearer urged the people and the leaders of South Sudan to remain united and energized to push the peace process forward to fully implement the revitalized agreement and hold elections so that communities across South Sudan can finally enjoy true peace and prosperity.
He noted that, while important progress has been made, the peace process remains fragile and there is still much to be done, including picking up the pace on constitution-making, transitional justice, and economic reform. He said that courageous decisions need to be made to unify the armed forces of all sides.
SUDAN
In Sudan, the Secretary-General’s Special Representative for the country, Volker Perthes, today welcomed the decision by the country’s Security and Defence Council to declare a State of Emergency to contain the situation in West Darfur.
Our humanitarian colleagues say that 56 people were killed in recent clashes between the Massalit and Arab communities in West Darfur’s capital of Ag Geneina.
In a statement, Mr. Perthes urged Government security forces to prevent further violence and restore order in the interest of all civilians. He also called on the Government to ensure safety and access to humanitarian organizations providing services to all those affected and to investigate and hold accountable those responsible for the violence.
Due to the violence, the delivery of aid to West Darfur has been suspended and humanitarian flights have been cancelled, preventing aid from reaching 700,000 human beings.
Humanitarian partners have been providing food, health, sanitation and protection services to people in and around Ag Geneina.
We and our partners are appealing for $1.9 billion to help 8.9 million vulnerable people in Sudan, including in Darfur, in 2021. To date, only 7 per cent of the funding has been received.
DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF THE CONGO
Moving onto the Democratic Republic of the Congo, according to our partners at the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) and the World Food Programme (WFP) in their latest food security analysis for the DRC, one in three people is suffering from acute hunger.
This means that an estimated 27.3 million people are affected by acute food insecurity, including nearly seven million people grappling with emergency levels of acute hunger.
This is a record high, the agencies said, adding that the country is home to the highest number of people in urgent need of food security assistance in the world.
Conflict remains a key cause of hunger, but other factors such as the impact of the pandemic, are compounding the crisis. The most affected populations are mainly the displaced, refugees, returnees, host families, as well as female-headed households.
FAO and WFP are urgently calling for urgent intervention to scale up support to Congolese people in crisis areas. In addition to their emergency operations, the agencies are investing in resilience-building projects that support community farming to boost yields, reduce losses and spur access to markets.
MOZAMBIQUE
Going south to Mozambique: Today, the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) said that it continues to work around the clock to assist thousands of people in Cabo Delgado province. A recent attack by insurgents on the coastal town of Palma has forced at least 11,000 people to leave their homes, with thousands more reportedly trapped in the area.
UNHCR says its teams in Pemba have received worrying reports that more than 1,000 displaced people were prevented from crossing the border into Tanzania. They are following up on these reports and have called on Mozambique’s neighbours to provide access to territory and to asylum procedures for people escaping violence and seeking protection.
The agency, with its partners, has distributed relief items, including blankets and sleeping mats.
WFP, for its part, said today said that the UN agencies were still struggling to access Palma. Both food assistance and evacuation flights remained suspended owing to the deteriorating security situation. We continue to appeal for access to the affected area and is working to pre-position food in the neighbouring districts of Montepuez and Mueda.
WFP warned that hunger is continuing to rise in Palma as many people’s livelihoods have been interrupted by the fighting. Some of those who arrived in Pemba from Palma have told WFP that they have not eaten for weeks.
COVAX
Moving onto our regular COVAX update, today from Azerbaijan, Barbados and Timor-Leste, which have all received COVID-19 vaccines doses with the help of UN teams on the ground:
This morning, more than 33,000 doses of the COVID-19 vaccine landed in Barbados.
Yesterday, Timor-Leste received 24,000 doses, with several more batches on the way. They will target 20 per cent of the population. The UN Resident Coordinator, Roy Trivedy, said that this is a historic moment, noting that this first shipment is critical for ensuring first responders are not left behind in the vaccinations.
On Sunday, Azerbaijan received 84,000 doses, with more on the way, with support of the UN and our partners.
VACCINES
The head of UNICEF, Henrietta Fore, stressed today that there is not enough COVID-19 vaccine supply to meet demand, with available supplies concentrated in the hands of too few.
She warned that, with some countries having an oversupply and others having none at all, this threatens all of us – the virus and the mutations will win.
Ms. Fore called for speed and simplicity to remove barriers to the acquisition, manufacture and distribution of vaccines globally.
INTERNATIONAL DAY OF SPORT FOR DEVELOPMENT AND PEACE
Lastly, today is International Day of Sport for Development and Peace. In a message for the Day, the Secretary-General notes that sport is one of the great human pursuits – a model of teamwork, a platform for individual excellence and a driver of economic growth for all of society.
The Secretary-General points out that the COVID-19 pandemic has brought new challenges to the world of sports. He says that workers, fans and athletes have felt the pain of absence, of lost revenue and of dreams deferred.
The Secretary-General notes that, as vaccines spread hope and spectators begin to return to arenas, the world of sport has crucial contributions to make in forging a safe and sustainable recovery. He adds that the UN looks forward to continuing to work with sportspeople and organizations around the world to advance climate action and to promote peace, human rights and sustainable development.
