Noon briefing of 27 April 2023

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE NOON BRIEFING BY FARHAN HAQ
DEPUTY SPOKESPERSON FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL ANTÓNIO GUTERRES
THURSDAY, 27 APRIL 2023

SG TRAVEL
A short while ago in Washington, the Secretary-General concluded his meeting with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken.
They discussed the importance of multilateral efforts to address current security challenges, such as the conflict in Sudan and the critical importance for an immediate fully respected cease-fire and the urgent need to alleviate the plight of affected civilians; international engagement in Afghanistan, notably to support the rights of women and girls; and other topics of mutual interest, including the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
The Secretary-General underlined the importance of reforms of international multilateral institutions, notably the United Nations and the Bretton Woods institutions.
The Secretary-General also raised a number of issues related to the Host Country Agreement.
In comments to the press before the meeting, the Secretary-General said that in this troubled world, cooperation between the United States and the United Nations is essential. 
Later today, he will be meeting with Representative Chris Smith, Chairman of Global Health, Global Human Rights and International Organizations.
Yesterday afternoon, he met with a number of members of Congress. The Secretary-General will be back in the office tomorrow.

TRIP ANNOUNCEMENT
The Deputy Secretary-General, Amina Mohammed, is on her way to Nairobi, Kenya, to attend the 2023 Ibrahim Governance Weekend, and to deliver the keynote address at the Leadership Ceremony.
She will attend other high-level events, including a meeting of the Africa Europe Foundation Women Leaders Network.
On Sunday, April 30, she will depart to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, to engage in a high-level strategic dialogue with senior officials of the African Union as part of the outcomes from the 2022 AU-UN Conference.
Ms. Mohammed will return to Nairobi, Kenya, to chair the bi-yearly meeting of the United Nations Sustainable Development Group.
In both Kenya and Ethiopia, the Deputy Secretary-General will meet with senior government officials, the UN country teams and other stakeholders.
And the next Friday, 5 May, the Deputy Secretary-General will proceed to the United Kingdom where she will attend the coronation of King Charles III, on behalf of the Secretary General.
She will be back in New York on 7 May.

SUDAN
The Emergency Relief Coordinator, Martin Griffiths, has allocated $3 million from the Central Emergency Response Fund to urgently respond to the arrival of Sudanese refugees and others in Chad.
The UN and partners are establishing a core team in Port Sudan. It will be responsible for overseeing humanitarian operations in the country, as well as reopening and scaling up operations, including through negotiating humanitarian access.
Shortages of food, water, medicines and fuel continue, especially in Khartoum and surrounding areas, while access to communications and electricity is limited in many parts of the country.
In Khartoum, WHO reports that more than 60 per cent of health facilities are closed and only 16 per cent are operating as normal. The UN partners say that the treatment of nearly 50,000 acutely malnourished children has been disrupted. In West Darfur, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) say that clashes, looting and burning of houses in the southern part of Al-Geneina town led to civilians reportedly being killed and displaced. There are also reports of markets being looted, as well as the premises of humanitarian organizations.
According to UNICEF, at least nine children have reportedly been killed, and more than 50 injured during fighting that erupted on 15 April 2023. The hostilities are also causing displacement and further exposing children to potential grave violations, including recruitment and use by armed groups, as well as sexual violence.

KOSOVO
This morning, Caroline Ziadeh, the Secretary-General’s Special Representative and head of the UN Mission in Kosovo, briefed Security Council members.
She said that recently Kosovo has faced serious challenges as well as an important collective effort to bring Belgrade-Pristina relations nearer to stability and normalisation. She underscored that efforts from both sides will be needed to realize the potential for a positive change in relations given the preceding cycles of tension, provocations and grievances that have occurred.
Ms. Ziadeh also warned that without increased commitment to the mechanism of renewed negotiations, failures of confidence could worsen within Kosovo, with direct consequences for regional stability.

SYRIA
And this afternoon, the Security Council will hold discussions on the situation in Syria.
The UN Special Envoy to Syria, Geir Pederson, will be briefing.

INTERNATIONAL GIRLS IN ICT DAY
Today, we mark the International Girls in ICT Day.
For girls and young women to thrive in science, technology, engineering and mathematics careers, they need to acquire skills to become both ICT users and creators in the digital world. That’s why the theme for this year is “Digital Skills for Life”.

NOON BRIFIENG GUEST
Noon briefing guest is Abdou Dieng, the Acting Resident and Coordinator in Sudan.