HIGHLIGHTS OF THE NOON BRIEFING BY FARHAN HAQ,
DEPUTY SPOKESMAN FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL ANTÓNIO GUTERRES
MONDAY, 11 SEPTEMBER 2023
MOROCCO
In a statement issued over the weekend the Secretary-General said that he was profoundly saddened to learn of the earthquake that hit Morocco which claimed many lives.
The Secretary-General expresses his solidarity with the government and people of Morocco in these difficult times. He addresses his most sincere condolences to the families of the victims and wishes a speedy recovery to the injured.
And the UN reiterates its readiness to assist the government of Morocco in its efforts to assist the impacted population.
The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) says that, as of today, according to national authorities, some 2,500 people have lost their lives and some 2,500 have been injured, the vast majority in Al-Haouz and Taroudant provinces.
Road blockages and difficult geographic conditions have made it challenging to conduct search-and-rescue interventions. Many people, fearing additional aftershocks, have sought refuge outdoors.
Moroccan authorities are leading the response efforts and have activated national rescue-and-response mechanisms. Civil protection units have been deployed to increase stocks in blood banks and ensure the supply of vital resources, including water, food, tents and blankets to affected areas. Moroccan Red Crescent teams continue to respond on the ground, providing first aid, psychosocial support and helping transport the injured to hospitals.
We continue to be in close communication with the authorities to offer our support in assessment, coordination, and response to the situation.
WESTERN SAHARA
The Personal Envoy of the Secretary-General for Western Sahara, Staffan de Mistura, was in Rabat on 8 September, where he had a useful meeting with Foreign Minister Nasser Bourita of Morocco about the Western Sahara political process.
Mr. de Mistura has conveyed his condolences to the Moroccan authorities following the earthquake that struck parts of the country.
G-20
The Secretary-General will be in the office shortly after having arrived from New Delhi where, over the weekend, he attended the annual G-20 meeting.
The Secretary-General participated in a number of the sessions with other world leaders for discussions on climate, development and technology to name a few.
As a reminder, the Secretary-General will be holding his traditional pre-General Assembly press conference on Wednesday.
On Thursday, as he’s already told you, he’ll be heading to Cuba for the G77+China summit and will return from that trip on Friday evening.
CLIMATE
The Secretary-General welcomes and is very encouraged by the announcement by the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Rishi Sunak, that his country will contribute $2 billion to the Green Climate Fund replenishment.
This announcement comes after the important contributions made first by Germany as well as Canada, Denmark, Austria, Monaco and the Republic of Korea.
The United Kingdom is only the third G7 country to have announced a contribution to the fund’s second replenishment.
The Secretary-General calls on all other G7 members, developed countries and other donors to make their announcements well before the October replenishment conference. He hopes that other countries that have the capacity contribute to the Green Climate Fund which is vital to the fight against climate change and is helping the world’s most vulnerable people cope with its impacts.
CHILE
In his message on the commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the Coup d'État in Chile, which happened on 11 September 1973, the Secretary-General said that “today, we pay tribute to the victims of that dark period and to all those who have worked tirelessly to heal the wounds and build a more inclusive and just society.”
The Secretary-General added that he was deeply moved by the coup and the death of Salvador Allende, seven months before the Carnation Revolution, and by the stories of persecuted Chilean refugees that he met during his time as High Commissioner for Refugees.
“Today's strong Chilean democracy gives us hope that humanity, united in its diversity, can solve any global challenge,” he said.
TRIP ANNOUNCEMENT/ JEAN-PIERRE LACROIX
The Under-Secretary-General for Peace Operations, Jean-Pierre Lacroix, will travel to Buenos Aires, Argentina, from 11-12 September to attend the second Latin American and Caribbean Conference on UN Peacekeeping Operations.
The conference brings together Defense Ministers from across the region to bolster cooperation and support for peacekeeping operations and to advance a regional cooperation network that was created last year at the first conference in Lima, Peru.
While in Buenos Aires, Mr. Lacroix will meet with senior Argentinian officials and will also hold bilateral meetings with regional delegates to update them on peacekeeping priorities and challenges.
LEBANON
The UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) continues to respond, alongside its partners, to the urgent humanitarian needs in Ein El Hilweh camp in Lebanon.
In a statement issued yesterday, UNRWA confirmed that shelters in schools and other facilities were opened to accommodate over 750 displaced people as fighting and destruction of homes and facilities continues across the camp.
UNRWA is currently exploring alternatives to accommodate children from Ein El Hilweh camp, so they can start the school year with their peers on 2 October and do not miss out on their right to education.
UNRWA calls on all parties and those with influence over them to stop the violence.
SYRIA
From north-west Syria, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) says that continued hostilities, including shelling, have displaced some 5,300 families – which is more than 26,500 people – between the 1st and 9th of September.
Clashes in north-eastern Aleppo, particularly in villages along the frontline, forced nearly 4,600 families from their homes.
There are reports of overcrowding in camps and villages, with some families resorting to sleeping in the open. Schools have been temporarily converted into shelters and at least 56 schools are reportedly suspended until further notice.
As of September 9th, at least five people were killed, with 22 others – including 11 children – having been injured, according to local sources. At least six schools were affected by the hostilities in Idlib.
We and our partners are closely monitoring the situation and we continue to deliver assistance as needed.
Meanwhile, in Deir-ez-Zor Governorate, in north-east Syria, the situation is calm, with small markets reopening and the partial resumption of water and electricity services.
Humanitarian workers are focusing on health, nutrition, water and sanitation, and food assistance. An inter-agency assessment is scheduled to begin today.
SUDAN
The Humanitarian Coordinator in Sudan, Clementine Nkweta-Salami, today condemned in a Tweet the indiscriminate attacks on residential areas of Khartoum which killed and wounded dozens of people in a market yesterday.
Also on Sudan, Under-Secretary-General Martin Griffiths spoke to General Hemedti of the Rapid Support Forces yesterday and stressed the need for stepped-up access to people in need. With the current response not meeting the colossal needs, Mr. Griffiths hopes to bring together the heads of all of the parties to be able to reach many more people.
CHAD
The High Commissioner for Refugees, Filippo Grandi, concluded a visit to Chad this weekend. He called for more international support to help the country cope with the surge in the number of refugees arriving from Sudan.
As of last week, more than 400,000 refugees had arrived in the provinces of Ouaddaï, Sila, and Wadi Fira. The great majority of them - 86 per cent - are women and children.
Most refugees come from Darfur, and they are arriving in desperate conditions, particularly in the border town of Adre, which hosts over 150,000 people in a spontaneous settlement. Another 75,000 refugees have been transferred from Adre to two newly built refugee settlements.
While humanitarian partners have made considerable efforts to ensure access to basic services such as health, water, sanitation and food, the influx is putting pressure on already stretched resources and communities, with current funding levels insufficient to address both the emergency and long-term development needs of refugees and their hosts.
Chad already hosted a large refugee population before the start of the Sudan conflict, but now, one in 17 people living in the country is a refugee.
UKRAINE
On Ukraine, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) today noted that an attack on Saturday killed two volunteers and injured another two in the Donetsk region.
In a statement, the Humanitarian Coordinator there, Denise Brown, said that volunteers – mostly national but also foreigners – are going to extraordinary lengths to provide some relief to civilians affected by the conflict and, as civilians, they are protected under international humanitarian law and all efforts must be made to ensure their safety.
AFGHANISTAN
Turning to Afghanistan. A report released over the weekend by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) shows that methamphetamine trafficking in Afghanistan and neighbouring countries is surging.
According to the report, there has been a drastic, nearly twelvefold increase in seizures of the drug in five years - from 2.5 tons in 2017 to 29.7 tons in 2021,
UNODC findings further suggest that heroin trafficking has continued, although at a lower rate, after the Taliban returned to power in August 2021 and introduced a drug ban in April 2022.
Methamphetamine trafficking, however, has intensified since the ban, indicating a rapid expansion of the drug’s manufacture and a possible reshaping of illicit drug markets long dominated by Afghan opiates.
RESIDENT COORDINATORS
The UN Development Coordination Office (DCO) have new Resident Coordinators in Jamaica and Saudi Arabia. They were appointed by the Secretary-General, following confirmations from the respective Governments.
Dennis Zulu of Zambia will serve as the United Nations Resident Coordinator in Jamaica and will also be responsible for coordinating the UN’s development work in the Bahamas, Bermuda, Turks and Caicos and the Cayman Islands.
Mohamed El Zarkani of Egypt will serve as the United Nations Resident Coordinator in Saudi Arabia.
Resident Coordinators seek to boost the development coordination among UN agencies, funds and programmes which, as you know, will be crucial to supporting countries as we enter the Decade of Action to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
NOON BRIEFING GUESTS AND BRIEFING/TOMORROW
Tomorrow, the noon briefing guests will be: Imme Scholz, Co-President of the Heinrich Böll Foundation and Co-Chair of the Independent Group of Scientists that prepared the Global Sustainable Development Report (GSDR); and Astra Bonini, Senior Sustainable Development Officer in the Division for Sustainable Development Goals in the Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA).
They will brief on the key findings of the Global Sustainable Development Report 2023. The report provides evidence and practical solutions to help decision-makers overcome impediments to sustainable development.
And at 2:00 p.m., Sanda Ojiambo, Assistant Secretary-General and Executive Director of the UN Global Compact, will brief on the Global Africa Business Initiative (GABI).
