AFGHANISTAN
The UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) welcomed today’s return of negotiators to Doha and said that it looks forward to the speedy resumption of talks between the two Afghan negotiating teams in Qatar.
The Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Afghanistan, Deborah Lyons, urged both sides to use this opportunity to move ahead to create the conditions for a reduction in violence and reach a political settlement that is acceptable to all segments of Afghan society. She added that a cessation in fighting would create a better atmosphere for talks, provide hope to the people, and allow humanitarians to deliver much-needed winter assistance to Afghans across the whole country.
The Mission stressed that it will remain in close contact with both parties and, as the Secretary-General said at the opening of the talks in September, the UN stands ready to assist as necessary.
 
YEMEN
The Special Envoy for Yemen, Martin Griffiths, will be visiting Riyadh and Aden in the next few days to meet with the Yemeni President and the newly formed Cabinet.
The Special Envoy will first head to Riyadh, where he is scheduled to meet with Yemeni President Abd Rabbo Mansour Hadi as well as senior Saudi officials. He will then proceed to Aden to meet with Prime Minister Muin Abdel Malek and members of the Government of Yemen.
The visit comes after the formation of the new Cabinet and the attack in Aden airport on 30 December, targeting the Government's ministers, which resulted in numerous civilian deaths and injuries.

CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC
The UN Mission, MINUSCA, reports that the security situation in Bangui remains relatively calm, with the Joint Task Force for Bangui maintaining operational readiness amid increased patrols in the city. The Mission reports the presence of armed combatants in Bangassou. MINUSCA peacekeepers continue to conduct patrols to ensure protection of civilians.
In a joint declaration issued yesterday, the head of the Department of Peace Operations, Jean-Pierre Lacroix, along with senior officials from the African Union, the Economic Commission of Central African States and the European Union, took note of the provisional results of the Presidential elections, announced yesterday.
They recalled that the country’s Constitutional Court will proclaim the final results and appealed to all political actors to respect the decisions of the Court.
Central African citizens have demonstrated their determination to exercise their right to vote, despite many obstacles, the senior officials said in the statement.
They reiterated their call on all political actors to settle any electoral disputes peacefully and in accordance with the laws and the Constitution of the country. They also called on the Central African Government and the entire political class to favour an inclusive, open, constructive and credible political dialogue to promote national stability.
The officials strongly condemned speeches and statements of disinformation, hatred and incitement to violence, as well as the violence perpetrated by certain armed groups aimed at compromising the electoral process.
They condemned violations of the Peace Agreement by armed groups and urged all signatory parties to fully honour their commitments. They invite them to relaunch the peace process, in particular by emphasizing consultation, strict compliance with commitments and accountability, because, they said, impunity is not a viable option.

ETHIOPIA REFUGEES
The UN Refugee Agency said today that it continues to register new refugee arrivals at the Sudanese-Ethiopian border.
Some 800 people crossed from Ethiopia’s Tigray region into eastern Sudan in just the first few days of the new year. Since early November, more than 56,000 Ethiopian refugees have fled to neighbouring Sudan. UNHCR said that more than 30 per cent of refugees are estimated to be under 18 and 5 per cent are over 60 years old.
In support of the Sudanese Government, UNHCR and partners continue to relocate the refugees from the arrival locations at the border to the designated refugee camps. A new camp just opened in Tunaydbah, and it has already received some 580 refugees over the past couple of days.
UNHCR said that further assistance is critical to improve water and sanitation conditions in the camps, as well as to ramp up COVID-19 prevention measures. Additional funding is also required to sustain shelter projects and improve the living conditions in the camps, especially in anticipation of the next rainy season, which is expected to start in May.
 
KENYA
Today the UN humanitarian chief, Mark Lowcock, allocated $1.5 million from the Central Emergency Response Fund for desert locust control operations in Kenya. The funds will go to the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) response, which includes air and ground surveillance and pesticide spraying.
Since 21 December, numerous swarms started to form in eastern Ethiopia and central Somalia following Cyclone Gati. They have been entering into northeast Kenya and are likely to spread throughout northern and central counties.
The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said that, if not controlled, the swarms could destroy crops and pasture and threaten the livelihoods and food security of 3.6 million people across the region and in Yemen, including 173,000 people in Kenya.
In response, FAO has extended its locust response plan until June 2021. However, further donor funding is urgently needed to contain the threat from desert locusts in the region.