ACT-ACCELERATOR CAMPAIGN LAUNCH 
This morning, you will have seen that the Secretary-General spoke live at the resource mobilization campaign for the global partnership known as the ACT-Accelerator, this is for the COVID-19 vaccine distribution.
He stressed once again the importance of fairness – that if we want to ensure vaccinations for everyone to end this pandemic, we must first inject fairness into the system. 
The Secretary-General said vaccine inequity is the biggest moral failure of our times – and people and countries are paying the price.   
But he pointed out the good news that recent progress shows how we can deliver when we have the resources and come together, but we do need to act now.  
We can end the pandemic this year, but we can only get there together, he said. 

DEPUTY SECRETARY-GENERAL/ETHIOPIA 
Our Deputy Secretary-General wrapped up her visit to Ethiopia today. She is on her way back to New York as we speak. 
Speaking to reporters at the airport in Addis before she took off, she said she had witnessed the tragedies resulting from the conflict in Ethiopia, stressing that there is “never a winner in conflict.” She added that she had heard from the leaders and people in the Tigray, Amhara, Somali and Afar regions about what their hopes are. 
She underscored the importance of having humanitarian aid reach the people most in need and repeated the Secretary-General’s call for a cessation of hostilities and for a pathway to peace through the national dialogue. 
Earlier today, she was in the Afar region of Ethiopia, where she met with the President of the region and clan leaders, among others. She was joined by the President of Ethiopia.
The Deputy Secretary-General was able to see first-hand the devastating impact of the conflict on children when she visited a hospital in Semera where young victims who had lost their limbs due to unexploded ordnances were being treated. She noted how that the pain of conflict rests mainly on the shoulders of women and children. 
Ms. Mohammed pledged that the United Nations would continue to accompany Ethiopians through the conflict to peace and development.  
While there, as we have been telling you this week, she met with a range of people, always emphasizing the UN’s impartiality in the provision of humanitarian aid to all Ethiopians, especially those who are in most need, as well as in support of the development agenda being implemented in the country.
 
AFGHANISTAN  
Moving on to Afghanistan. Our humanitarian colleagues tell us that in response to the heavy snowfall and avalanches in Dangam district in Kunar Province on 6 February, local health authorities together with the UN and our partners deployed two mobile health teams to provide health care to local communities and to the search and rescue personnel. Some 17 people were reportedly killed in the heavy snowfall and avalanches, and many more are missing.
We, along with our partners, are also providing cash, non-food items, shelter kits and warm clothes to almost 2,000 people impacted by recent rain and snowfall in Kunar, Nangarhar and Laghman provinces.
The humanitarian response also continues across several other parts of Afghanistan, with 60,000 people receiving food or cash assistance and relief items.  
The 2022 Afghanistan Humanitarian Response Plan, targeting just over 22 million men, women and children with assistance, requires $4.4 billion and is unfortunately only 9 per cent funded, that’s about $419 million. 
By the end of 2021, 180 national and international humanitarian organizations reached 19.6 million people in 397 of Afghanistan’s 401 districts with some form of humanitarian assistance. The number of people reached is much higher than the 17.7 million people originally targeted due to a scale-up in the last quarter of the year and generous donor funding of close to $1.7 billion through the 2021 Afghanistan response plan. And we hope that last year’s generosity is repeated. 

NIGERIA 
Turning to Nigeria, the humanitarian community and the Government today launched the 2022 Humanitarian Response Plan for the north-eastern part of the country. 
The Plan seeks $1.1 billion to provide critical aid and services to 5.5 million people impacted by the conflict in Borno, Adamawa and Yobe states.  
An estimated 8.4 million people require humanitarian assistance in Nigeria this year and over 2.2 million people are displaced, facing daily threats to their health, food security and safety. 
Last year, the humanitarian community and our partners assisted close to 5 million people, with 1.8 million receiving critical protection services and 1.3 million benefiting from nutritional support.

AGA KHAN
Earlier today, the Secretary-General received Prince Rahim Aga Khan.
The Secretary-General expressed his appreciation for the work of the Aga Khan Development Network which he said was a symbol of tolerance and solidarity.
The two discussed a number of situations around the world as well as how to increase the cooperation between the UN and Aga Khan Development Network. 
 
PALESTINIANS 
Yesterday afternoon, the Secretary-General spoke at the first session of this year’s Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People.  
He said that the situation today in the Occupied Palestinian Territory -- including East Jerusalem -- continues to pose a significant challenge to international peace and security.  
And he emphasized that we urgently need to intensify collective efforts to resolve the conflict and to end the occupation in line with United Nations resolutions, international law and bilateral agreements. 
The Secretary-General said the goal is to continue for a two-State solution, adding that, “There is no Plan B.” 

SAMOA 
In Samoa, where our team there is led by Resident Coordinator Simona Marinescu, and the team continues to support authorities to tackle the pandemic. UNICEF supported authorities on the vaccine roll-out for children aged 12 -17, training 100 vaccinators, bolstering vaccine storage and distribution networks, risk communication and monitoring the implementation of the vaccination campaign in schools. Our Children’s Fund colleagues also provided support in improving vaccination coverage for those above age 18 by monitoring vaccine uptake and community awareness. According to the World Health Organization there have been 33 cases in Samoa and no deaths reported to date, with the bulk of the spike in numbers in the past month alone, which is why prevention measures have been crucial. Over 270,000 doses have been administered, with nearly 80 per cent coming through the COVAX Facility.

NOON BRIEFING GUEST TOMORROW 
Tomorrow at the briefing, we will be joined by Michael Dunford, the World Food Programme’s Regional Director for East Africa. He will brief virtually from Nairobi on the situation in the Horn of Africa.
 
HONOUR ROLL  
Today is the second to last day for the Honour Roll. We say thank you very much to our friends in Cyprus and Morocco for their full payments to the regular budget. The Honour Roll now has 53 Members.