HIGHLIGHTS OF THE NOON BRIEFING BY FARHAN HAQ,
DEPUTY SPOKESMAN FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL ANTÓNIO GUTERRES
WEDNESDAY, 16 AUGUST 2023

SECURIY COUNCIL/YEMEN 
This morning, the Special Envoy to Yemen, Hans Grundberg, briefed Security Council members on recent developments in the country, and on his mediation efforts between the Government of Yemen and Ansar Allah, including his ongoing engagements with the regional member states. 
Mr. Grundberg said the sides continue to display general willingness to seek solutions, but this still needs to be translated into concrete steps, and he called on the parties to refrain from escalatory rhetoric. 
Also briefing the Council, Edem Wosornu, Director of Operations and Advocacy in the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, said that this year, humanitarians aim to provide support to more than 17 million people in need across Yemen.  However, this work is being severely hampered by critical funding shortages. 
And just to flag that the World Food Programme recently announced the suspension of its malnutrition prevention activities across Yemen, starting from this month, with more cuts expected in the coming months if funds are not urgently received. Ms. Wosornu warned that the cost of inaction, particularly for children, is steep.

SECURITY COUNCIL/ NAGORNO-KARABAKH 
This afternoon, at 3:00 p.m., the Security Council will hold a meeting on the situation in the Nagorno-Karabakh region. Edem Wosornu is expected to brief Council members at that meeting.

MALI 
The Under-Secretary-General for Peace Operations, Jean-Pierre Lacroix, will travel to Mali from 17-19 August.  During his visit, Mr. Lacroix will meet with the Malian authorities and stakeholders to discuss progress on the plan for the gradual and orderly withdrawal of the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA), by 31 December, as well as the handing over of tasks to the Malian authorities, the UN Country Team and the United Nations Office for West Africa and the Sahel (UNOWAS), as per Security Council Resolution 2690 (2023).  
Mr. Lacroix will also meet with UN personnel and extend his appreciation to them for their dedication and sacrifice over the years in the service and support of the people of Mali. 
Regarding the withdrawal, we can confirm that a convoy carrying peacekeepers and equipment from its Ber camp in Timbuktu region, as part of the withdrawal process, reached Timbuktu city safely on Tuesday. 
And our peacekeeping colleagues in Mali report that one of their convoys travelling from Menaka to Gao as part of the MINUSMA withdrawal process came under fire from unidentified armed elements yesterday evening. Fortunately, no injuries to peacekeepers were reported.  The convoy was carrying personnel from the Niger military contingent and Togolese Formed Police Unit, as well as equipment.  MINUSMA condemns this act and reminds that any attack against peacekeepers could constitute war crimes under international law.

DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF THE CONGO 
The United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO) continues to report activity by the CODECO armed group. Yesterday, the Mission deployed peacekeepers to protect civilians in Lidha village, about 12 kilometres from Djugu territory in Ituri province, in response to a community alert about clashes between CODECO and Zaire combatants. Peacekeepers fired warning shots, leading the assailants to withdraw. They also deployed patrols to two other locations around the same area to enhance the protection of civilians. In coordination with the Congolese armed forces (FARDC), the Mission escorted some of the civilians who had fled, back to their village.

CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC 
The United Nations Mission in the Central African Republic (MINUSCA) today said that it has facilitated round two of the voluntary repatriation of 15 ex-combatants of the Lord’s Resistance Army and their families to Uganda this week. 
The ex-combatants, who had been living in the Central African Republic for the past 15 years, returned to Entebbe on a special flight, as part of an operation supported by the Mission in coordination with the governments of the Central African Republic and Uganda, as well as several NGOs.  
MINUSCA reported on the first phase of this operation last month, during which 61 ex-combatants and their families were voluntarily repatriated by the Mission to Uganda.

NIGER 
In Niger, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) is concerned about the potential impact of the ongoing crisis on the food security situation. 
Before the coup, over 3 million people were already severely food insecure and according to the World Food Programme (WFP), some 7.3 million food-insecure people could see their situation worsen due to the unfolding crisis. 
Humanitarian exemptions to sanctions and border closures are required to avert a rapid deterioration of the food security and malnutrition situation. 
The Response Plan for Niger currently seeks $584 million in funding, but only 39 per cent of that has been received.

SUDAN 
Over the past three months, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) has facilitated the movement of more than 1,000 trucks carrying relief supplies to different parts of Sudan, despite the ongoing fighting.  
Those trucks have delivered more than 44,000 tons of humanitarian assistance to East Darfur, Khartoum, the Kordofans and several other states. 
Yesterday, a humanitarian convoy from Port Sudan arrived in the capital of East Darfur, Ad Du’ayn, carrying nutrition and medical supplies, as well as water, sanitation and hygiene supplies. These items from the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the World Health Organization (WHO) will support people displaced by the conflict and the communities hosting them.  
Some of the trucks in this convoy were bound for Nyala, the capital of South Darfur. But clashes in that area are hampering the delivery of humanitarian supplies at the moment. 
The UN continues to call for the fighting to stop, so that aid can reach those who desperately need it.

AFRICA/REPORT 
The UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) today launched its Economic Development in Africa Report, showing that African economies can become major participants in global supply chains by harnessing their vast resources of materials needed by high-technology sectors and their own growing consumer markets. 
The report highlights that creating an environment conducive to technology-intensive industries would help raise wages on the continent, currently set at a minimum of $220 per month, compared to an average of $668 per month in the Americas.   
UNCTAD also notes that Africa needs more investment in renewable energy to help bridge the significant investment gap and tackle other obstacles to the manufacturing of solar panels on the continent. Currently, only about 2 per cent of global investments in renewable energy go to Africa.

FINANCIAL CONTRIBUTION 
Mauritania is the 130th Member State to pay its dues to the UN’s regular budget.