HIGHLIGHTS OF THE NOON BRIEFING BY FARHAN HAQ,

DEPUTY SPOKESMAN FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL ANTÓNIO GUTERRES

MONDAY, 19 JULY 2021

SYRIA
The Security Council this morning held closed consultations on the political situation in Syria. The Council Members heard from the Special Envoy for Syria, Geir Pedersen, who participated by VTC from Oslo.
In an effort to move the political process forward, Mr. Pedersen has urged all sides to define, with greater precision, what kind of reforms and steps they are willing to take, if concrete steps are taken on the other side. The Envoy noted that any steps should be reciprocal and mutual. They should be realistic and precise. They should be implemented in parallel.

SOUTH SUDAN
The UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) says that it continues to protect civilians and help local communities affected by clashes in Western Equatoria State. 
The Mission deployed a patrol to the county of Mundri West last week. A UN team is also assessing the situation in the town of Tambura, where it is working with humanitarian partners to help families displaced by a recent spate of armed attacks.
UN Police officers recently trained national police officers on how to deal with cases related to sexual and gender-based violence. This was part of a series of trainings on investigating crimes in a sensitive manner and supporting survivors of abuse.

ETHIOPIA 
In Ethiopia, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs says that, despite recent improvements in access within Tigray since the end of June, movements in and out of the region remain restricted. This affects the ability of aid workers to replenish supplies and mobilize personnel to sustain aid operations. 
Inside Tigray, access is currently possible to areas that were previously hard-to-reach.
An estimated 75 per cent of people who need assistance – this is 4 million out of 5.2 million people in need – are now in zones where humanitarian operations can take place, compared to 30 per cent in May. 
Humanitarian supplies, however, are rapidly being depleted inside Tigray, with road access only possible through Afar Region with heavy control by regional and federal authorities. 
Last week, a 54-truck humanitarian convoy carrying food, fuel, medical supplies and other vital items arrived in Mekelle, the first to reach the region in more than two weeks. However, the supplies are far from adequate to sustain humanitarian assistance. Many more trucks should be arriving every day to meet the needs of people who need help.
Following approval from the Government of Ethiopia, the UN Humanitarian Air Service successfully conducted a test flight Saturday to Tigray. Regular flights are scheduled to resume on July 21st. 
In the meantime, the U.N. continues to call for the restoration of basic services, electricity, communications, commercial flights and banking system to prevent further deterioration in the humanitarian situation. 
Funding is also urgently needed. More than $430 million - half of the total requirement- is still required for the humanitarian response in Tigray until the end of the year.

BHUTAN\ COVID-19
Bhutan will roll out its second mass vaccination campaign tomorrow. Bhutan has received doses from COVAX and through bilateral arrangements. 
The Government has started registering people over 11 years old and those who had not registered during the first round of the vaccination with the aim of becoming one of the first countries in the world to vaccinate its entire eligible population with both doses of the COVID-19 vaccine by the end of the month. 
The UN country team is supporting authorities, with UNICEF assisting in fast-tracking the second shipment of vaccines and providing operational support. The UN is also strengthening the cold chain system to store the vaccines. The World Health Organization is providing financial support.

TUNISIA\ COVID-19  
In Tunisia, hospitals are facing huge pressure and have exceeded capacity in several regions. Last Wednesday, the country recorded 7,878 new COVID-19 cases with 164 new deaths.   
So far, 728,000 people in Tunisia are fully vaccinated.
The UN in Tunisia is mobilizing to support the government. WHO has mobilized funds to help authorities strengthen the hospital system, equip laboratories, provide personal protective equipment and diagnostic kits. 
For its part, UNICEF has provided protective equipment to public schools and provide social assistance to mitigate the impact of the pandemic on the most vulnerable families. 

MYANMAR/COVID-19
From Myanmar, the UN Country Team is stepping up its response following an alarming spike in the reported number of COVID-19 cases in the country.
The UN is prioritizing planning for scaling up immunizations – this includes both COVID-19 vaccines and routine immunizations.
Even with limited testing and reporting, there were nearly 5,500 new cases and 233 deaths on July 17th. The actual figures are expected to be much higher. 
Also on July 17th, the test positivity rate reached 39.12 per cent, compared to 22.34 per cent two weeks earlier. In addition, several COVID-19 variants have been detected, including the Delta variant.
The UN Country Team is working to address the oxygen shortage by procuring oxygen concentrators and other equipment. The World Health Organization and its partners are working to increase the availability of COVID-19 vaccines, including through the COVAX facility.

COVID-19 RECOVERY
A new policy brief released today by the International Labour Organization says that fewer women than men will regain employment during the COVID-19 recovery. 
The brief found that there will be 13 million fewer women in employment in 2021 compared to 2019, while men’s employment will have recovered to 2019 levels. In addition, only 43.2 per cent of the world’s working-age women will be employed in 2021, compared to 68.6 per cent of working-age men.
The brief says that women have suffered disproportionate job and income losses because of their over-representation in the hardest-hit sectors, such as accommodation and food services, and the manufacturing sector.
The Americas experienced the greatest reduction in women’s employment as a result of the pandemic (9.4 per cent). The second highest drop in the number of employed women was observed in the Arab States where, between 2019 and 2020, women’s employment declined by 4.1 per cent and men’s by 1.8 per cent.

WFP\WHO PROJECT
The World Food Programme and the World Health Organization have launched a new project to improve emergency response to health crises.
The project, called INITIATE², will develop solutions such as disease-specific field facilities and kits. The agencies will also train logistics and health responders on their installation and use. 

RESIDENT COORDINATOR
Mireia Villar Forner is taking up her new function as UN Resident Coordinator in Colombia. 
Resident Coordinators are the designated representatives of the Secretary-General for development at the country level. They lead the work of our UN teams on the ground, including to support authorities in their response to the ongoing pandemic and its multiple impacts, to recover better towards the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals.