HIGHLIGHTS OF THE NOON BRIEFING BY FARHAN HAQ,
DEPUTY SPOKESMAN FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL ANTÓNIO GUTERRES
MONDAY, 20 DECEMBER 2021
LEBANON
First off, the Secretary-General met in Beirut today with Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati, and he reiterated his message of solidarity with Lebanon and its people at this difficult time.
The Secretary-General said after the meeting that he was very encouraged in his meetings over the past days with the President, the Speaker and the Prime Minister. There is a clear guarantee that elections will take place in the beginning of May. And he added that he was impressed by the work the Government is doing in relation to the preparation of the negotiations with the International Monetary Fund.
He met earlier with the Speaker of the Parliament, Nabih Berri, and told reporters afterward that only Lebanese can solve Lebanese problems, but the international community needs to strengthen its support to Lebanon to overcome the present, difficult circumstances.
Earlier today, the Secretary-General visited the Port of Beirut to pay tribute to the victims that lost their lives and to express his solidarity to all those wounded and to the families. He said that he knows the will of the people to know the truth and to have proper accountability for that tragedy.
Yesterday, the Secretary-General arrived in Beirut and met with President Michel Aoun at Baabda Palace. He told reporters after that meeting that his objective is to discuss how we can best support the Lebanese people to overcome the current economic and financial crisis and to promote peace, stability and sustainable development.
Seeing the suffering of the people of Lebanon, he said, Lebanese political leaders do not have the right to be divided and paralyze the country. He added that next year’s elections will be key and Lebanon’s people must be fully engaged in choosing how the country moves forward.
LAMP OF PEACE
On Saturday, the Secretary-General received the Lamp of Peace award, given by the Sacred Convent of Assisi in Italy.
In his remarks, delivered virtually, he noted that Saint Francis of Assisi was a true visionary, whose holistic concept of peace is as relevant today as it was during his lifetime, eight hundred years ago.
Reminding the audience that St. Francis is the patron saint of ecology, the Secretary-General said that our unsustainable production and consumption habits are causing a triple planetary crisis: climate disruption; a catastrophic loss of biodiversity; and levels of pollution that are killing millions every year. Climate action builds peace, he said.
The Secretary-General also called on leaders of all kinds to take responsibility, condemn all acts of violence and hatred, and address the root causes that undermine social cohesion. As societies become multi-ethnic, multi-religious and multi-cultural, we need greater investment in inclusivity, he added.
DEPUTY SECRETARY-GENERAL’S TRAVELS
The Deputy Secretary-General, Amina Mohammed, is currently visiting Costa Rica.
Yesterday, she visited a geothermal project. Some 99 per cent of the population of Costa Rica has access to electricity, and nearly all of its electricity matrix is from renewable sources. The Deputy Secretary-General also met with communities working on mangrove restoration.
Today, she is meeting with President Carlos Alvarado and his Cabinet to discuss social protection, COVID-19 recovery and sustainable development.
The Deputy Secretary-General will return to New York tomorrow.
SYRIA
Geir Pedersen, the Special Envoy for Syria, briefed the Security Council this morning and said that we can only look back on 2021 as a year of deepening suffering of the Syrian people. Despite no shift in the front lines, he said, we have seen continuing violence against civilians and systematic human rights abuses -- including against women and girls. He added that levels of hunger and poverty have escalated as the economy has continued to implode, with 14 million people in need, the highest number since the conflict began.
Mr. Pedersen said that all parties confront a strategic stalemate on the ground that has now continued for 21 months, with no shifts in front-lines – making it increasingly clear that no existing actor or group of actors can determine the outcome of the conflict, and that a military solution remains an illusion.
The Special Envoy has said that he is ready to convene a seventh session of the Constitutional Committee in Geneva as soon as understandings are in place.
Martin Griffiths, the Emergency Relief Coordinator, briefed the Council members by VTC and discussed the Secretary-General’s report that describes the robust system in place regarding the distribution of cross-line humanitarian aid. He said that in northwestern Syria, the UN humanitarian system has boosted its efforts to provide cross-line aid. But he added that at this point, cross-line aid deliveries cannot replace the cross-border humanitarian operation.
Mr. Griffiths said that humanitarian needs have grown while funding has shrunk. He warned that we are failing in our responsibilities to the people of Syria.
AFGHANISTAN
Yesterday, Martin Griffiths, addressed the 17th Extraordinary Session of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation Council of Foreign Ministers, in Islamabad. He warned that Afghanistan’s economy is now in free fall, and if we don’t act decisively and with compassion, he fears this fall will pull the entire population with it.
Mr. Griffiths stressed that the need for liquidity and stabilisation of the banking system is now urgent – not only to save the lives of the Afghan people but also to enable humanitarian organizations to respond. He warned that by the middle of next year, universal poverty – reaching 97 per cent of the population – could be the next grim milestone.
The Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs said that our humanitarian response is effective and continues to scale up, but Afghanistan will not get through the winter on emergency aid alone. He emphasized that we also need flexible donor funding that can be used to ensure salaries for public sector workers and support to basic services such as health, education, electricity, and livelihoods.
Mr Griffiths also added that going forward, we need continued constructive engagement with the de facto authorities in a process of meaningful dialogue to clarify what we expect of each other.
CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC
The UN Peacekeeping Mission in the Central African Republic, MINUSCA, strongly condemns the recent violence deliberately targeting civilians in Boyo, in the Ouaka prefecture. Our colleagues say the town was the scene of violence earlier this month, perpetrated by armed combatants linked to the anti-Balaka.
Around fifteen civilians were killed. There were also cases of amputation, extortion and destruction of homes. Nearly 1,500 people were displaced and are currently protected by UN peacekeepers, whose rapid intervention has restored stability in Boyo.
The UN Mission also says there is a massive arrival of armed combatants linked to the anti-Balaka in this area, as well as a risk that Fulani communities there could be targeted for attacks.
The UN mission and humanitarian agencies conducted an assessment mission in Boyo last week, and initiated investigations into the human rights violations committed there. Our colleagues reinforced their presence to prevent violence. They are also calling on all armed groups to immediately end attacks against civilians and to respect the ceasefire declared by President Touadera on 15 October.
SOUTH SUDAN
In South Sudan, the acting Humanitarian Coordinator there, Matthew Hollingworth, has strongly condemned yesterday’s killing of a World Food Programme (WFP) staff member following an armed attack on a UN convoy. The convoy was returning from delivering food to flood-affected people in Tindiir and Duk Padiet in Jonglei State.
Mr. Hollingworth urged authorities to make every effort to bring the perpetrators to justice, as well as to protect communities, humanitarian personnel and assets across the country.
Duk County in Jonglei was affected by flooding both this year and last year. Some 130,000 people are in need of assistance, including 17,000 children under five.
South Sudan remains one of the most challenging work environments for humanitarian workers. Yesterday’s incident brings to five the number of aid workers killed in the line of duty in 2021.
PHILIPPINES
In the Philippines, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs says some 1.8 million people have been affected by Typhoon Rai, with more than 630,000 having been displaced.
The Government of the Philippines has accepted the Humanitarian Country Team’s offer for international assistance.
The UN is working with NGOs and private sector partners to help people in the areas of shelter, health, food, protection, and other life-saving responses. We and our partners have also contributed to rapid needs assessments.
In a statement issued today, the UN Resident Coordinator and Humanitarian Coordinator, Gustavo Gonzalez, shared a message of solidarity and support with the people of the Philippines.
He said that the UN and our partners are coordinating with the Government authorities to ensure timely support to address critical gaps and the needs of the most vulnerable.
Mr. Gonzalez will visit the island of Dinagat island this week to see the situation on the ground.
COVID-19
The UN team in Timor-Leste, led by Resident Coordinator Roy Trivedy, is supporting the country’s COVID-19 response and recovery efforts. We are helping to procure essential equipment and supplies and maintain isolation centres. We are also supporting vaccine delivery and logistics, as well as virus surveillance.
While there have been no reported cases of the Omicron variant, the Government and UN remain vigilant and continue monitoring, testing, and promoting public health and social measures. The UN is supporting the Government and partners in developing and disseminating messaging on prevention and the importance of vaccination.
To date, 80 per cent of the population has received their first dose of the vaccine and 60 per cent have received their second dose. Around one fifth of the 1.1 million doses administered so far were received through COVAX.
In Zambia, which continues to record more cases of the Omicron variant, the UN team, led by Resident Coordinator Coumba Mar Gadio, continues to address the multiple impacts of the pandemic.
The UN team is working with the Government on boosting contact tracing, border health security, and laboratory and procurement capacities. The World Health Organization has supported genomic sequencing, which helped detect Omicron in the country.
The UN is also helping to scale up the vaccination campaign, with more than 3.7 million vaccine doses having been delivered to Zambia through COVAX.
CHILD MORTALITY
The United Nations Inter-Agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation today released a report showing that the world remains significantly off track to meet the Sustainable Development Goals on ending the preventable deaths of newborns and children under five.
According to the report, more than 50 countries will not meet the under-five mortality target by 2030, and more than 60 countries will miss the neonatal mortality target without immediate action. The report shows that more than five million children died before their fifth birthday in 2020 alone, along with 2.2 million children and youth aged 5 to 24.
INTERNATIONAL HUMAN SOLIDARITY DAY
Today is International Human Solidarity Day. In a tweet, the Secretary-General said that hunger is no longer about lack of food. It is largely a man-made disaster – concentrated in countries affected by large-scale, protracted conflict, he added.
The Secretary-General said that as we mark International Human Solidarity Day, we must remember our responsibility to do everything in our power to tackle both hunger and conflict.
GUEST BRIEFING
The Guest today was the Humanitarian Coordinator for Somalia, Adam Abdelmoula. He briefed reporters from Mogadishu on the new 2022 Humanitarian Response Plan for Somalia, which was launched today. Somalia is facing its third consecutive failed rainy season for the first time in over 30 years. The new Humanitarian Response Plan seeks nearly $1.5 billion to help 5.5 million of the most vulnerable Somalis next year.
