HIGHLIGHTS OF THE NOON BRIEFING BY STEPHANE DUJARRIC
SPOKESPERSON FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL ANTÓNIO GUTERRES
FRIDAY, 21 MAY 2021
MIDDLE EAST
Last night, the Secretary-General welcomed the ceasefire that took place in Gaza and Israel, after 11 days of deadly hostilities. He extended his deepest condolences to the victims of the violence and their loved ones.
Mr. Guterres commended Egypt and Qatar for the efforts carried out, in close coordination with the UN, to help restore calm in Gaza and Israel. He called on all sides to observe the ceasefire.
The Secretary-General appealed to the international community to work with the United Nations on developing an integrated, robust package of support for a swift, sustainable reconstruction and recovery that supports the Palestinian people and strengthens their institutions.
He also stressed that Israeli and Palestinian leaders have a responsibility beyond the restoration of calm to start a serious dialogue to address the root causes of the conflict. Gaza is an integral part of the future Palestinian state and no effort should be spared to bring about a real national reconciliation that ends the division.
Today, Mark Lowcock, the Emergency Relief Coordinator, allocated $4.5M from the Central Emergency Response Fund, towards the rising humanitarian needs in Gaza. This is in addition to the $14.1 million, announced earlier this week for the Occupied Palestinian Territory, which comes from the central Pooled Funds for the OPT. So that total amount as of today, of money we have disbursed, is $18.6 million.
A three-month inter-agency Flash Appeal for the occupied Palestinian territory is expected next week. Strong financial support is crucial to meet needs especially in Gaza, and also the West Bank. It is also critical that the Occupied Palestinian Territory Humanitarian Fund is replenished. This is a flexible tool to quickly respond to urgent needs.
Today, 13 humanitarian trucks with food, COVID-19 vaccines, medical disposables, and drugs, including emergency medicines and first aid kits, for multiple UN Agencies and NGO partners, crossed into Gaza following the partial reopening of the Kerem Shalom Crossing.
The Erez crossing was also opened temporarily for senior humanitarian officials. Two of our most senior officials, Philippe Lazzarini, the Commissioner-General for UNRWA, and Lynn Hastings, the Head of the humanitarian operations in the Occupied Palestinian Territory. Both traveled to Gaza this morning. Both Mr. Lazzarini and Ms. Hastings have been spending some time not only visiting with Gazans and examining what has happened. But they also thanked all the UN colleagues who have worked hard to help traumatized civilians under difficult and dangerous circumstances.
And, following the ceasefire announcement, the number of people seeking protection in UNRWA schools has now decreased to less than 1,000. The peak was about 66,000.
SENIOR PERSONNEL APPOINTMENT
The Secretary-General is appointing Martha Ama Akyaa Pobee of Ghana as Assistant Secretary-General for Africa. That is a post that is both in the Departments of Political and Peacebuilding Affairs and Peace Operations (DPPA-DPO).
She succeeds Bintou Keita of Guinea, who took up a new role as Head of the UN operations in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Mr. Guterres is deeply grateful to Ms. Keita’s service and contributions as the first Assistant Secretary-General for Africa for the peacekeeping and political departments.
For her part, Ms. Pobee brings more than 30 years of experience in international affairs and diplomacy with the Ghanaian Foreign Ministry. Currently, she is the Chief Director of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration, she was previously Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Ghana to the UN from 2015 to 2020.
GLOBAL HEALTH SUMMIT
This morning, the Secretary-General spoke virtually at the Global Health Summit, which was co-hosted by the European Commission and Italy, as Chair of the G20.
The Secretary-General said that, from the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, he was deeply concerned about the possibility of what he called a “dangerous two-speed response.”
Sadly, he said, that concern was justified, with grossly unequal access to vaccines, tests, medicines and supplies having left poorer countries at the mercy of the virus.
Vaccinating quickly and thoroughly around the world, together with continued public health measures, are the only ways to end the pandemic and prevent more dangerous variants from gaining a foothold, the Secretary-General said.
He also repeated his call to the G20 to set up a Task Force that brings together all countries with vaccine production capacities, the World Health Organization, and the ACT-Accelerator partners and international financial institutions, able to deal with the pharmaceutical companies and other key stakeholders.
Let’s be clear, he stressed, we are at war with the virus. And if you are at war with the virus, we need to deal with our weapons with rules of a war economy. We are not there yet. And this is true for vaccines, and it is true for other components in the fight against the virus.
On Monday, the Secretary-General will address, by pre-recorded video message, the World Health Assembly.
COVID-19
In South Sudan, the UN team is working closely with the authorities to accelerate vaccine efforts due to the low turnout for the campaign. More than 6,400 doses have been administered to date, with more than 126,000 still pending.
The UN team is helping to transport more than 62,000 doses of the vaccine to sites around the country. The UN peacekeeping mission and the World Food Programme are helping to airlift the shots.
Today, Namibia received its second shipment of vaccines from COVAX.
The UN team in Namibia is continuing to help the country with its vaccination campaign to ensure that all Namibians are vaccinated as a crucial step for a better recovery.
COVID-19/SOUTH ASIA
And from South Asia, UNICEF says it urgently in need of $164 million to help save lives as a deadly-wave of COVID-19 sweeps across the region.
The funds will be used to procure oxygen and testing supplies, medical equipment, and personal protective equipment, among other supplies.
South Asia, which is home to nearly 2 billion people, accounts for half of known new infections globally. More than three new COVID-19 infections are being recorded every second and more than three people are dying of COVID-19 every minute.
NEPAL
In Nepal, the UN, along with partners has launched a COVID-19 Response Plan seeking nearly US$ 84 million to help 750,000 of the most vulnerable people impacted by the pandemic over the next three months.
Millions of people in Nepal are struggling with the direct health impact of the pandemic. In addition, hunger, malnutrition, devastating economic losses, and other health needs are being overlooked. The poorest and most marginalized people are the hardest hit.
Nepal is in the middle of its worst COVID-19 outbreak and is experiencing roughly the same number of daily cases per capita as neighboring India. However, the country’s health system has much less capacity to treat COVID patients.
After several months of relatively low cases, the numbers began increasing rapidly in mid-April. Since May 5th, there have been over 8,000 cases registered every day.
Over 44 per cent of COVID-19 tests in Nepal are coming back positive, suggesting that case numbers are in fact much higher than reported.
The UN’s Response Plan calls for swift action and international solidarity to save lives and prevent unnecessary suffering today and in the difficult weeks to come.
MYANMAR
In Myanmar, the UN team there said today that it is alarmed by the humanitarian impact of the violence in the town of Mindat in Chin State.
There have been reports of indiscriminate attacks by the security forces against civilians, resulting in civilian casualties and in people being displaced from their homes.
Nearly 4,000 people have reportedly been forced to flee since fighting escalated in Mindat on May 12th, with thousands of people believed to be hiding in nearby forests and mountains.
Many civilians have reportedly not been allowed to leave the town during the height of the hostilities.
Our team on the ground in Myanmar is also concerned by reports that security forces used civilians as human shields and incidents of sexual assault perpetrated against women and girls.
Many people urgently need food, water, shelter, and access to healthcare, among other needs. While the UN and our partners are trying to assess and address these needs, their efforts are complicated by continued fighting and road blockages.
The UN Country team calls on security forces to urgently take all necessary measures and precautions to spare civilians and civilian infrastructure. And asks all involved to ensure safe and unhindered humanitarian access so that we can all help people in need.
Christine Schraner Burgener will brief journalists on Monday at 11 o’clock, by video link from Bangkok.
MOZAMBIQUE
The World Health Organization today said that more than 1.2 million people urgently need health assistance in Cabo Delgado Province, where recent armed attacks sparked further population displacement and deepened a protracted humanitarian crisis.
According to WHO, violence and insecurity have damaged or forced shut nearly a third of the province’s 132 health facilities. This has deprived communities of basic health services and sparked emergency needs for HIV, malaria and TB treatment, as well as vaccination and safe delivery among internally displaced persons and host communities. Cholera prevention, COVID-19 response and provision of mental and psychosocial health services are also critically needed.
WHO is revising its response plan and will deploy additional human and material resources to Cabo Delgado and other health emergency hotspots in the country as soon as they get additional resources. WHO has already mobilized $ 1.77 million to support the government and its partner organizations.
LIBYA
Ján Kubiš, the Special Envoy for Libya, spoke at the Security Council this morning and discussed preparations to hold presidential and parliamentary elections on December 24th. He said that in recent months, a state of political paralysis has been replaced by developments that have created renewed hope for Libya’s reunification and its stability.
The ceasefire continues to hold, Mr. Kubiš said, adding that the security situation has significantly improved, although clashes between armed militia groups competing for influence, access to and control of territory and resources still occur from time to time.
Mr. Kubiš warned that the continued use, presence, and activities of thousands of mercenaries, foreign fighters, and armed groups is a significant threat not only to Libya’s security but to the region as a whole. The recent disturbing events in Chad remind us of the interrelated nature and links between the security situation in Libya and the security and stability of the region as a whole.
CLIMATE
This morning, the Deputy Secretary-General, Amina Mohammed spoke at the G7 Climate and Environment Ministerial Meeting.
She said that this year is a make-or-break year in the global effort to restore our relationship with the planet, tackle the climate emergency and get ahead of the pollution crisis.
Despite positive signs on reducing emissions, she said that our main concern is the public finance gap and the lack of concrete support for adaptation.
The G7 Summit, coming up in June, will be a key moment for progress on finance, she said. She added that we need G7 leaders, and other developed countries following suit, to announce enhanced climate finance commitments for the period of 2021-2025, explicitly indicating the share of public climate finance that they pledge.
When it comes to adaptation, Ms. Mohammed said we need to see an increase of climate finance to get to at least 50 per cent allocated to adaptation and that this should be easily accessible for small island developing countries and least developed countries.
BIODIVERSITY
Tomorrow is the International Day for Biological Diversity. The theme this year is “We’re part of the solution.”
In his message, the Secretary-General said we need to protect nature, restore ecosystems and establish a balance in our relationship with the planet.
And this morning he spoke at a webinar on the Road to the Biodiversity COP, which is coming up in Kunming, in China, in October.
He said the pandemic has reminded us of the intimate relationship between people and nature and it provides an opportunity to recover better; adding that the solutions to the current crisis must expand opportunity, reduce stark inequalities and respect planetary boundaries.
Nature-positive investments and actions can ensure that we all benefit from the dividends of biological diversity.
INTERNATIONAL TEA DAY
Today is International Tea Day. Tea production and processing are a main source of livelihood for millions of families, particularly in developing countries.
The Day’s celebration promotes and fosters collective action to implement activities in favour of the sustainable production and consumption of tea. It also raises awareness of its importance in fighting hunger and poverty.
WORLD DAY FOR CULTURAL DIVERSITY FOR DIALOGUE AND DEVELOPMENT
Today is also World Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development. There is a message from the Secretary-General on this international day.
INTERNATIONAL DAY TO END OBSTETRIC FISTULA
And Sunday, is the International Day to End Obstetric Fistula. The theme for this year is “Women's rights are human rights! End fistula now!”
