ARCHIVES
HIGHLIGHTS OF THE NOON BRIEFING
BY EDUARDO DEL BUEY, DEPUTY SPOKESPERSON FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL BAN
KI-MOON
WEDNESDAY, 12 OCTOBER 2011
SECRETARY-GENERAL PAYS TRIBUTE TO DAG HAMMARSKJOLD IN SWEDEN
- The
Secretary-General travelled on Wednesday morning from Copenhagen
to Sweden.
Upon arrival, he went straight to Uppsala,
where he visited the grave of his predecessor, Dag Hammarskjöld, marking
50 years since he died in an air crash.
- The
Secretary-General was greeted by three former soldiers who had served with
the United Nations Mission in the Congo in 1961, and members of
the Hammarskjöld family also joined in the ceremony.
- Paying
tribute to Dag Hammarskjöld’s great legacy, the Secretary-General said, “the anniversary of his death has given us a valuable
chance to remember these accomplishments. Even more important, to share them
with succeeding generations.”
- The
Secretary-General then travelled to Stockholm,
where he went to Parliament for talks with the Speaker, Per Westerberg.
- At
the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Secretary-General attended a lunch
hosted by Gunilla Carlsson,
the Minister for Development Cooperation, who also serves on his
High-Level Panel on Global Sustainability.
- Later,
he held talks with Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt.
- At a
joint press conference following their meeting, the Secretary-General said they had
discussed developments in the Middle East and Libya, women’s empowerment,
the Millennium Development Goals, and next year’s Rio+20 United Nations
Conference on Sustainable Development. He also thanked Sweden for its steadfast
support for the United Nations.
- The
Secretary-General is on his way back to New York.
SECURITY COUNCIL EXTENDS AFHGANISTAN FORCE, DISCUSSES AFRICAN SECURITY
- The Security Council on Wednesday
morning extended the authorization of the International Security
Assistance Force (ISAF) in Afghanistan
for 12 months.
- The
Council also discussed security sector reform in Africa.
Herve Ladsous,
Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations, noted that security
sector reform is a crucial preventive tool, as previously underscored by
the Security Council.
YEMEN: U.N. AGENCY WARNS OF WORSENING FOOD
INSECURITY
- The
World Food Programme (WFP) warns
that more people in Yemen
are slipping into hunger as the country faces a serious humanitarian
situation.
- Rising
prices, fuel shortages and political instability are severely straining the
people’s ability to feed their families, the Programme notes.
- It is
scaling up its programmes in Yemen to feed 3.5 million
vulnerable people who have been pushed into hunger in the country’s
northern and southern regions.
NEARLY HALF OF QUAKE
DEBRIS REMOVED IN HAITI
– U.N. DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME
- The United
Nations Development Programme (UNDP)
says that more than 40 percent of the 10 million cubic metres of rubble resulting
from last year’s earthquake in Haiti has now been removed in
one of the largest scale clearance operations of its kind by the United
Nations and partners. Homeowners and private enterprises have cleared an
additional 10 percent of the debris.
- Together
with the Haitian government, UNDP coordinates the activities of nearly 50
in-country partners to map all debris-related initiatives in affected
areas.
- Meanwhile,
in and around Les Cayes, the UN Mission in Haiti
(MINUSTAH)
has helped evacuate some 300 people as heavy rains continue in the area.
The Mission
remains on stand by to help the authorities, if necessary.
OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS
DEPUTY
SECRETARY-GENERAL HIGHLIGHTS AFRICA’S ECONOMIC POTENTIAL:
The Deputy Secretary-General spoke at the World
Knowledge Forum in Seoul, Republic of Korea.
She spotlighted that there are reasons to believe that Africa
is on the eve of an economic renewal, with the high level of growth there
expected to continue.
U.N. CONFIRMS
COMPLAINT BY FORMER EMPLOYEE: Asked about the case of a former UN employee
in Kosovo, James Wasserstrom, the Deputy Spokesperson
confirmed that Mr. Wasserstrom had brought a
complaint against the Secretary-General.
He said that this complaint was currently before the United Nations
Dispute Tribunal and, as such, could not be discussed further.
Office of the Spokesperson for the
Secretary-General
United Nations, SA-1B15
New York, NY 10017
Tel. 212-963-7162
Fax. 212-963-7055
