HIGHLIGHTS OF THE NOON BRIEFING BY STEPHANE DUJARRIC, SPOKESPERSON FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL BAN KI-MOON

THURSDAY, 21 APRIL 2016

 

MORE THAN 165 COUNTRIES EXPECTED TO ATTEND SIGNING CEREMONY FOR PARIS CLIMATE AGREEMENT

  • The Secretary-General will host a signing ceremony for the Paris Agreement on Climate Change tomorrow at the United Nations.  
  • More than 165 Member States are expected to attend the signing ceremony, including an estimated 60 Heads of States and Heads of Governments. This would set a record for countries signing an international agreement on a single day.
  • Thirteen countries have indicated that they will submit their instruments of ratification tomorrow. The full list in available online and that list will be updated. 
  • At 8:30 a.m. in the General Assembly Hall, the Secretary-General will announce the start of the opening ceremony, and will address the event following remarks by a youth representative - Getrude Clement, who is a 16-year-old radio reporter from Tanzania and youth representative and climate advocate with UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF).
  • Children will be part of the event and there will be a performance by the Julliard brass quintet – after this the Secretary-General will declare the Paris Agreement officially open for signature, allowing Members States to take turns to sign the agreement. While the signing continues, those who have signed will head to the Economic and Social Council and Trusteeship Council Chambers to deliver their national remarks.
  • The Secretary-General is schedule to hold a joint press conference with President François Hollande before the high-level luncheon. There will also be press conference by business and civil society representatives.
  • At 1:15 p.m., the Secretary-General and the Global Compact will host a high-level luncheon on climate finance at the Delegates Dining Room. At 3:15 p.m., in Conference Room 1, there will be a high-level event on climate implementation.
  • The closing ceremony will start at around 6 p.m. featuring remarks by the Secretary-General as well as the past, current and incoming Presidencies of the Conferences of Parties. 

SECRETARY-GENERAL AND WORLD BANK PRESIDENT APPOINT HIGH-LEVEL PANEL ON SUSTAINABLE WATER MANAGEMENT

  • The Secretary-General and World Bank Group President Jim Yong Kim announced today the appointment of 10 Heads of State and Government, as well as two Special Advisors, to the High-Level Panel on Water.
  • The Panel, which was launched at the World Economic Forum in Davos last January, aims to mobilize effective action to accelerate the implementation of Sustainable Development Goal (SDGs) 6. That goal, you will recall, focuses on ensuring the availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all, at a time of unprecedented challenges.
  • The Panel members will serve for two years. The Co-chairs of the Panel are Ameenah Gurib, the President of Mauritius, and Enrique Peña Nieto, the President of Mexico.

DEPUTY SECRETARY-GENERAL STRESSES NEED FOR NEW APPROACHES TO ADDREES SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

  • The Deputy Secretary-General spoke at the High-level Debate on achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) on behalf of the Secretary-General.
  • He stressed that the development and climate agendas are inseparable and mutually reinforcing. He added that the breadth and depth of Agenda 2030 call for adopting new approaches and for breaking down silos.
  • He also stressed that the United Nations system has already begun to support countries, both strategically and operationally, to implement the Agenda. We are now in Year One of our 15-year journey, he concluded.

YEMEN: PEACE NEGOTIATIONS START IN KUWAIT

  • Under the auspices of the United Nations, the Yemen peace negotiations have started today in Kuwait, with the aim of reaching an agreement on a clear way to end the violence and devastation in the country.
  • The talks will seek to develop agreements which will restore security and peace in the country, strengthen state institutions and help speed economic recovery.
  • Although serious violations have been seen of the cessation of hostilities, the levels of military violence have significantly diminished, along with the number of civilian deaths.

SPECIAL ENVOY FOR SYRIA HIGHLIGHTS MODEST PROGESS IN HUMANITARIAN SITUATION

  • The Special Envoy for Syria, Staffan de Mistura, spoke to reporters in Geneva today and said that, according to the recent analysis by his team’s humanitarian task force, there has been a modest but real progress regarding the humanitarian situation in Syria.
  • So far, he said, about 220,000 people in the besieged areas have been reached, or about half the people of the besieged areas. And he said that 515 people were medically evacuated yesterday simultaneously from Zabadani, Madaya, Kefraya and Foah. That was done through the active participation of the Syrian Arab Red Crescent.
  • Mr. de Mistura added that his senior aide Khawla Mattar led a convoy which went, for the first time since 2012, to Darayya.  She reported that there is a need for food and medicine, and the Special Envoy pledged to follow up on her assessment.
  • He also noted that the World Food Programme (WFP) has in recent days conducted eight successful air drops of food to Deir Ezzour, which have reached an estimated 65,000 people.

LIBYA: HEAD OF MISSION CALLS FOR SAFE EVACUATION OF CIVILIANS AFFECTED BY FIGHTING IN BENGHAZI

  • The Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Libya, Martin Kobler, has called for the safe evacuation of civilians caught up in the fighting in Benghazi.
  • According to the UN Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL), a large number of civilians, including Libyans and migrant workers, are trapped in areas of fighting in Benghazi. They face shortages of electricity, food, medical supplies and other basic necessities.
  • The Deputy Special Representative Ali Al-Za’tari, has urged action following reports from the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) that up to 500 people have lost their lives this week when an overcrowded boat carrying hundreds of people capsized on its way to Europe from Libya.
  • An estimated 24,000 people have departed Libya by sea since the beginning of 2016, about 90 per cent more than in the same period in 2015, says the Humanitarian Country Team. Although hundreds have been rescued, many are missing and their fate unknown.

ECUADOR: HUMANITARIAN CHIEF CONCLUDES VISIT, AID AGENCIES TO LAUNCH FLASH APPEAL

  • The Emergency Relief Coordinator (ERC), Stephen O’Brien, wrapped up his visit to Ecuador, saying that the United Nations and partners would be launching the full Flash Appeal for the Ecuadorean relief operation tomorrow, to help some 350,000 people with immediate relief and initial recovery assistance within the next three months.
  • He also allocated US$7 million from the Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) to kick-start vital operations in logistics, shelter, water, sanitation and hygiene, and emergency health. Meanwhile, the World Food Programme is scaling up its operations with food kits, commodity vouchers, and, where markets are functioning, with cash-based transfers.
  • The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) is opening a special recovery office in the coastal city of Manta, around 260 km from Quito, to immediately initiate reconstruction in the most impacted areas. Debris removal activities will begin in the next few days, offering emergency employment and opportunities to boost livelihoods.

SECRETARY-GENERAL CONDEMNS VIOLENT DEMONSTRATIONS IN KIDAL, MALI

  • In a statement we issued yesterday afternoon, the Secretary-General strongly condemned the violent demonstrations that took place on Monday in Kidal, in the north of Mali, and regretted the loss of life and injury. According to preliminary information two protesters died and several were injured.
  • The Secretary-General presents his sincere condolences to the families of those who have died, and wishes a prompt recovery to the injured. He is committed to establishing the facts surrounding the loss of life and injury.
  • The Secretary-General urgently calls on all concerned and local leaders, including the leaders of the Coordination des mouvements de L’Azawad to cooperate in defusing tensions and exercising restraint so as to allow for a prompt investigation into the events.

OVER 18 MILLION INFANTS LACK ROUTINE IMMUNIZATIONS FOR PREVENTABLE DISEASES, WARNS WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION

  •  Ahead of next week’s World Immunization Week 2016, the World Health Organization (WHO) outlines further steps countries can take to close the immunization gap and meet global vaccination targets by 2020.
  • Dr. Margaret Chan, WHO’s Director General, stressed that last year immunization led to some notable wins in the fight against polio, rubella and maternal and neonatal tetanus but that they were isolated wins.
  • Immunization averts 2 to 3 million deaths annually but an additional 1.5 million deaths could be avoided if global vaccination coverage improves.
  • Today, an estimated 18.7 million infants – nearly 1 in 5 children – worldwide are still missing routine immunizations for preventable diseases.

U.N. AGENCIES HIGHLIGHT IMPACT OF LOST AND ABANDONED FISHING GEAR ON THE ENVIRONMENT

  • The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) today warned about the impact of lost and abandoned fishing gear on the environment. At present, it accounts for about one-tenth of all marine litter, translating into hundreds of thousands of tonnes annually.
  • Growing concern over this problem, coupled with the increasing availability of new technologies to recover this equipment, has led FAO to begin developing international guidelines on the effective tagging of fishing gear as a way to cut down levels of troublesome sea trash.

**The guests at the noon briefing were Forest Whitaker, the Sustainable Development Goals Advocate, and Thomas Gass, the Assistant Secretary-General for Policy Coordination and Inter-Agency Affairs in the Department of Economic and Social Affairs.**

Secretary-General

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