This grant is a critical step in expanding Saha’s efforts to reach vulnerable populations.
NEW YORK, September 11, 2024 (Newswire.com)
– Saha Global, a leading non-profit organization committed to ensuring safe and affordable water for rural communities, is proud to announce that it has been awarded a $5-million grant from the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation. This grant, extending over the next five years, marks a significant step in Saha’s mission to achieve universal, equitable, and affordable water access for underserved populations in Ghana.
Saha Global has spent over 15 years developing and refining an innovative, community-driven model that empowers local women as water entrepreneurs and provides affordable safe water to remote, rural villages. This grant will help the organization deepen its impact by expanding its water service to over 400,000 individuals living in some of Ghana’s most remote and vulnerable regions.
“We are deeply honored to receive this support from the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation, so we can continue to make a lasting impact in communities that are the hardest to reach and often overlooked,” said Kate Cincotta, Executive Director of Saha Global. “This grant is a critical step in expanding our efforts to reach vulnerable populations. It will allow us to advocate for the unique needs of people living in last-mile villages and to ensure that everyone in Ghana has reliable access to safe water.”
This new grant from the Hilton Foundation kickstarts Saha’s broader ambitions: to make access to clean water a fundamental human right, not a privilege. Saha’s long-term goal is to support the Government of Ghana in achieving universal water access for all, particularly for the most marginalized and underserved communities.
“We are pleased to support Saha’s innovative, women-led, safe water enterprise in Ghana,” said Brett Gleitsmann, Program Officer, Conrad N. Hilton Foundation. “We value Saha’s proven model to get professional water services to the most vulnerable populations living in remote, last-mile, rural communities and their long-standing commitment to work collaboratively with the Government of Ghana. We look forward to partnering together over the next five years to continue to expand safe water solutions for rural communities across Ghana.”
About Saha Global
Founded in 2008, Saha has been at the forefront of delivering affordable, clean water solutions to rural Ghanaian communities. The organization has trained over 1,260 women water entrepreneurs, providing safe water to over 138,816 people in 464 rural villages. Saha’s model ensures reliable, professional water services in remote villages where other solutions have failed. It achieves long-term impact by focusing on water quality and safe water consumption.
About the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation
The Conrad N. Hilton Foundation, established in 1944, is dedicated to improving the lives of disadvantaged individuals worldwide. Through its Safe Water Initiative, the Foundation has made significant investments in Ghana’s WASH sector, partnering with local governments and organizations to improve water infrastructure and access in rural communities. Their efforts support Ghana’s goal of universal access to safe water by 2030, with a focus on reaching marginalized, last-mile populations. The Foundation also prioritizes areas such as Homelessness, Foster Youth, Early Childhood Development, Catholic Sisters, and Disaster Relief.
The Special Event entitled Keeping the SDG Promise: Pathways for Acceleration is taking place on the sidelines of the High Level Political Forum (HLPF) now underway, aimed at getting the SDGs back on track and leaving no country behind.
It will give a boost to the so-called “High Impact Initiatives” championed by the whole UN development system and key investment strategies, while also highlighting countries.
Speaking exclusively to UN News’s Mayra Lopes, the UN deputy chief emphasized six key transition areas for accelerating the SDGs which are essential to success: food systems, energy access and affordability; digital connectivity, education, jobs and social protection; and climate change, biodiversity loss, and pollution.
The interview has been edited for clarity and length.
UN News: The global community is meeting this week at the High-Level Political Forum. We still have six years left until the 2030 deadline for the SDGs. What is your message to leaders?
Amina Mohammed: Be leaders. Be leaders for people and what they need and the promises that are made in the SDG agenda. Be leaders for the planet and the things that we need to have put in place for a 1.5-degree world.
Be leaders and inspire, that are accountable to the UN Charter. And come away from the UN knowing that this is the place where you will hear those voices and their expectations and aspirations. And that should give you the energy and the inspiration to go back and do the right thing.
UN News: The United Nations system unites around these six key transitions or pathways to acceleration. Can you tell us more about these areas and why it is so important to leave no one behind?
Amina Mohammed: We had very clear marching orders from Member States when they really did get the wake-up call of how badly off-track we were with the SDGs last year. 15 per cent, 17 per cent in some places. Not a pass mark. And for that, we had to think if this is an acceleration to 2030, what is it that would get resources in to get behind investments that would deliver on the SDGs? All 17 of them. And you’re not going to go out there talking about 17 ideas.
These are signposts for getting us to where we need to get to. So, we sort of clarified what those investments could be. Where business would come, the public sector is already there, where we could scale up, where the UN could reposition itself to help accompany countries to that. And so, those transitions made sense because we were talking about food systems.
Why were we talking about food systems? We had felt the impact of COVID and what that did to disrupt the world. We felt the impact of Ukraine on the food systems directly. We, of course, responded with the Black Sea Grain Initiative and that saved many lives.
But I think it was apparent that we could do more. And dependency on others was not always the best way to go. That is also a system that takes away from us getting to a 1.5-degree world.
The second was the transitions on energy. How do we make sure that energy gets to everyone? Access – whether it was for cooking or to small-scale industries such as education and health – and to really look at it off-grid. Not everything has to be on the grid. We can find mini-grids that power up whole communities – and especially if we were trying to link that to food systems as well.
The third was connectivity. Of course, the new technologies are here now. How do we connect people? And in this particular instance, for what? Well, for financial services for women for one. We want to make sure that you can join the world without leaving your village, on e-commerce. That needs to be powered, to be connected.
And then we also thought that, well, education is not in a good place. So, that was a fourth transition. It’s not the transformation of education we want to achieve overnight. That’s the end game of what you want to put into it. But what is the first thing that perhaps needs attention? Young people are out of work. They’ve not had the education they ought to.
You want to connect them to markets. And to do that, if you’re transforming food systems skills, how could you do that with technology and do it better and make it more equitable? Close the divides that there are today. Create jobs that people feel they are losing or have lost.
And then, to put this in context, I think of two important things: the resilience of people that needs to be supported by, I would say, a social protection floor that takes from the country’s GDP. Then, you’ve got some resilience, and you can ensure that when you have these big knocks like COVID-19, that people are not knocked off track.
Last but not least, the enabling environment will become more difficult if we don’t take cognizance of what we would call the triple crisis: climate, biodiversity, and pollution.
UN News: I want to refer to the digital innovation part. I wanted to hear if you feel hopeful and how you think we can leverage this new technology?
Amina Mohammed: There was a gentleman who I met recently in Barbados. And he was the one who designed the search engine, the very first one we had called Archie. I said to him, so you tell me, what do you think about this new era of technology that you’re obviously very familiar with? And he said, “It’s very exciting, it’s very scary, and we’re not ready”. And I thought, well, that probably captured the reality.
The Secretary-General has put in place his offer to the Summit of the Future of how to put the guardrails around the potentials. There is a dark side to it, but there are so many opportunities, and I think that structure will help us to be safer.
It will help us to go further in a world that’s connected and we must do things about governance, about the way in which technology is used, whether it’s algorithms that are designed, have a bias against women.
But I think what is more important is when I said to him: “Is this like going from the horse and cart to the combustion engine when we industrialized?”. And he said, “No, it’s much more than that – because you’re talking about changing societies and the way we do things”. We will never be the same again because we will be so much more connected.
UN Photo/Loey Felipe
UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed addresses the opening of the High-level Political Forum 2024.
UN News: We are talking a lot about the SDG acceleration, but we have a very challenging landscape right now with wars and global tensions. How do you think we can still push for SDG acceleration in this scenario?
Amina Mohammed: Well, back to your first question. We need leadership. We need leadership at all levels. That’s not just the president of a country, but in all constituencies, business, civil society, young people.
That will be a key part of what should make us hopeful. Rebirthing the United Nations [as] a stronger town hall for a global village, so that voices here are not only heard but acted upon.
We don’t all have the same muscle on that floor, but we do have a voice, and we can take that out and we must remember every day that the representation of our people is so diverse, and the needs are so complex.
Perhaps more important to me is how we find the resources for the development agenda, for peace, for security. But not security in the way in which we pay for war; but security in which we invest in the prevention – which is development.
We find ourselves in a system which was designed for a 1945 recovery from World War Two. “May we never know the scourge of war again”. But we have. And the same principles we applied then, which was to say people have to have access to resources to rebuild their lives, are exactly the same principles we need to have today to say you need to have long term financing for your development, wherever you are in the world.
UN Photo/Loey Felipe
Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed (2nd right) visits an Ecological Living Module, a demonstration of eco-friendly and affordable housing exhibited at UN Headquarters in New York. (file)
My hope is that acceleration happens because we all understand there’s an existential threat with a 1.5-degree world hanging in the balance, that people will no longer sit on the sidelines.
And how they react depends on how much injustice they think they’re being meted out by their local leadership, national leadership, and international leadership. So, this is a globe very much connected. Young people are full of energy. They are anxious because they don’t see a future.
If I go back to the creation of many terrorists, they’re not born. It’s an environment that excludes, an environment of injustice, an environment of no hope.
And therefore, a young person finds themselves easy fodder for those who would like to disrupt, in a way that is unfortunate.
So, I have hope that we have never been more equipped in a world with resources to do the right thing. We have an amazing framework and path to this through the SDGs. And I think that we should just get up and race this last mile and then deliver the promise of the SDGs.
The Secretary-General expressed his appreciation to Turkmenistan for hosting the UN Regional Centre for Preventive Diplomacy for Central Asia in Ashgabat, and commended Turkmenistan’s generosity in granting citizenship to stateless people.
He also thanked the President for providing the UN Country Team with a new building.
Regional challenges
Later at a press encounter, Mr. Guterres told journalists that “Turkmenistan is playing a very important role in international relations”, particularly in cooperation with the UN.
“In these troubled times, I commend Turkmenistan’s policy of neutrality,” he said.
The Secretary-General is on an official visit to Central Asia, which covers Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan.
Mr. Guterres last visited the region seven years ago. Since then it has been affected by numerous global challenges, he said, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, rising geopolitical tensions and the intensifying climate crisis.
He was encouraged that relations between Central Asian countries have improved in the face of these challenges, and regional cooperation has deepened, again highlighting the important role played by Turkmenistan.
He said the region continues to face many obstacles to development, including water shortages, land degradation, natural hazards, and a lack of adequate connectivity.
“The solutions are interlinked and can be found through dialogue and cooperation, and Turkmenistan plays a central role in that cooperation,” he said.
UN commitment
The Secretary-General noted that the establishment of the UN Regional Centre for Preventive Diplomacy demonstrates the Organization’s commitment to Central Asia.
“With the engagement of all five Central Asian countries, the Regional Centre will continue to provide a forum for coming together around common solutions, especially on the implementation of the United Nations Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy in Central Asia and the management of natural resources to the benefit of all,” he said.
Climate action and sustainable development
The Secretary-General also used the opportunity to highlight how like other countries across Central Asia, Turkmenistan is suffering the impacts of the intensifying climate crisis.
He stressed the need for “far more ambitious climate action and cuts in emissions if the world is to stay within 1.5 degrees of global heating.”
Mr. Guterres further noted that Turkmenistan has made “important strides” towards achieving a number of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), adding that the UN Country Team is engaged with the Government in identifying gaps and risks.
“Sustainable, inclusive development can be enormously enhanced by respect for the full spectrum of human rights – economic, social, political, cultural and civic,” he added.
In this regard, the Secretary-General encouraged Turkmenistan to continue engaging with UN human rights mechanisms and recommendations.
Welcome to our live coverage of one of the most important speeches on climate change that António Guterres has made since becoming Secretary-General. We’re reporting live from the event in Manhattan, providing all the background information you need on the speech itself – and reaction to it inside the hall and around the world.
Since then, the ambitious goals have shaped national action plans, from building resilient cities and reducing inequalities to taking climate action and forging strong public and private sector partnerships.
This two-part series looks the progress made between 2015 and 2023 in key areas. The first part examines bridging the digital divide, education for all and decent work.
Amina J. Mohammed – Empowered UN country teams implementing 2030 Agenda
2015: Dawn of the digital divide
When the SDGs were adopted in 2015, the world was already in the midst of a fast-paced digital revolution, with 3.2 billion people using the internet and more than 7 billion mobile phone subscribers, according to the International Telecommunication Union (ITU).
At the same time, the first instances of a digital divide were already taking root. While 80 per cent of households in developed countries had internet access, only 34 per cent of households in developing countries were connected. Least developed countries lagged further behind, with only 7 per cent of households having online access.
For millions of people around the world, a life without digital connectivity is unthinkable, from accessing information to paying for services to getting medical help and studying online.
2023: Digital inequalities starker than ever
With a click of a button, millions of people of all ages around the world engage every single day with digital infrastructure. Yet, digital divides and inequalities are starker than ever. More than two thirds of the planet use the internet, and as of 2022, there were 8.63 billion mobile subscribers.
On a global scale, less women use the internet than men: 63 per cent of women, compared to 69 per cent of men. Meanwhile, new technologies, turbo-charged by risks posed by the increased and unchecked use of artificial intelligence (AI), can easily drive loss of data privacy and escalate risks of online harm, spreading online violence and hate speech along with mis/disinformation.
Today, globally, some 250 million children are out of school.
2015: Education, for some
When the SDGs were adopted in 2015, primary school enrolment in developing countries stood at 91 per cent. Still, 59 million children of primary school age remained out of school; about 33 million of these were girls.
Other disparities were striking. In conflict-affected countries, nearly 36 per cent of all children were out of school. About 757 million people globally could neither read nor write, of whom two-thirds were women.
The SDGs represented world leaders’ first attempt to also focus on quality education and learning across levels. With its transformative effect and impact across all other goals, education is a steppingstone for sustainable development and enduring hope for a better future, from the remote archipelagos of the Pacific to the forests of Latin America and islands of the Caribbean, the make-shift classrooms in war-torn Ukraine and refugee camps in northern Kenya.
United Nations
SDG 4
SDG 4: EDUCATION FOR ALL
Ensure all children complete free, equitable and quality education and have access to quality early childhood development
Increase number of young adults with employment skills for
Eliminate gender disparities and ensure equal access to all levels of education
Ensure all youth and most adults achieve literacy and numeracy
Build and upgrade education facilities to be child, disability and gender sensitive
Increase number of qualified teachers
Without additional measures, 84 million children will be out of school, 300 million students will lack basic numeracy and literacy skills, and only one in six countries will achieve the target of universal secondary school completion.
2023: Half-time report card
While strides have been made, the COVID-19 global pandemic outbreak saw education across the planet take a significant hit. Nearly 1.5 billion children and youth globally were affected by school closures.
Today, globally, some 250 million children are out of school. Of this, about 64 million children of primary school age now remain out of school. Nearly half of all refugee children globally also lack access to education. Globally, 763 million adults are illiterate.
By 2030, it is estimated that nearly 84 million children and young people will still be out of school.
The UN Secretary-General convened the 2022 Transforming Education Summit, which called for more urgent and escalated measures to deliver inclusive and quality education, particularly for girls, low-income students, students with disabilities or in the midst of crisis.
Access to quality education is a growing concern. Globally, nearly 617 million globally are failing to meet minimum proficiency standards in reading and mathematics.
2015: World of work
In 2015, 6.1 per cent of the global population of people of working age were unemployed. This number was higher for women, who were overrepresented in vulnerable and informal jobs and more likely to be unpaid caregivers. In most countries, women employed in full-time jobs earned between 70 and 90 per cent of what men earned.
A total of 1.5 billion people around the world were employed in vulnerable jobs without formal work arrangements, according to the World Employment Social Outlook by the International Labour Organization (ILO).
United Nations
SDG 8
SDG 8: ENSURE DECENT WORK FOR ALL
Take immediate measures to eradicate forced labour, modern slavery and human trafficking
Protect labour rights, and promote safe, secure environments for all workers
Sustain per capita economic growth and at least seven per cent gross domestic product growth per annum in least developed countries
Achieve higher levels of economic productivity through diversification, technology and innovation
Improve global resource efficiency in consumption and production
Decouple economic growth with environmental degradation
Global unemployment is expected to fall below pre-pandemic levels, although not in low-income countries
2023: Working out post-pandemic progress
Wage losses, job insecurity, and a rising cost of living crisis have been a common thread in the past few years, across the world, directly impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. The global unemployment rate has overall fallen slightly to 5.8 per cent, but it is still impacted by the pandemic. In 2021, ILO found that an estimated 125 million full-time jobs were lost as a result of the pandemic, which disproportionately affected women and young people.
Last year, more than 2 billion workers globally were employed in the informal sector without social protection coverage, according to the agency’s latest employment outlook report.
In 2021, the UN Secretary-General launched the Global Accelerator on Jobs and Social Protection for Just Transitions, to expand social protection to the four billion people and to create at least 400 million decent jobs. From 2020 to 2022, the Joint SDG Fund’s Portfolio on Integrated Social Protection provided critical financing to sustain and expand social protection coverage in 39 countries around the world, with UN country teams supporting governments in reaching 147 million vulnerable people with access to new or extended social protection benefits.
In the second of a two-part series, UN News looks at how far the world has come since 2015 in tackling climate change, creating clean energy and sustainable food production and protecting the planet.
Broken record: UNEP’s #EmissionsGap Report 2023
2015: Overconsumption, under-protection
In 2015, only a small fraction of the world was officially protected: 14 per cent of land and less than nine per cent of marine ecosystems. One third of global marine fish stocks were being harvested at unsustainable levels.
All country commitments to reduce greenhouse gas emissions combined put the world on a trajectory of a 3°C temperature rise by 2100, compared to pre-industrial levels.
That is double the 1.5°C global temperature rise that a series of UN reports, scientists and governments agreed would help to avoid the most destructive impacts of higher temperatures and maintain a liveable climate.
United Nations
SDG 12
SDG 12: SUSTAINABLE PRODUCTION AND CONSUMPTION
Achieve sustainable management and efficient use of natural resources
Halve per capita global food waste at retail and consumer levels and encourage companies to adopt sustainable practices
Support developing countries to strengthen their scientific and technological capacity to move towards more sustainable consumption and production patterns
Implement policies to promote sustainable tourism that creates jobs and promotes local culture
Phase out inefficient fossil fuel subsidies that encourage wasteful consumption
Despite calls for a global phase-out, fossil fuel subsidies doubled between 2020 and 2021, in large part due to global crises.
2023: Stopping the war on nature
At the halfway mark to the 2030 deadline, global awareness of biodiversity protection has increased, but efforts to transform human interaction with nature and resource consumption still lag behind in terms of speed and scale.
Combined with skyrocketing levels of pollution, the degradation of the natural habitat and biodiversity loss are having serious impacts on communities around the world.
Many communities are building back better, from Pakistan’s launch of the biggest climate initiative in the country’s history to the UN Secretary-General’s new global Early Warnings for All initiative.
Increasing investments in solar, wind power, hydropower and biomass will be essential to reduce global reliance on coal and oil.
2015: Fossil fuel versus clean energy
When the SDGs were adopted in 2015, 87 per cent of the world had access to some form of electricity, but nearly 1.1 billion people did not, with most living in Africa and Asia.
Oil prices plunged to an all-time low and fossil fuels dominated the market with global investments amounting to nearly $1.3 billion. Coal alone accounted for nearly 40 per cent of global electricity generated.
But, just 60 per cent of the world’s population had access to clean cooking fuels; the numbers in sub-Saharan Africa were much lower.
Women, in particular, bore a heavier health burden as a result, were vulnerable to indoor air pollution and respiratory disease.
2023: Drive towards renewables
A drive towards clean energy is making some inroads. While 91 per cent of the world now has access to electricity, progress hasn’t been fast or inclusive enough. The number of people with access to electricity has increased to 675 million since 2015.
Global investment in clean energy has hit near record highs at $ 1.7 trillion, and renewables now account for more than 28 per cent of global electricity, growing by nearly 5 per cent since 2015.
Nevertheless, 2.3 billion people still continue to rely on coal, kerosene or solid biomass as their primary cooking fuel. A lack of clean cooking is contributing to nearly 3.7 million premature deaths annually, with women and children most at risk.
About 80 per cent of the world’s population without electricity continues to live in rural areas, predominantly in sub-Saharan Africa.
Studies now show that meeting these clean energy goals will require the world to triple its annual investments between now and 2030. Nations are already walking the talk, from Indonesia’s Just Energy Transition Partnership to a fresh approach of the Nairobi Declaration, adopted in September at the African Climate Summit.
United Nations
SDG 7
SDG 7: CLEAN ENERGY FOR ALL
Increase share of renewable energy globally
Double global rate of improvement in energy efficiency
Expand infrastructure and upgrade technology for supplying modern, sustainable energy services
Enhance international cooperation to facilitate access to clean energy research and technology, including renewable energy, energy efficiency and advanced and cleaner fossil-fuel technology
In countries enduring protracted crises, hunger rates were more than three times higher than elsewhere. Poor nutrition contributed to impaired growth and development for 159 million children under age five.
A woman shops at an indoor market in Hissar, Tajikistan. (file)
2023: New approach to food security
The question of how food is produced, traded and consumed in a sustainable manner has come to the fore, with one third of all food produced globally ending up lost or wasted and more than three billion people unable to afford healthy diets.
The prevalence of hunger has dropped only marginally since 2015, to 9.2 per cent of the global population. Progress has been frustrated by the COVID-19 pandemic and the rise in climate shocks and conflict, including the Russian invasion of Ukraine, which has driven up the costs of food, fuel and fertilizers.
In 2022, approximately 735 million people faced hunger, which is still well above the pre-pandemic level, and 148 million children still faced stunting from poor nutrition; just over a two per cent decrease since 2015.
United Nations
SDG 2
SDG 2: END FOOD INSECURITY
End hunger and malnutrition, and ensure access to safe, nutritious and sufficient food year-round for all
Double small-scale food producers’ agricultural productivity and income
Ensure sustainable food production systems, and implement agricultural practices that increase productivity/production and strengthen capacity for adaptation to climate change and disasters
Correct and prevent trade restrictions in world agricultural markets
Globally, one in three people struggles with moderate to severe food insecurity.
To transform this trend, the UN Food Systems Summit in Rome in 2021 and a subsequent stocktaking moment in 2023 have provided a platform for countries to share their experience. That led to the launch in July of the UN Secretary-General’s Call to Action for accelerated food systems transformation.
In an interview with UN Under-Secretary-General for Global Communications Melissa Fleming on the sidelines of SDG Summit 2023 held at UN Headquarters in New York in September, Ms. Portman discussed combatting violence against women and reframing masculinity to be less aggressive and more empathetic towards gender issues.
Melissa Fleming: The UN 2023 Gender Snapshot report painted a worrisome picture on how far away we are from reaching gender equality. What can we do to shift these trends?
Natalie Portman: Investing in women and girls’ education, safety and economic and social empowerment. More investment will accelerate the drive toward parity.
Melissa Fleming: Why is there under-investment in girls?
Natalie Portman: There is a deeply ingrained bias against women and girls that we really need to combat and obviously, education is a big part of that. The Spotlight Initiative that the UN launched [in partnership with the European Union and others] in 2017 is addressing a lot of the ingrained cultural biases that lead to the inequalities and injustices that we see.
It really is such a core part of women’s freedom to be free from the threat of violence. And until women and girls can feel safe walking down the street, going to school and going to work, nothing else can be achieved to the extent that we dream of.
Spotlight’s work has been really extraordinary at reaching many different countries to change laws, implement educational tools and change culture such that masculinity is reframed as empathy rather than aggression.
UNFPA/Olivier Girard
Young girls in the village of Danja in Niger hold signs in support of the Spotlight Initiative.
Melissa Fleming: We now have an online environment that has made a dangerous and threatening space for so many girls growing up in the social media age. Is that something you are concerned about?
Natalie Portman: Absolutely. The threat and danger that women and girls are subjected to in real life is just as bad, if not worse, online. I mean, it’s all different varieties of trying to silence us.
The more we can support and celebrate women and girls’ voices, the more we’re combating this horrible abuse of power.
Melissa Fleming: You were very much behind the Time’s Up movement supporting victims of sexual harassment. Why is it so important for women in Hollywood to raise their voices? Does this set an example for women in other industries?
Natalie Portman: Time’s Up was incredible because we gathered with women in other industries as well. We gathered with female farm workers, healthcare workers, journalists and women in tech and we noticed we were all facing the same sorts of challenges. Obviously in different locations or different flavours, but really the same threat.
The head of the Farm Workers Union, Monica Ramirez, said to me, “They tell us to shut up because we’re in the shadows and nobody cares about us and they tell you actresses to shut up because nobody cares.”
But, the common thread is that they’re trying to silence all our voices. That was really the power of Tarana Burke’s #MeToo movement. It was breaking out of that silence and it was empowering women. We need to make their voices heard and not feel shame around these experiences. We must recognize that these were extreme injustices and that perpetrators needed to be held to account.
I think that people are very aware now and there isn’t a sense that you can just abuse as you wish without facing any consequences. People are a lot more open about it now.
We still have a far way to go, of course, but I think the #MeToo movement really cracked open a door that is not going to be shut anymore.
UNDP India
UNDP’s entrepreneurship development training programme is changing the lives of women in India.
Melissa Fleming: Is there a difference for women and girls that live in developing countries?
Natalie Portman: I think women and girls around the world can relate to each other in regard to living under the threat of violence. That, unfortunately, is everywhere.
Of course, there are different manifestations of violence toward women and girls in different places. Some girls are threatened with violence for going to school which, in the United States, we do not experience. But, in the United States, the number one cause of death for pregnant women is being murdered by their intimate partner. In Iran, we’re seeing women who are being murdered for exposing their hair.
So really the threat of women and girls being threatened and murdered exists everywhere.
Melissa Fleming: You mentioned the masculinity issue and educating men that masculinity is actually empathy. How does one do that?
Natalie Portman:I think that culture can play a big role in shaping that. I think when we see different models of masculinity on screen or in literature, we open up more possibilities for men.
I think that film and television can absolutely help shape new forms of masculinity that are much more reflective of what we know to be the human soul and not just this very narrow kind of aggressive, macho-type that we see so deeply ingrained in our culture.
And then of course education as well, showing the effects of toxic masculinity.
It opens up boys and men’s worlds too, to have more options of how you can be and not this very narrow, prescriptive definition of masculinity.
Melissa Fleming: You are a part owner of the Angel City Football Club in Los Angeles that made their debut at the Women’s Soccer League last year. Can you tell us a bit more about why you got involved?
Natalie Portman: It was very much about seeing both women and men in different ways than we traditionally have seen them. When I saw my son watching the Women’s World Cup four years ago, I realized that he looked up to the women athletes the same way he looked up to the male athletes. I realized, “Why don’t we have this on at home?”
What a different world it would be if all boys and girls could see women athletes given the value that they deserve, like the men are, so we started this women’s football club. We started playing two years ago and it’s just been an incredible thing to be a part of, to see the virtuosic athletes celebrated on a big stage.
As the fourth day of this year’s UN climate conference got under way, the UN chief stated: “The fossil fuel industry is finally starting to wake up, but the promises made clearly fall short of what is required.”
Reacting to the pledge announced on Saturday by several major oil and gas companies to reduce methane leaks from their pipelines by 2030, Mr. Guterres said it is a “step in the right direction”, but the promise failed to address a core issue, namely, eliminating emissions from fossil fuel consumption.
Methane (CH4) is a primary component of natural gas and is responsible for about a third of the planetary warming we see today. It is short-lived but is more powerful than carbon dioxide, the greenhouse gas most responsible for climate change. Without serious action, global anthropogenic methane emissions are projected to rise by up to 13 per cent between now and 2030.
Dubbing the oil and gas companies, the “giant behind the climate crisis”, the Secretary-General also pointed out that the pledge did not provide clarity on the pathway to reaching net-zero by 2050, which is “absolutely essential to ensure integrity.”
“Science is clear: we need to phase out fossil fuels within a timeframe compatible with limiting global warming to 1.5 Celsius,” he reiterated, referring to one of the keystone targets set by the landmark 2015 Paris Agreement.
“There must be no room for greenwashing,” he said, referring to the dangers involved in promoting deceptive marketing and false claims of sustainability.
Find out more here about the tactics of ‘greenwashing’.
Early Warning for All
The groundbreaking Early Warnings for All Initiative launched by the Secretary-General last year, aims to protect everyone from hazardous weather, water or climate through life-saving early warning systems by the end of 2027.
“This is an ambitious goal – but it is achievable. To make it a reality, we need all hands-on deck – collaborating and cooperating in a way that has not been done before,” he told delegates at Sunday’s main event on the issue.
Mr. Guterres also launched a new report, prepared by the UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR) and the UN World Meteorological Organization (WMO) which shows that more lives are being protected from extreme weather and dangerous climate change impacts, but the pace of progress remains insufficient.
So far,101 countries reported having an early warning system, an increase of six countries compared to last year, and representing a doubling of coverage since 2015.
Yet, half of countries globally still do not have adequate multi-hazard early warning systems, the report finds.
The head of UNDRR Mami Mizutori said: “The progress is encouraging but we must not be complacent … with an 80 per cent increase in the number of people affected by disasters since 2015 and half the world still lacking access to early warnings.”
“Early warnings are the low-hanging fruit of climate adaptation. They are not a luxury but a must,” added WMO Secretary-General Petteri Taalas.
Basic tool to save lives
The UN chief said Early Warnings for All systems are “the most basic tool for saving lives and securing livelihoods” in a world defined by “escalating climate injustices”.
Worryingly, countries that are vulnerable to extreme weather, especially small island developing States and least developed countries, as well as the entire African continent, have a rate of protection is well below the global average.
“And delayed action leads to more extreme weather events. More deaths. More destruction,” stated the Secretary-General.
Progress so far
Highlighting the progress made over the past year, Mr. Guterres shared examples from several countries:
Maldives, Laos and Ethiopia now have dedicated national action plans;
Benin has strengthened communications to reach communities at greatest risk; and
Fiji’s flash flood warning has been expanded to benefit nearly one million people.
He pointed out that in a world on a fast-track to temperature increase of 3 degrees Celsius, climate vulnerability is bound to escalate.
Therefore, it is critical to cut carbon pollution at an accelerated pace and invest in protecting vulnerable communities from the impact of more frequent and severe climate-related events.
The estimated cost of bringing everyone under the protection of early warning systems would be around $3 billion, “a tiny fraction of the hundreds of billions made by the fossil fuel industry last year.”
Mr. Guterres called for a windfall tax on these profits, and for the money to be used to protect those suffering the worst impacts, encouraging countries to be “bold and ambitious and to double the speed and scale of support in 2024”.
Race to net-zero
During a roundtable on the latest report from his High-Level Expert Group on Net-Zero, the Secretary-General said that COP28 is about turning things around, but national governments cannot do it alone.
“Businesses, financial institutions, civil society, cities, states and regions are all critical in the race to net-zero,” he said.
In simple terms, ‘net-zero’ means cutting greenhouse gas emissions to as close to zero as possible.
In March 2022, the UN chief established the expert group to develop stronger and clearer standards for pledges by non-State entities and speed up their implementation which outlined ten recommendations in its report, as a how-to guide for credible, accountable net-zero pledges.
Reminding the room of his ‘Acceleration Agenda,’ Mr. Guterres called on governments and non-State actors to radically speed-up efforts to cut emissions, for which he highlighted five key elements:
Genuine decarbonization effort to cover all activities, across every link of value chains;
Detailed targets for 2025, 2030 and 2035, in line 1.5 degrees target of the Paris Agreement;
Disclosure of all lobbying, policy engagements and communication campaigns;
Information on efforts to change business models and internal operations to phase out fossil fuels; and
Move towards a just, equitable and accelerated renewables transition.
Want to know more? Check out our special events page, where you can find all our coverage of the COP28 climate conference, including stories and videos, explainers and our newsletter.
While 2023 is not yet over, a provisional report from the UN World Meteorological Organization (WMO) confirmed that it is set to be the warmest on record, with global temperatures rising 1.4 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels.
Mr. Guterres said that the race is on to keep alive the 1.5-degree limit agreed by world leaders in Paris in 2015.
“We are living through climate collapse in real time – and the impact is devastating,” he warned in a video statement accompanying the launch of the report on the first day of this year’s annual UN climate talks.
UN News/Nargiz Shekinskaya
Melting glaciers, rising seas
The UN Secretary-General recently visited two global warming hotspots, Antarctica and Nepal, where he bore witness to record low sea ice and was “shocked at the speed of receding glaciers”.
According to WMO’s report, the maximum Antarctic Sea ice extent for the year was a staggering one million square kilometres less than the previous record low, at the end of southern hemisphere winter.
Glaciers in western North America and the European Alps also experienced an “extreme melt season”.
Because of continued ocean warming and melting of glaciers and ice sheets, record sea level rise was also observed, WMO said.
Greenhouse gas levels keep climbing
Meanwhile, concentrations in the atmosphere of heat-trapping carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide reached a record high last year and continued to increase in 2023.
WMO stressed that carbon dioxide levels are 50 per cent above the pre-industrial era and that the gas’s long lifetime “means that temperatures will continue to rise for many years to come”.
“These are more than just statistics,” said WMO chief Petteri Taalas, calling for action to “limit the risks of an increasingly inhospitable climate in this and the coming centuries”.
Dire consequences
From deadly Cyclone Daniel in Libya in September to devastating floods in the Horn of Africa following five consecutive seasons of drought and severe smoke pollution from Canada’s forest blazes, WMO’s report highlights the grim effects of climate upheaval on lives, health and livelihoods.
Throughout the year, communities suffering from extreme weather around the world faced food insecurity and displacement.
“Record global heat should send shivers down the spines of world leaders,” Mr. Guterres said. “And it should trigger them to act”.
Follow the roadmap
The UN chief reiterated his call on countries to “triple renewables, double energy efficiency… and phase out fossil fuels”.
According to WMO, last year renewable energy capacity grew by some 10 per cent worldwide, led by solar and wind power.
Mr. Guterres pointed to the existing roadmap to limit global temperature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius. Eight years on, he urged governments to set “clear expectations” for the next round of climate action plans and invest in their implementation.
Protect people
The COP 28 conference will see the first-ever “global stocktake” to assess collective progress on cutting emissions and ramping up adaptation efforts and support to developing countries hard hit by a warming climate.
The UN Secretary-General said that countries must “go further and faster in protecting people from climate chaos”.
This includes ensuring that every person on Earth is covered by early warnings against extreme weather by 2027 and operationalizing a “loss and damage fund” to assist vulnerable hit hard by floods, droughts and other climate disasters with “generous, early contributions” from richer nations, he said.
Developed countries must honour the promise to deliver $100 billion per year in climate finance, which was first made at COP15 in 2009, and double the amount of funding going towards adaptation efforts, he insisted.
The UN climate conference taking place from 30 November to 12 December in Dubai is the 28th Conference of Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), which entered into force in 1994.
Over 60,000 delegates are expected to attend, including the member states of the UNFCCC, industry leaders, youth activists and representatives of indigenous communities.
All eyes will be on the conclusions of the first global stocktake – referred to as a ‘temperature check’ on where the world stands in meeting commitments under the Paris Agreement – and countries’ willingness to use them as a springboard towards more ambitious, accelerated climate action.
The Governing Body of the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (ITPGRFA) highlighted the need to ensure close collaboration with the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), particularly in the context of the negotiations to enhance the functioning of the Treaty’s Multilateral System (MLS) of access and benefit-sharing (ABS) and ongoing talks under the CBD towards a multilateral mechanism on benefit-sharing from the use of digital sequence information (DSI) on genetic resources.
ITPGRFA aims to conserve crop diversity and share its benefits for human and planetary well-being.
The theme of the tenth session of its Governing Body (GB 10) was ‘From Seeds to Innovative Solutions, Safeguarding Our Future: Contributing to the Implementation of the Global Biodiversity Framework for Sustainable Food Systems,’ which highlighted the importance of crop diversity for food security, environmental sustainability, and socioeconomic well-being in the face of global challenges. The Earth Negotiations Bulletin (ENB) summary report of the meeting notes that convening less than a year after the adoption of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF), the meeting “underscored farmers’ contributions to agricultural biodiversity, and drew attention to the interlinkages between the Treaty and [CBD].”
“Four Working Group meetings are planned for the next biennium,” ENB highlights, “to allow for progress on the negotiations…
“This first World Sustainable Transport Day reminds us that the road to a better future depends on cleaner and greener transportation systems,” Antonio Guterres explained, spotlighting the relationship between transportation and global sustainability.
Fuelling climate chaos
“Transportation represents the world’s circulatory system, delivering people and goods across countries and around the world, creating jobs, and supporting prosperity,” Mr. Guterres said, underscoring the important feature of transportation as essential facilitator of human development.
“But it is also fuelling climate chaos,” added the Secretary-General, acknowledging the sector’s role in exacerbating the global climate crisis.
The statistics are alarming: the transport sector is responsible for approximately a quarter of all greenhouse gas emissions, while 91 percent of the energy used in motorized transport by land, sea, and air is still derived from fossil fuels.
‘Up to the challenge’
Although the sector is heavily reliant on fossil fuels, the Secretary-General expressed optimism about humanity’s ability to address the issue head-on.
“I am convinced humanity is up to the challenge of breaking our addiction to climate-killing fossil fuels,” he proclaimed, emphasizing the need for concerted efforts to transition to sustainable alternatives.
Mr. Guterres outlined a vision for a resilient, efficient, and low-carbon transportation future.
“From electric and solar-powered vehicles to renewable aviation fuel sources, to massive investments in green public transportation systems, to measures like carbon pricing and subsidies for low-carbon fuels,” he outlined a strategy towards greater sustainability.
“There is no time to waste. Let’s get moving,” urged the Secretary-General.
Sustainable transportation, policies and innovative technologies will be front and centre at the UN Climate Change Conference, COP28, that begins in Dubai on November 30.
Global economic growth is declining to about 2.5 per cent this year, the UN said. Apart from the initial COVID-19 crisis three years ago, and the global financial crisis in 2009, this represents the weakest level since 2001.
Given the size of the contribution of cities to national economies, the future of many countries will be determined by their productivity.
“Building greater resilience and better protecting vulnerable populations requires far greater investments in sustainable infrastructure, early warning systems, and affordable, adequate housing for all,” he said.
“At the same time, we must work to improve access to electricity, water, sanitation, transport, and other basic services – while investing in education, skills development, digital innovation, and entrepreneurship.”
In this regard, “local action is vital, and global cooperation indispensable,” he added.
Planet urbanizing rapidly
The push for more resilient, safe and inclusive cities is among the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which point the way to a fair, just and green future for all people and the planet by 2030.
Currently, more than half the world lives in cities, which is projected to rise to 70 per cent by 2050. Over one billion are living in slums, and their numbers will also increase.
Speaking at the official ceremony for World Habitat Day in Baku, Azerbaijan, the head of the UN’s urban development agency said countries are “far behind” in achieving SDG 11. The biggest challenge is data reporting and monitoring at the national and local levels.
Fair financing
Maimunah Mohd Sharif, Executive Director of UN-Habitat, recalled that at the recent SDG Summit at UN Headquarters in New York, the Secretary-General urged world leaders to strengthen both multi-level governance and cooperation.
She also drew attention to “the elephant in the room” – financing – noting that the issue was raised by most delegates at the UN General Assembly last month.
“As the Secretary General said, we need to reform the current unsustainable and unfair financial system,” she told participants.
“We cannot expect least developed and small island developing states to implement the SDGs as well as climate adaptation measures if 70 per cent of their total revenues are used to service debt.”
Ms. Sharif said UN-Habitat is working with over 600 cities in all regions of the world and will finalize a position paper on financing sustainable urbanization.
Urban October
World Habitat Day has been commemorated annually since 1986.
It marks the start of Urban October, which provides an opportunity for people everywhere to join the global conversation around the potentials and perils of a planet that is becoming ever more urban.
“Come rain or shine, we’re here because we are committed to our planet”, said Amina Mohammed, addressing the Global Citizen Festival, against the backdrop of the UN General Assembly High Level Week, taking place down the road.
All to play for at halftime
She highlighted the race to reach the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), end the climate crisis, and push for real gender equality.
“What happens today is a reflection of leaders meeting all week, promises made seven years ago, and today we’re recommitting to what the great Al Pacino said, tell it like it is: it’s halftime, and we’re down…but we’re not out!”
She asked the crowd assembled in the green heart of Manhattan if they felt like they were changing the world: “Well at the United Nations, we’re joining you, we are mobilizing people around the world.”
Global Citizen’s main mission is to end extreme poverty, through goals that align fully with the UN and the SDGs.
At the Festival, global leaders pledged $240 million for the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), promised to protect a further 900,000 hectares of land in the Brazilian Amazon rainforest, and secured promises from nine members of the US Congress, and the leader of the Labour Party in the UK, Kier Starmer, to follow through on national climate commitments.
Struggling to keep promises
The Deputy Secretary-General acknowledged that many around the world are hurting both in “mind and body”, with wars raging, and the planet not just warming – but boiling.
“Leaders are really struggling to use their power to keep the promises of the Global Goals and they risk breaking that promise to billions of people”, she said.
The good news is with seven years remaining to 2030, the game can still be won in the second half, but “we can’t win unless we stop our world from heating up.
Bridge the divide
“We need leaders to bridge the digital divide – because we can’t win if billions of people especially girls are left offline and left behind.”
She said if women and girls are left on the sidelines of the collective effort, that means half the team isn’t even on the field.
“So New Yorkers, it’s crunch time. But crunch time is when champions are made”, she said.
“Let’s unite and fight together – inch by inch – to keep the promise of achieving the Global Goals by 2030.”
According to the UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), this represents between $1,179 and $1,383 per person, per year.
The study factors in 50 SDG indicators across 90 countries, covering three quarters of the global population.
For the world’s 48 developing economies, the shortfall is estimated at $337 billion annually, if they are to take the required action on climate change, biodiversity loss and pollution.
When expanded to cover all developing economies, using the median per-capita cost for the 48 in the study, total annual needs ris to between $6.9 trillion and $7.6 trillion.
Think smart
Although finding this kind of investment will likely be extremely difficult for countries with limited resources, the solution lies in allocating funding in cross-cutting areas, such as education, which also advances gender equality, poverty reduction and innovation – all Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) targets.
“Merely increasing funds won’t guarantee success. Governments, companies, investors and institutions need to strategically allocate their resources,” said Anu Peltola, who heads UNCTAD Statistics. “They don’t have to stretch every dollar to cover every goal.”
Debt crisis
Analysis by UNCTAD indicates that the world’s wealthiest economies are expected to account for nearly 80 per cent of SDG expenditure between now and 2030. These countries generally face the highest annual per capita costs and the largest financing gaps.
Small island developing States also face high costs, with required spending on gender equality estimated at $3,724 per person, almost three times the average global requirement.
And while least developed countries face much lower costs per head, the required spending as a percentage of each nation’s overall economic output (GDP) is significant, reaching 47 per cent for education alone.
The UNCTAD analysis reveals major shortfalls in national spending trends towards sustainability. The biggest gap is in inclusive digitization, at $468 billion a year. Closing this gap would require a 9 per cent increase in annual spending.
Six areas of transformation
Conversely, improving social protection and decent job opportunities require less investment for the world’s 48 developing economies, at $294 billion, which would require a six per cent increase in annual spending.
The analysis focuses on six paths for transformation through sustainable development: social protection and decent jobs, transforming education, food systems, climate change, biodiversity loss and pollution, energy transition and inclusive digitization.
It covers indicators ranging from reducing greenhouse gas emissions and increasing protected forest cover to guaranteeing universal access to electricity and the internet, promoting literacy, fighting hunger and reducing mortality.
UNCTAD’s report also highlights the need to tackle the global debt crisis. Around 3.3 billion people live in countries that spend more on debt interest payments than on essential public services such as education and health.
“This is not a Vanity Fair. This is a political body in which governments are represented,” he told UN News in an exclusive interview.
“What matters is that [countries] are represented by someone that can [rise to] the present moment,” he said, and added: “So I’m not so worried about who’s coming. What I’m worried [about] is making sure the countries that are here … are ready to assume the commitments necessary to make the Sustainable Development Goals that unfortunately are not moving in the right direction a reality.”
Here, Mr. Guterres emphasized the need to reform the current “unjust, dysfunctional and outdated” global finance system to ensure the achievement of the SDGs by 2030.
He recalled his $500 billion SDG Stimulus proposal to support developing nations to make sure they have the resources they need to achieve the SDGs.”
Action on climate change
The UN chief further said that his 2023 Climate Ambition Summit will provide an opportunity for countries, businesses, and civil society to step up their efforts to reign in runaway climate change.
In a notable departure from standard practice where countries are front and centre, this Summit will give a platform to what the Secretary-General referred to as “frontliners”, those that are the most committed to climate action, and can share the best practices.
“We are moving to 2.6-2.8°C of global temperature rise by the end of the century,” he warned, stressing the urgency of returning to the goal of limiting the temperature increase to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels.
“It is still possible with political will – but a lot needs to be done,” Mr. Guterres emphasized.
Pushing for peace in Ukraine
As for the ongoing war in Ukraine, the Secretary-General reiterated that the central objective is to secure peace, which is just and in line with the UN Charter and international law.
However, he cautioned against undue optimism, acknowledging that current conditions may not favour a “serious dialogue” on peace.
“I think the parties are far from that possibility at the present moment, but we will never, never stop our efforts to make sure that peace comes to Ukraine,” he stressed.
Spotlight on public health
Mr. Guterres also spoke about the unprecedented three ministerial-level talks next week on global public health: pandemic preparedness, universal health coverage, and tuberculosis.
“Universal health coverage is an essential objective of the UN,” he said and added that “it requires not only the UN system to work, but also requires financial systems to be much fairer than they are today.
Mr. Guterres also stressed that “one of the things that I believe is essential is increase the resources and the power of the World Health Organization.”
With world leaders set to convene next week for the annual high-level opening of the General Assembly, the UN’s Midtown East campus on the weekend was host to an energetic range of actors – from youth groups and women’s organizations, to mayors, community activists and business leaders – looking to boost support for the Goals ahead of the SDG Summit.
The Summit on 18-19 September will mark the mid-point of the SDGs, between their 2015 launch and their 2030 deadline.
2030 Goals are off-track
As things stand, the Goals and UN member countries’ promise when they adopted the 2030 Agenda to ‘leave no one behind’ are in serious trouble: despite some progress, over the years widespread implementation gaps have emerged across all 17 Goals, which aim to tackle everything from poverty, hunger and gender equality, to access to education and clean energy.
Lagging public interest in achieving the Goals, geopolitical friction and perhaps most critically, the global coronavirus pandemic, have left the SDGs in need of a global rescue plan.
“Today, only 15 per cent of the targets are on track, with many going into reverse,” said the Secretary-General, adding that: “Monday’s SDG Summit will be the moment for governments to come to the table with concrete plans and proposals to accelerate progress.”
Not just ‘checking boxes’
But he stressed that the SDGs are not about checking boxes.
“They are about the hopes, dreams, rights and expectations of people and the health of our natural environment. They are about righting historic wrongs, healing global divisions and putting our world on a path to lasting peace,” stated the UN chief.
Everyone needs to step up to help revive the Goals and ensure a better life for people and the planet.
Mr. Guterres went on to salute the courage and conviction of the activists in attendance, saying that he knew their global fight for the SDGs “comes at a risk to your safety … liberty [and] even your life.”
“I urge you to keep going,” he said, and similarly urged members of the business community in attendance “to see that sustainable development is best business plan of all”.
“To the women and young people joining us – keep calling out for change in your communities and fighting for your rights and a place at every table, the Secretary-General said.
Finally, the UN chief said: “To the local authorities here – the SDGs will not be rescued in New York. They will be rescued in your communities. So continue listening to the people in your communities and embedding their needs and concerns across your policies and investments.”
UN Secretary-General António Guterres echoed that message, warning that record temperatures and extreme weather were “causing havoc” around the world.
The global response has fallen “far short”, Mr. Guterres insisted, just as latest UN data indicates that the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are only 15 per cent on track at the midway point of the 2030 Agenda.
‘Supercharge progress’ on SDGs
According to WMO, current policies will lead to global warming of at least 2.8 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels over the course of this century – well above the Paris Agreement target of 1.5°C.
This year’s northern hemisphere summer has been the hottest on record, prompting the UN chief last week to reiterate his call for a “surge in action”.
In his foreword to the report, Mr. Guterres underscored that weather, climate, and water-related sciences can “supercharge progress on the SDGs across the board”.
Lives in the balance
The United in Science report, which combines expertise from 18 UN organizations and partners, shows how climate science and early warnings can save lives and livelihoods, advance food and water security, clean energy and better health.
After recent flooding in Libya that has claimed thousands of lives, WMO Secretary-General Petteri Taalas stressed that a lack of adequate forecasting capacity can have deadly consequences for a country when faced with extreme weather events.
He highlighted the risky situation developing in Sudan, where conflict has crippled the agency’s capacity to forecast hazards.
The head of the country’s met service told him that most of her staff members escaped Khartoum and were unable to “run their business in a normal way”, he said.
“They are not able to forecast this kind of high-impact weather events anymore,” he warned.
Weather science key for food security
Extreme weather events are also a key factor in the spread of global hunger and the new report seeks to inform urgent action on this front as the UN estimates that nearly 670 million people may be food insecure in 2030.
The report’s authors explore the link between life-saving food production and nutrition, and investments in weather sciences and services which enable farmers to make decisions on crops and planting.
Early warnings are also crucial to “helping identify potential areas of crop failure that may lead to emergencies”.
Anticipate deadly outbreaks
“United in Science” includes analysis from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), which warned that climate change and extreme events such as heatwaves are set to “significantly increase ill health and premature deaths”.
The report’s findings show that integrating epidemiology and climate information makes it possible to forecast and prepare for outbreaks of climate-sensitive diseases, such as malaria and dengue.
Limit losses from disasters
Early-warning systems can also help to reduce poverty by giving people the chance to anticipate and “limit the economic impact” of disasters.
The WMO-led report shows that between 1970 and 2021, there were nearly 12,000 reported disasters from weather, climate and water extremes, causing $4.3 trillion in economic losses – the majority of them in developing countries.
Every fraction matters
WMO deplored the fact that so far, there has been “very limited progress” in reducing the gap between promises that countries made to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and the level of emissions cuts really needed to achieve the temperature goal of the Paris Agreement.
To limit global warming to 1.5°C, global greenhouse gas emissions must be reduced by 45 per cent by 2030, with carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions falling close to net zero by 2050.
The report’s authors wrote that while some future changes in climate are unavoidable, “every fraction of a degree and ton of CO2 matters to limit global warming and achieve the SDGs”.
Early warnings for all
WMO has also underscored the importance of the UN’s “Early Warnings for All” initiative aiming to ensure that “everyone on Earth is protected from hazardous weather, water, or climate events through life-saving early warning systems by the end of 2027”.
Currently, only half of the countries worldwide report having adequate multi-hazard early warning systems.
The United in Science report was issued ahead of the SDG Summit and Climate Ambition Summit which take place at the UN General Assembly next week.
These meetings will “shine a spotlight on how to rescue the SDGs at the half-way mark to 2030” and “boost ambition to tackle the climate crisis”, the UN chief told reporters in New York on Wednesday.
Streets around UN HQ in Midtown Manhattan will be cordoned off, roadblocks erected, and security heightened and tightened, as world leaders gather to take the pulse of the planet during a week of high-level events and come together to tackle global challenges.
The 78th session of UNGA begins on 6 September and will be followed by a series of key meetings and summits on 18 September, not forgetting of course the General Debate where each Member State enjoys a global platform to focus on issues of international importance.
All UN Member States and observers have the right to deliver a speech in the storied General Assembly Hall and through 25 September, their representatives will present and explore solutions to myriad intertwined global challenges to advance peace, security, and sustainable development.
A custom established in 1955 at UNGA 10 carries on today, with Brazil taking the podium first, followed by the United States, as host country of UN Headquarters, and the entire UN membership.
As the centrepiece of UNGA 78’s high-level week, the SDG Summit will be the central platform for Heads of State and Government to provide political leadership on the implementation of the 2030 Agenda, the wide-reaching global action plan focused on attaining the 17 SDGs.
Kicking off the high-level week, from 18 to 19 September, the SDG Summit aims to mark the start of a new era of progress towards the goals, which has slowed, culminating with the adoption of a forward-looking political declaration.
The 2030 Agenda is a promise, not a guarantee. At the halfway mark (the agenda was launched in 2015), that promise is in deep peril. Development progress is facing the combined impacts of climate disasters, conflict, economic downturn, and lingering effects of COVID-19.
“The SDG Summit in September must be a moment of unity to provide a renewed impetus and accelerated actions for reaching the SDGs,” UN Secretary-General António Guterres has said.
The two-day event will serve as a rallying cry to recharge momentum. It also aims to provide high-level political guidance, identify progress and emerging challenges, and mobilise further actions towards the 2030 finish line.
On 20 September world leaders will be looking to transform words into action at the Climate Ambition Summit. A political milestone for walking the talk to tackle the ever-worsening climate crisis, the event will focus on three acceleration tracks: ambition, credibility, and implementation.
The big issue: How best to move the world from emissions-producing fossil fuels to green, clean power.
The UN Secretary-General’s “to do” lists cite concrete actions needed from government, business, and finance leaders, from his Climate Action Acceleration Agenda to a guide to five critical actions the world must take to speed the shift to renewable energy.
“Now must be the time for ambition and action,” the UN chief has said. “I look forward to welcoming first movers and doers at my Climate Ambition Summit. The world is watching, and the planet can’t wait.”
Learn more about the Climate Ambition Summit here.
World leaders will consider the best road ahead, from bracing for future pandemics to building sustainable economies, with the overarching goal of improving the health of people and the planet.
Safer world: The UNGA President and the World Health Organization (WHO) will convene a meeting on pandemic preparedness for Heads of State and Government on 20. Leaders are expected to adopt a declaration that aims to mobilise political will at national, regional, and international levels. Learn more here.
Health for all: A meeting on universal health care on 21 September will consider lessons learned from COVID-19 alongside evidence-based recommendations to accelerate progress towards health care for all by 2030. Learn more here.
Walking the talk: Also on 20 September, a high-level dialogue on financing for development aims to provide political leadership and guidance on the implementation of the 2015 Addis Ababa Action Agenda, a UN framework for mobilising resources to achieve the SDGs. It also expects to identify progress and emerging challenges as well as ways to trigger further successes. Learn more here.
Tackling TB epidemic: A high-level meeting on the fight against tuberculosis will take place on 21 September with the key objective of implementing a review of progress in the context of the achievement of targets set in the 2018 political declaration, and in the SDGs. Learn more here.
A ministerial meeting on 21 September will see delegates laying the groundwork for the September 2024 Summit of the Future.
The UN Secretary-General wants this event to forge a new global consensus on readying the world for a future rife with risks but also opportunities.
Ministers will discuss how the multilateral system can address emerging global risks and challenges and present concrete, ambitious proposals to strengthen and transform the global system.
An action-oriented “pact for the future” is expected to be agreed by Member States.
World leaders, meeting in the Indian capital for the annual G20 summit, reached agreement by consensus this afternoon on the declaration, which covers issues ranging from climate change and green growth to gender equality and countering terrorism.
Stéphane Dujarric, the spokesperson for UN Secretary-General António Guterres, said the UN particularly welcomed the declaration’s language about accelerating progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Re-energize and re-invest in SDGs
“We’re especially happy to read about the commitments there, and how we must all re-energize and re-invest in the Goals if we are going to come even close to achieving them by their target date of 2030,” he said.
Mr. Dujarric said the adoption of the declaration by consensus after lengthy negotiations – especially in an era of global polarization — was a tribute to the efforts of India, which currently holds the G20 presidency.
“It also reflects India’s role as a leader of the Global South and developing countries. This highlights India’s capabilities as a bridge-builder, politically and geographically.”
Simple but urgent appeal
UN Secretary-General António Guterres had arrived in New Delhi with what he described as a “simple but urgent appeal” to G20 leaders: come together to solve humanity’s biggest challenges.
He stressed that global leadership was especially necessary on climate action and sustainable development.
Earlier on Saturday, Mr. Guterres addressed the summit session dedicated to climate and environmental issues, urging leaders to demonstrate greater ambition on reducing greenhouse gas emissions and supporting climate justice. G20 members presently account for 80% of the world’s emissions.
New member
Meanwhile, the G20 also agreed today to admit the African Union (AU) as its newest member, a decision welcomed by the UN.
“This is a reflection of Africa’s growing influence and importance on the global stage,” said Mr. Dujarric. “When much of the existing international multilateral architecture was built, most of Africa was still colonized and did not have an opportunity to have their voices heard. This is another step towards correcting that imbalance.”
The 1989 treaty outlines children’s rights, including to life, health, clean drinking water, and survival and development.
A General Comment provides legal guidance on how children’s rights are impacted by a specific topic or area of legislation, with the latest addressing environmental rights with a special focus on climate change.
Amplifying children’s voices
Children have been at the forefront of the fight against climate change, urging governments and corporations to take action to safeguard their lives and the future, said Committee member Philip Jaffé.
“With its General Comment No. 26, the Committee on the Rights of the Child not only echoes and amplifies children’s voices, but also clearly defines the rights of children in relation to the environment that States Parties should respect, protect and fulfil collectively and urgently,” he added.
In Glasgow, Scotland, people take part in a demonstration for climate action, led by youth climate activists and organized on the sidelines of the 2021 UN Climate Change Conference (COP26).
Accountability today and tomorrow
The General Comment explicitly addresses the climate emergency, the collapse of biodiversity and pervasive pollution.
It specifies that States are responsible not only for protecting children’s rights from immediate harm, but also for foreseeable violations of their rights in the future due to action, or inaction, today.
Furthermore, it underlines that States can be held accountable for environmental harm occurring both within their borders and beyond.
Countries that have ratified the UN child rights convention are urged to take immediate action including towards phasing out fossil fuels and shifting to renewable energy sources, improving air quality, ensuring access to clean water, and protecting biodiversity.
‘A vital step forward’
The guidance also states that children’s views must be considered in environmental decision-making and stresses the critical role of environmental education.
“Governments must now take urgent action to address the global environmental crisis in order to breathe life into these inspiring words,” he said.
General Comment No. 26 is the outcome of global and intergenerational engagement, including broad consultation with UN Member States, international and regional organizations, national human rights institutions, civil society organizations, and children themselves.
‘A child rights crisis’
The UN Committee’s partner, the Swiss organization Terre des Hommes, led a process with multi-level stakeholders, significantly involving and engaging children through online consultations to inform the text.
The UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) also provided further technical expertise and helped collect views from children as part of the consultation process.
General Comment No. 26 assists in interpreting States’ commitment under the Paris Agreement on climate change to respect, promote and consider their child rights obligations when taking climate action.
“The climate crisis is a child rights crisis,” said Paloma Escudero, UNICEF Special Adviser on Advocacy for Child Rights and Climate Action.
“Every government has an obligation to protect the rights of every child in every corner of the planet, especially those boys and girls living in countries that have contributed least to this problem but are enduring the most dangerous floods, droughts, storms and heat.”
