Renewed violent clashes between non-state armed groups and government forces have sparked the latest emergency, with 300,000 people forced to flee their homes in North Kivu Province in February alone.
According to the UN refugee agency, UNHCR, another 20,000 fled at the start of the week and nearly 50,000 became displaced from the Kitchanga region in Masisi territory during the week of 17 February.
Survivors
“Civilians continue to pay the heavy and bloody price of conflict, including women and children who barely escaped the violence and are now sleeping out in the open, in spontaneous or organized sites, exhausted and traumatised,” said UNHCR spokesperson Matthew Saltmarsh.
“UNHCR teams on the ground reported horrifying testimonies of human rights violations in affected areas, especially in Rutshuru and Masisi territories, including arbitrary killings, kidnappings, extortion and rapes,” the UNHCR spokesperson continued.
Lacking resources
Conditions are dire for those arriving at spontaneous or organized sites, which the UN refugee agency said were now buckling under the strain.
The resurgence of violence in eastern DR Congo has displaced more than 800,000 people since March last year, including towards the provinces of South Kivu and Ituri.
Relief items are distributed to displaced people in Plain Savo in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
More than 130 armed groups operate at the border between DR Congo and Rwanda, including the M23 militia, which has in the past targeted Government forces and the UN peacekeeping mission in the country, MONUSCO.
The resurgence of violence in the region has displaced over 800,000 people since March last year, including towards the provinces of South Kivu and Ituri.
Standing by
Where access permits, UNHCR teams are positioned to provide psychosocial counselling and community support for those traumatised by what they have witnessed or endured.
Humanitarians have continued to warn that despite “all efforts” to provide protection and assistance to those displaced close to Goma, Nord Kivu’s provincial capital, relief access remains complicated as major routes have frequently been rendered inaccessible because of ongoing conflict.
More than 5,500 people have also crossed the border into neighbouring Rwanda since January, and a further 5,300 into Uganda as insecurity and violence continue to ravage border regions.
Women collect water at a camp for displaced people in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Stop the fighting
“UNHCR strongly reiterates its call on all actors in eastern DRC to stop the violence which is taking an enormous toll on the civilian population,” the UN agency said in a statement.
The DRC is the largest internal displacement crisis in Africa, with 5.8 million people internally displaced, mainly in the east of the country. It also hosts over a million refugees from neighbouring countries.
It is also one of UNHCR’s most underfunded operations worldwide. For 2023, UNHCR is asking for $232.6 million to assist internally displaced people and refugees in the DRC. As of today, the DRC operation is only eight per cent funded.
The UN aid coordination office, OCHA, said the humanitarian supplies had been off-loaded in Chasiv Yar, which is some 10 kilometres to the west of Bakhmut, which Russian forces are attempting to wrest control from Ukrainian troops.
After months of fighting, the mercenary Wagner Group now claims to be in control of the eastern part of the city together with other Russian forces, but Ukrainian forces reportedly continue to defend Bakhmut from total encirclement.
Supplies for 2,000
Briefing reporters at the regular daily press conference in New York, UN Spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric said the aid convoy carried supplies for around 2,000 people, “including medical and hygiene supplies, food, solar lamps and tarpaulins.”
The aid was provided by the UN migration agency IOM, Children’s Fund UNICEF, the UN refugee agency (UNHCR), the World Food Programme (WFP) and the World Health Organization (WHO).
Towns emptied out
“OCHA also note that most of the 16,000 people who previously lived in Chasiv Yar and surrounding communities have now fled”, said Mr. Dujarric.
“Chasiv Yar was completely cut off from gas supplies more than a month ago and all water is being trucked in. Access to electricity remains extremely limited with the only ambulance which is still functioning, having limited capacity due to insecurity.”
He stressed that the UN and it’s humanitarian partners were fully committed to supporting civilians still living in Chasiv Yar, which also now hosts people who have fled the intense fighting in Bakhmut – the chief target of Russia’s winter offensive, following its full-scale invasion of just over a year ago.
Less than a month ago, the UN sent another inter-agency convoy to nearby Sloviansk to the north, with supplies to people in Soledar, Chasiv Yar and Toretsk.
A UN convoy carrying aid supplies approaches Chasiv Yar, in the Donetsk region of Ukraine.
230,000 supported
“So far this year, the UN along with the partners have sent 26 inter-agency convoys to communities living close to the front line, supporting nearly 230,000 men, women and children”, said the UN Spokesperson.
More than 10 of those convoys reached communities in areas controlled by Ukrainian Government forces in the Donetsk region, providing much-need items to approximately 100,000 people, he added.
Attacks on healthcare
WHO in Ukraine reported on Thursday that they have now verified 833 attacks on healthcare personnel and facilities since last year’s 24 February invasion.
“These attacks caused 101 deaths and 136 injuries”, the agency tweeted. Adding that “healthcare should never be a target.”
‘Even in the darkest times’
“Even in the darkest times, music is something that can bring relief”, tweeted the UN in Ukraine on Friday, following a concert that took place in the capital Ukraine on Thursday, despite a wave of Russian missile strikes, to mark the opening by UN culture agency UNESCO, of a new official Chair for Music.
The UN-backed orchestral post sponsored by UNESCO in Kyiv, was celebrated with a “peace concert” under the baton of Herman Makarenko, orchestra conductor and a UNESCO Artist for Peace, attended by the Resident Coordinator Denise Brown.
“This action is a victory for multilateralism and for global efforts to counter the destructive trends facing ocean health, now and for generations to come,” said the UN chief in a statement issued by his Spokesperson late Saturday evening just hours after the deal was struck at UN Headquarters in New York, where tough negotiations on the draft treaty have been under way for the past two weeks.
The agreement reached by delegates of the Intergovernmental Conference on Marine Biodiversity of Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction, better known by its acronym BBNJ, is the culmination of UN-facilitated talks that began in 2004.
Already being referred to as the ‘High Seas Treaty’, the legal framework would place 30 per cent of the world’s oceans into protected areas, put more money into marine conservation, and covers access to and use of marine genetic resources.
Through his Spokesperson, Mr. Guterres said the treaty is crucial for addressing the triple planetary crisis of climate change, biodiversity loss and pollution.
“It is also vital for achieving ocean-related goals and targets of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, and the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework,” said the statement, referring to the so-called ‘30×30’ pledge to protect a third of the world’s biodiversity – on land and sea – by 2030 made by a historic UN conference in Montreal this past December.
Noting that the BBNJ decision builds on the legacy of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), the Secretary-General commended all parties for their ambition, flexibility and perseverance, and saluted Ambassador Rena Lee, of Singapore, for her leadership and dedication.
“Ladies and gentlemen, the ship has reached the shore,” Ms. Lee said last night, announcing the agreement to an extended standing ovation in the meeting room. Delegations will reconvene later to formally adopt the text.
The statement issued by the UN Spokesperson said the Secretary-General also recognized the critical support of non-governmental organizations, civil society, academic institutions and the scientific community.
“He looks forward to continuing working with all parties to secure a healthier, more resilient, and more productive ocean, benefiting current and future generations,” the statement concluded.
With myriad objects casting a new light on some of the darkest pages of history, Slavery: Ten True Stories of Dutch Colonial Slavery has been brought to the UN by Amsterdam’s Rijksmuseum.
“It’s baffling to me that there are a lot of countries still apologizing for slavery,” Daniela Paredes,18, from Cancun, Mexico, told UN News following a class visit. “Governments are working to not overlook slavery and how it’s present today. It shows it is possible for society to learn from our mistakes. It gives me hope for humanity.”
The exhibit tethers around a single artefact: a heavy wooden plank brace, known as a “tronco” – Portuguese for tree trunk. Used to restrain enslaved people for sleeping or corporal punishment to prevent their escape, the sinister contraption – carbon dated to between 1700 and 1850 ¬ was discovered in the 1960s in a barn in Zeeland, a town in the Netherlands.
The tronco remains a stark material reminder that 15 million men, women, and children were victims of a heinous legalized system for centuries, said the UN Outreach Programme on the Transatlantic Slave Trade and Slavery, established by the General Assembly in 2007, which coordinated the event.
UN News/Eileen Travers
Valika Smeulders, head of history at the Rijksmuseum, is one of the curators of the Ten True Stories exhibition.
“Bringing the exhibit here to the UN connects it all,” Valika Smeulders, one of the exhibit’s four curators and head of history at the museum, told UN News. “We thought it would be important that the Netherlands comes to terms with the fact that it has had a major role in colonial history. We wanted to connect everybody in the Netherlands to that larger story by making the exhibition really personal.”
Ms. Paredes’ classmate, Alexa Bejar, 17, marvelled at learning about the world through the exhibit’s zoom lens.
“It is amazing that governments and countries are willing to talk openly and truthfully,” she said.
Profiteers to freedom fighters
Surrounding the tronco, interactive panels tell the stories of people hailing from Bangladesh, Brazil, Netherlands, South Africa, Suriname, and the Caribbean and West African regions, intertwined with the Dutch slave trade, which trapped about one million people across the world into slavery between the seventeenth and nineteenth centuries.
Visitors can swipe QR codes on each of the panels, to link to present-day recordings of descendants and others who are connected to profiteers, victims, and freedom fighters. Meticulously “researched and re-researched”, Ms. Smeulders said the stories were produced by a bevy of experts, including historians, a theatre director, interior designer, artists, and a biologist who conducted DNA analysis.
However, the curators had a hard time choosing just 10 stories out of the more than a million, she said.
“There are millions of stories, of course, but what we wanted the 10 stories to give an insight into the system,” she said.
From the lifestyles of the rich to the flight to freedom, the exhibit tells the story of Surapti, from Indonesia, who went from enslavement to freedom fighter. Another explains that Oopjen, the frothily enlaced wife of a Dutch sugar magnate who profited from slavery, had her portrait painted by Rembrandt himself.
Then there is the brave Sapani, who hid in her plaited hair tiny grains of rice indigenous to West Africa when she was forced onto a ship sailing to Suriname. Fleeing enslavement at a plantation, she used those seeds, which became a critical food source in newly established communities and a symbol of hard-won freedom.
‘Not just about history’
The exhibit comes at a time when world leaders are reckoning with the colonial past, trying to make amends by, among other things, repatriating artefacts looted in the colonial era. Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte in December issued a formal apology for the country’s role in the slave trade.
“It’s not just about history; it’s also about our common future,” Ms. Smeulders said. “The legacy of slavery is among us every day. We need to address that, especially all the types of discrimination and racism that are still around.”
To have that conversation going on here at the UN and having the exhibit as a ‘talking stick’ to continue that conversation “is really important to us”, she said.
“Part of the solution is to recognize that it is connected to that past and that by understanding the past, we understand today’s society as well,” she added.
At the exhibit’s opening, Melissa Fleming, head of the UN Department of Global Communications, who hosted the event, said teaching, learning, and understanding this history “helps us in our work to end racism and injustice and to build inclusive societies based on dignity and human rights for all.”
When my mandate began, in 2018, it was not long after the end of the dictatorship [The two-decade rule of Yahya Jammeh]. The new Government was already embracing several reforms simultaneously, reviewing the constitution, the judiciary, and the security sector, and the UN had allocated funds for peacebuilding.
UN News/ Hisae Kawamori
Women working in a rice field, The Gambia
Truth and reconciliation
An important development was the establishment of the Truth, Reconciliation, and Reparations Commission (TRRC), with the backing of the UN and other partners.
People were enthusiastic to embark on the Commission, which has been very important for the country. Expectations were high from the victims, from the population, but also from different partners. It was important that it should be a Gambian-driven process, to avoid any influence from outsiders. We helped to set it up and provided the necessary expertise to run it.
The Ministry of Justice needs to be strengthened, because they are leading that process, and this is the first time that they have had to face a case like this. Here again, we’re providing the expertise to work on a roadmap that will lead to implementation of the Commission recommendations.
We’re involved in communications connected with the process: we want to ensure that the communities, local governments, and civil society all know what role they have to play, and manage expectations. These reforms are not going to happen in one day, it will take many years, and we need to make sure that is understood.
Now it’s time to put reforms into practice. So far, the Government has released a white paper approving almost all of the recommendations. The COVID-19 pandemic slowed the process, but I think that they are still committed to do more.
UN News/ Conor Lennon
Amadou Jobe, a returning migrant, trains apprentices in a workshop in Banjul, The Gambia.
Laying strong foundations
It’s crucial to have a government that shows leadership. If not, you can outline a vision for where you think the country should go, but you won’t get anywhere.
We have supported the Government’s creation of a Department for Strategic Planning and Delivery, within the office of the President. We have trained the staff, and shown them best practice in other countries.
When we arrived, there was no Minister for Gender, so we advocated for a new ministry to be established, and we are seeing progress in terms of women’s empowerment.
Coming out of a twenty-year dictatorship, where human rights were abused, we supported the creation of a National Human Rights Commission, which is fully functional and, in many ways, a centrally important institution, which will monitor the implementation of the TRRC.
Going forward, it’s crucial for The Gambia to succeed in building strong institutions, something which is true for all countries. If institutions are weak, you can’t implement any plans, and you waste resources.
I think that this country is moving in the right direction. We have many more partners now, and the donor community is growing. After a five-year period, the transition is nearly complete, and we have helped the Government to lay the foundations for most of the reforms, policies, and strategies.
UN News/ Conor Lennon
Brothers Alhadje and Abdoulie Faal’s fruit and vegetable business in Kanuma, The Gambia, is supported by the UN Capital Development Fund
Changing lives for the better
Aside from supporting the reforms, we’ve been an active partner in developing the economy, empowering women, and climate action.
In terms of the economy, where tourism plays an important role, UN agencies have focused on providing training for young people and vulnerable groups such as returning migrants, and giving them seed capital to start their own businesses. Often, returning migrants feel like a burden on their families, but with our help many of them have been able to thrive.
Unfortunately, this is a country where there is significant violence against women, including female genital mutilation. Sometimes women don’t want to talk about the violence they suffer, so we have set up hotlines they can call, and built centres where they can go to be treated, and receive support.
The climate crisis is affecting The Gambia, particularly in terms of flooding; last year was the worst flooding experienced here in 38 years. It may not be on the scale of the floods seen in Pakistan but, for a small country with a small population, it made a big impact.
Our agencies provided food and shelter for those displaced by the flooding, and providing clean drinking water, but we are also helping the population to adapt, and become better prepared before the next floods arrive.
I’m confident that we have changed lives for the better in The Gambia. We’re still in the early stages, but I believe that we’ve created solid foundations for development, and that we will see even greater impact in the next five years, and see the country develop in a cohesive manner, in all regions of the country, with no one left behind.
The West-Eastern Divan Orchestra, appointed by the UN Secretary-General in 2016 as a United Nations Global Advocate for Cultural Understanding, recently played their first concert at UN headquarters in New York, at a special event organized to demonstrate that when people listen to each other, both musically and in other ways, great results can be achieved.
UN News/Abdelmonem Makki
The West-Eastern Divan Ensemble performs at UN headquarters in February 2023
The West-Eastern Divan Ensemble, led by the orchestra’s concertmaster Michael Barenboim, draws upon players of Arab and Israeli heritage.
Founded in 1999, the orchestra’s origins lie in the conversations between its creators, Edward W. Said and Daniel Barenboim. Over the course of their friendship, the Palestinian author-scholar and Israeli conductor-pianist discussed ideas on music, culture and humanity.
In their exchanges, they realized the urgent need for an alternative way to address the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The opportunity to do so came when Barenboim and Said initiated a workshop for young musicians using their experience as a model.
“We have musicians that come from countries that are in conflict with each other in one way or another. We show that by cooperating in a project such as this one, it’s possible to bring together people from states which are in conflict so that they’re able to work together towards a common goal,” said Michael Barenboim.
UN Photo/Mark Garten
“I think that’s showing an alternative model and alternative way of thinking for the Middle East region. Which is not based on arms, bombs, war, blood and conflict, but based on understanding, dialogue and listening to each other. When you play music, you play, but you also have to listen to others,” he added.
Mariam Said, widow of Edward W. Said, is a vice president of the US-based Barenboim-Said Foundation.
“Edward believed that humanity is the only thing through which we can counteract the disintegration of our world. And this is the message that the orchestra is trying to send,” Mariam Said explained.
“Teaching music as a language opens minds, leading to the generation of new ideas in society. It also allows people to get to know each other,” she added.
Sindy Faisal Abdel Wahab from Egypt plays violin in the ensemble.
“I started playing with the West-Eastern Divan Ensemble in 2013, and it was the first time for me to meet musicians from other Arab countries and Israel. It was a surprise to me, and I was curious about how we would deal with each other, how we would play together and understand each other,” he said, adding that “I discovered that Israelis have a similar culture to us, but politics is what separates people. When we play together, we forget everything.”
UN Photo/Mark Garten
David Strongin, who is from Israel, also plays the violin; he believes that the mission of the orchestra is for musicians from different backgrounds to play music together.
“Through music, one can do everything. You don’t need words, and don’t need any text. You play together, you learn to listen to each other. And this is actually a great help also for life for us as human beings, because we learn how to listen to each other.”
“I think it’s not very easy to make music with strangers,” he added “because you have to you put so much soul into what you do. But this orchestra feels like one family and so it doesn’t really matter where we are from. We just we just love each other as human beings.”
Speaking ahead of the concert Maher Nasser, the Director of the Outreach Division in the UN Department of Global Communications said: “When you look a group of eight musicians playing together and they are all reading from the same sheet of paper, they introduce harmony, and they are all equal. Some of them play cello and some of them are playing violin but the sound that comes out appears to be coming from one instrument. Every one of them is equal, every note is equal.”
“Countries with the least need support the most. And you need it now. You represent one in eight people on earth. But your countries are trapped in vicious cycles that make development difficult, if not impossible,” Mr. Guterres told the Summit of Least Developed Countries (LDCs), in Doha, Qatar
Today’s Summit of Heads of State and Government from some of the world’s poorest and most vulnerable countries is taking place just ahead of the opening of the Fifth UN Conference on the Least Developed Countries, known as LDC5, which will run in the Qatari capital from 5 to 9 March.
The LDC Summit is normally held every 10 years but has twice been postponed since 2021 because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Over the next five days in In Doha, government leaders and other stakeholders are set to assess the implementation of the Istanbul Programme of Action, adopted at a precursor UN conference held in Türkiye in 2011, and mobilize additional international support and action for the world’s 46 least developed countries.
Massive investment to combat ‘perfect storm’
In his welcoming remarks to the LDC Summit, the UN chief stressed that the cost of living was becoming increasingly difficult due to the war in Ukraine, resulting in higher energy and food prices. This, combined with the effects of conflict, drought, hunger and extreme poverty, creates an environment that fuels poverty and injustice.
“For your countries, progress on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) — starting with the eradication of extreme poverty and ending hunger — is about more than lines on a chart leading to 2030,” the Secretary-General said. “It’s a matter of life and death and it is unacceptable if you are held back by processes and decisions that are made far beyond your borders.”
Indeed, fossil fuel giants are raking in huge profits, while millions in your countries cannot put food on the table. “You risk being left behind in the digital revolution without the support or technology you need for social and economic development or job-creation,” he said, calling for an end to the conditions that have left vulnerable countries facing a “perfect storm.”
“Ending this (perfect) storm for perpetuating poverty and injustice…requires massive, sustained investment,” he explained, and stressed that the global financial system had been designed by wealthy countries, “largely to their benefit”.
In the absence of effective debt relief, LDCs are forced to devote an increasing share of government revenues to debt servicing. And countries that graduate to middle-income status will lose LDC-specific benefits, which “will become a punishment, not a reward,” Mr. Guterres warned.
‘A moment of justice’
Mr. Guterres went on to say: “We cannot allow countries to fall back down the development ladder after working so hard to climb it. Amid these injustices, the United Nations is working with you to develop smooth transition strategies, based on tailored support for the graduation process.”
[A country can graduate from the LDC category by meeting two of three criteria (income, human assets and economic and environmental vulnerability), or by having a per capita income of more than twice the income graduation threshold, at two consecutive triennial meetings of the UN Committee for Development Policy (CDP). Find out more here.]
To achieve this, the Doha Programme of Action (DPoA) – the landmark roadmap adopted in March 2022 aimed at, among others, creating new commitments and broad partnerships towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in the LDCs – includes an online university, a food stockholding system, and an international investment support centre.
In addition, the so-called SDG Stimulus package, launched in February, also proposes to increase financing for sustainable development, address the high cost of debt, and scale up emergency financing.
There is also a need for new, sensible ways of measuring countries’ economies, such as developing lending criteria that go beyond gross domestic product, the Secretary-General added.
Looking ahead to the upcoming conference, the UN chief said it must be a “moment of justice” for the LDCs and stressed: “Let us work together to provide new avenues of support for your people. Let us make the LDC category history.”
UN Photo/Evan Schneider
LDC5 must be about ‘real work, not just talk’
The LDC Summit was opened by Lazarus McCarthy Chakwera, President of Malawi, and Chair of the LDC Group.
Malawi is one of the poorest countries in the world, with a GDP per capita of US$639 in 2021, according to the World Bank. Like many other LDCs, poverty and malnutrition are widespread in this sub-Saharan African country, with more than half of the population living below the poverty line. Malawi is also facing the effects of climate change, with increased flooding and drought causing further damage to crop and livelihoods.
In his address, President Chakwera stressed that the unique global challenges and multilateral obstacles facing the LDCs cannot be “surmounted by any of us on our own”, and that “most nations abandon multilateralism and turn inward, turn their back on the brotherhood of all mankind, but we must resist that temptation.”
“We are not gathered here to just talk,” said the President, “we have real work to do and deliverables to produce. Together we will deliver an online university; an investment promotion regime; a food stock holding mechanism; a crisis mitigation and resilience building mechanism; a graduation support package that ensures a smooth transition from the LDC category.”
President Chakwera encouraged all development partners “to do their part in lifting the obstacles that stand in our way”.
LDCs at the centre of the 2030 Agenda
In closing remarks, Rabab Fatima, High Representative for the Least Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries and Small Island Developing States, and head of the relevant UN Office, known as UN-OHRLLS, said that the office would make every effort to tailor its work according to the needs and priorities expressed at the Leaders’ Summit.
She echoed the leaders’ sentiments that the least developed countries should now be at the forefront of the international community’s endeavors to make up lost ground on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Indeed, she continued, “the battle of winning or losing the SDG race will be decided in the LDCs and other vulnerable countries. If we are unable to fully prioritize the needs of the LDCs in this Decade of Action and Recovery, the SDGs will remain only an ambition.”
The Doha Programme of Action, she said, “is our best chance of turning ambition into reality.” Not only is that action plan fully aligned with the 2030 Agenda, but it also goes farther in its scope and ambition. “With a new generation of targets, commitments and deliverables, this is, in fact, an ‘SDG+ package’ for the LDCs,” stated Ms. Fatima, who is the Secretary-General of the LDC5 Conference.
If the international community could ensure the full implementation of the DPoA, the LDCs would move to the upper echelons of the global development trajectory and many of them would be able to graduate with momentum, she said, reiterating the readiness of her Office to walk – and work – alongside the LDCs on this journey.
The work ahead
During the Summit, more than a dozen LDC leaders exchanged views on how to collectively address shared challenges and find meaningful solutions. They also provided clear guidance on how to ensure effective and timely implementation of the goals, commitments and outcomes set out in the Doha Programme of Action for LDCs for the Decade 2022-2031 and the Doha Political Declaration.
Over the next few days, world leaders will gather with the private sector, civil society, parliamentarians, and young people to promote latest ideas, generate new pledges of support, and spur the implementation of agreed commitments under the Doha action plan.
The conference is expected to announce specific initiatives and concrete outcomes that address LDC-specific challenges and support the implementation of the DPoA.
High-level political engagement will be critical for the LDC5 Conference to build momentum and forge renewed and reinvigorated multi-stakeholder partnerships to achieve the ambitious and shared goals, targets and commitments of the DPoA.
UN News/Anold Kayanda
Youth engagement
Three dedicated forums for the private sector, youth and parliamentarians took place on Saturday in the margins of the Summit.
In the afternoon, dozens of youth delegates, representing some 226 million young people from 46 LDCs, participated in the first Youth Forum to ever be held at an LDC conference. The Forum provided a unique opportunity for young people to share their solutions, actions, and impact.
UN News/Anold Kayanda
Hamza Abdiwahab, a youth delegate from Somalia, told UN News that political instability is a common problem of LDCs in his region, which affects many issues related to quality of education and poverty.
Indeed, according to the UN, 24 out of 46 LDCs had active conflicts as of 2019. Three out of four LDCs are in conflict and post-conflict situations.
“I believe that we as young people should be involved in decision making so that we can at least have a stable political stability so that we can achieve the Sustainable Development Goals in the next seven, in the next seven years,” said Hamza.
Armel Azihar Slyvania, a youth delegate from Comoros, echoed Hamzah’s sentiments when she spoke to UN News.
“If our governments are willing to listen to young people and take our solutions that we are bringing to [situations on] the ground, it will really help solve all the problems we face in [our countries],’ said Armel.
UN News/Anold Kayanda
The young LDC participants discussed a host of development issues that affect them and their countries – including education and skills development, health, employment, climate change, peace and security, human rights, and migration.
The Youth Forum adopted a Youth Declaration entitled ‘For All Generations’, which expresses the commitment of young people to contribute to a better future in the world’s least developed countries and beyond.
The Youth Declaration is the result of a series of consultations with young people from the world’s 46 LDCs. It has been used as an advocacy document to influence the DPoA negotiations and will be presented to world leaders at the LDC5 conference next week.
Civil society and the UN must work together for LDCs
In his remarks to the Civil Society Forum also being held on the margins of the LDC Leaders’ Summit, Csaba Kőrösi, President of the 77th session of the UN General Assembly, stated that strengthening the bonds between civil society organizations and the United Nations is imperative.
“Governments do not have a monopoly on wisdom” and “we need your wisdom. We need your knowledge. We need your experience,” he said, and stressed: “Let us commit ourselves to working hand in hand, to supporting the transformation of LDCs, and to achieving sustainable development.”
Mr. Kőrösi went on to cite a raft of challenges facing these countries, saying they are “at a crossroads on their paths toward sustainable development,” as sadly, the pandemic had reversed years of economic growth that had played an important role in improving access to health and services and reducing poverty overall, with some LDCs now experiencing the first economic contractions in three decades.
“Worse, between 2011 and 2019, the combined debt of LDCs tripled from $10 billion to $33 billion per year. A debt projected to rise by another $50 billion due to the unaccounted effects of the pandemic,” he said, explaining that “on a human scale, that means 32 million more people pushed into poverty across the world’s LDCs, with women and children bearing the heaviest brunt of misery.”
With this in mind, the Assembly President said: “But we have to make a choice to invest in our sustainable development goals. A conscious choice. The smart choice. The ethical choice. This is not philanthropy. This is about doing the right thing.”
“To achieve this, we must work together. Across borders. Across sectors,” he continued, pointing to the DPoA, which he said, provides a comprehensive framework designed to address the challenges faced by LDCs and support those nations in achieving sustainable development. “That is a blueprint for turning our potential into prosperity. A game plan for harnessing the wealth that we do have.”
“I am here in a visit of solidarity to underscore the commitment of the United Nations to support Iraq in the consolidation of its democratic institutions and advancing peace, sustainable development and human rights for all Iraqis,” Mr. Guterres told journalists in Baghdad, after touching down late on Tuesday.
After “decades of oppression, war, terrorism, sectarianism and foreign interference” in Iraq’s affairs – just days ahead of the 20th anniversary of the 2003 invasion – Mr. Guterres acknowledged that the challenges the country faces could not be brushed aside.
Opportune moment
And amid reports that Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani continues to face potential political obstacles in reviving national fortunes, the UN chief, in a joint press encounter with Mr. Al-Sudani, expressed his hope that Iraq “can break cycles of instability and fragility”.
He added: “I applaud the Prime Minister for his commitment to address the most pressing challenges facing the country head on – including combatting corruption, improving public services, and diversifying the economy to reduce unemployment and create opportunities, especially for young people.
“Such structural change requires systemic reform, stronger institutions, greater accountability and better governance at all levels – and the United Nations stands ready to support these important efforts.”
Referencing reported divisions over the sharing of Iraqi oil revenues between central government in the capital and provincial government in the north, Mr. Guterres encouraged all parties to build on “recent positive steps” between Baghdad and Erbil. “Sustainable agreements” and dialogue should be the long-term objective the UN Secretary-General said.
UNAMI/Sarmad Al-Safy
UN Secretary-General António Guterres meets Iraq’s Minister of Foreign Affairs on his arrival in Baghdad, Iraq.
Dignity of Iraq’s displaced
In earlier comments just after touching down, Mr. Guterres also spoke of his “enormous admiration” for the Iraqi people, highlighting how he had witnessed the courage of those displaced inside the country several times, on previous visits.
The UN Secretary-General also highlighted how Iraqi refugees in Jordan and in Syria had shown that they were able “to live in solidarity with each other, to help each other in the spirit that, in my opinion, is the best hope for the future of the country”.
Iraq’s efforts to repatriate its citizens from northeast Syria – including from the infamous Al Hol camp – had been “exemplary”, Mr. Guterres said, before noting Prime Minister Al-Sudani’s commitment to allowing the safe and dignified return of ethnic Yazidis to their homes in northern Iraq, after suffering genocide at the hands of Daesh in 2014.
Water emergency
Addressing another key challenge for Iraq, namely water scarcity, Mr. Guterres noted that the issue required international attention, before flagging the UN 2023 Water Conference from 22-24 March in New York.
The mighty Tigris and the Euphrates rivers were now running dry and the impact on agriculture has been dramatic, the UN chief said, adding that “it breaks my heart” to see farmers who have been forced to abandon lands where crops have been grown for thousands of years.
Iraq is one of the countries worst hit by climate change, which has driven displacement, threatened food security, destroyed livelihoods, fuelled conflict and undermined human rights, Mr. Guterres maintained.
When coupled with a volatile security situation and governance challenges, “it can put stability at risk… so now is the time for the international community to support Iraq in tackling its environmental challenges, diversifying its economy, and harnessing its potential for sustainable growth,” the Secretary-General insisted.
Speaking only days since a large majority of the UN General Assembly adopted a resolution calling for the immediate withdrawal of Russian troops from Ukraine, the UN chief stressed that Russia’s decision to go to war against its neighbour on 24 February 2022 had unleashed “widespread death, destruction and displacement”.
Also present at the opening of the 52nd session of the Geneva-based Council, the President of the UN General Assembly, Csaba Kőrösi, issued a stark warning that Russia’s actions had “effectively paralyzed” the Security Council in New York, the primary international forum tasked with maintaining peace and security.
The Security Council, like the General Assembly, was at a crossroads, he said.
Many countries are still struggling to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic and more than 70 countries are in debt distress amid a global cost of living crisis, Mr. Kőrösi continued, with women and girls “systematically marginalized” in many countries.
Amid such “unprecedented…interlocking” crises, the General Assembly President said that nothing less than a fundamental shift in the global response was needed, especially on tackling climate change, which is already an existential threat for many communities.
Confirmed abuses in Ukraine
In addition to “terrible suffering” caused by repeated shelling of Ukrainian cities and key infrastructure, Mr. Guterres added that dozens of cases of conflict-related sexual violence against men, women and girls, had been documented in Ukraine in the last year.
“Serious violations of international humanitarian and human rights law against prisoners of war and hundreds of cases of enforced disappearances and arbitrary detentions of civilians” have been uncovered in the past 12 months, the UN Secretary-General told Human Rights Council Member States, as they gathered for an unprecedented marathon near six-week session in Geneva.
The probe was set up in March last year, after Member States adopted a resolution on the situation of human rights in Ukraine stemming from the Russian aggression. The work of the three Commissioners complements that of the existing UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine (HRMMU), which gathers together testimonies of possible war crimes, among other tasks.
UN Photo/Violaine Martin
The 52nd Regular Session of the Human Rights Council gets underway in Geneva.
Universal truths
Highlighting the enduring value of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights – adopted 75 years ago by the international community after the Second World War to avoid a repeat of that catastrophe – Mr. Guterres warned that although it should be humanity’s common blueprint, some governments “use it as a wrecking ball”.
Leading a call to “stand on the right side of history”, the UN chief insisted that now was the time “to stand up for the human rights of everyone, everywhere”. All of us should “revitalize” the Universal Declaration which sets out everyone’s right “to life, liberty and security; to equality before the law; to freedom of expression; to seek asylum; to work, to healthcare and education”, he said.
Linking a century of progress on human rights to “remarkable leaps” in human development, Mr. Guterres noted that in 1900, 80 per cent of people around the world lived in poverty, but that figure had fallen to less than 10 per cent by 2015.
And although the average lifespan in the last 100 years ago has increased from 32 years to more than 70, the UN chief warned that numerous 21st century challenges confront us today.
“Extreme poverty and hunger are rising for the first time in decades. Nearly half of the world’s population, 3.5 billion people, live in climate hotspots…Just yesterday, yet another horrific shipwreck in the Mediterranean claimed the lives of scores of people seeking a better future for themselves and their children,” the UN Secretary-General said, as he warned that antisemitism, anti-Muslim bigotry, the persecution of Christians, racism and white supremacist ideology were all “on the march”.
UN rights chief’s call to nations
Echoing the Secretary-General’s strong appeal to all nations to stand by the Universal Declaration, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk insisted that people’s fundamental rights are far better understood today than ever.
Nonetheless, “oppression…can return, in various disguises”, the UN rights chief continued, as he pointed to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine as representative of “old destructive wars of aggression from a bygone era with worldwide consequences”.
Modern-day opportunities provided by digital innovation should be harnessed “to tackle our biggest challenges: poverty, climate change, and inequality, Mr. Türk insisted. “If there was ever a moment to revitalise the hope of human rights for every person, it is now.”
The very survival of humankind “depends on finding our way back to that common language”, the UN rights chief continued, as he urged Member States “to address your people’s rights to freedom from want and to freedom from fear on an equal footing”.
In a call for global solidarity and underscoring the Secretary-General’s observation that the Universal Declaration reflected the wisdom expressed in ancient texts, including the Hindu Vedas, the Ancient Chinese Analects of Confucius, the Bible and the Koran, High Commissioner Türk insisted that it “not only voices ancient wisdoms from all cultures but will ensure our survival”.
Guidom Sabally’s high school education was cut short because his family could no longer afford school fees. For many years, he struggled to find work as an unskilled labourer.
Now in his 40s, Mr. Sabally was able to take up the opportunity of free technical training, provided by a UN-led training programme, in 2018; having completed the course, he found work as an engineer, supervising the construction of culverts – raised roads that allow his community to cross land that is inundated by floods, a consequence of climate change that is affecting many parts of the country.
He explained to UN News that, with the money he has saved, he has been able to branch out, and become a successful poultry farmer.
“I live in my family compound in Brikamaba village, where I was born, in the Central River Region of Gambia. There are 14 of us, my brothers and sisters, their children, and my father.
Life is difficult here. There aren’t enough jobs and, when there is work, it is usually only available for a short period of time. So, people here find it hard to feed their families.
When I dropped out of high school, I was sad. I knew that, without education, it would be very hard for me to learn the skills I would need to become a professional and advance in life. For many years it was difficult for me to find work.
Breaking ground on a new career
In 2018, a friend of mine heard a radio advertisement about a free technical training course, run by the UN, that would provide me with construction skills. He told me about it, and I applied.
It wasn’t difficult for me to go back to school, even though I was 38 at the time. The teachers knew exactly how to support me. I learned many useful skills, including masonry, carpentry, and painting and decorating.
At the same time, I was also able to earn money by going to work on a UN project to build road culverts. At first, I was employed as a labourer, getting gravel, moving rocks, doing anything that was needed.
After I graduated, I was able to work on the next culvert project as a trained engineer, and today I supervise a team of 50 workers.
‘The women can do anything the men do’
We have 25 men and 25 women, because gender equality is an important part of the project. When it started, people in the community would say that women cannot do this job but, today, they are seeing the benefits!
As well as the money they provide, women can now work with their husbands to improve their own homes, they can contribute to the decision-making process, planning, and construction.
The women can do anything the men do, from fixing steel reinforcements to masonry. We have to give them opportunities to show what they are capable of.
Adapting to the changing climate
Building culverts is very important, because of the changing climate. The rains in The Gambia have become more and more extreme and have caused the roads to erode. These culverts will allow the community to cross flooded areas during the rainy season.
This will make a big difference. Children will be able to get to school, we will be able to access health care, and businesses will be able to trade.
It will make everything easier because now, when there are heavy rains, everyone has to take a much longer route to cross the water. These higher roads will change our lives.”
‘This belly is never full!’
The culvert-building projects are heavy jobs, and I’m not getting any younger! Also, they will be phased out soon, so it’s important to learn about entrepreneurship and business, so that you save some of the money you earn. My grandfather used to say “this belly is never full”; you always have to think about how you will get your next meal!
I decided to invest my earnings in starting a poultry farm, and it’s working well for me. I started with 50 chicks and, with the money I made from selling eggs and chickens, I was able to buy 100. It’s going well. I don’t even have to go to the market; people come to me, and I sell very easily.
I’m planning to rebuild the farm, and add more lights, so that I can house more chickens. I would like to have around 600, and employ some of the unemployed young people from my community.
I want to pass on the skills I have learned, so that they can start their own businesses. I can’t do it all on my own! More people need to understand the importance of saving and investing. Because, even when you have millions, if you spend millions, you will end up with nothing.
I’m very happy that I was able to get the skills to work on the culvert project, because I am now a professional mason, and a successful poultry farmer. I have been able to fund more technical training, and earn an advanced level diploma, and put my kids through school. My life is far better than it was before.”
“Every person searching for a better life deserves safety and dignity,” UN Secretary-General António Guterres said. “We need safe, legal routes for migrants and refugees.”
The UN refugee agency (UNCHR) and the International Organization for Migration (IOM), in a joint statement, expressed condolences for the victims and called on countries to increase resources and capabilities to effectively meet their responsibilities.
Death toll could rise
As of Sunday evening, 45 lifeless bodies had been recovered, but ongoing search and rescue teams fear the death toll could be worse, the agencies said. News reports said a newborn and small children were among the dead.
Reports indicate that at least 170 people were on board the small vessel, including children and families. The UN refugee agency said that information received shows that there may be as many as 80 survivors. Some of them have been hospitalized for treatment.
‘Unacceptable horrors’
“It is unacceptable to witness such horrors, with families and children entrusted to unseaworthy boats,” said Chiara Cardoletti, the UNHCR representative for Italy, the Holy See and San Marino. “This tragedy must prompt us to act and act now.”
The boat had left Turkey, with many passengers coming from Afghanistan and Pakistan. In 2022, people from Turkey accounted for around 15 per cent of total arrivals by sea in Italy, UNHCR said, noting that nearly half of the people arriving along this route were people fleeing Afghanistan.
‘Insufficient’ rescue capacities
The agencies said European Union mechanisms for rescue operations are “urgently needed”.
To avoid tragedies like this, Ms. Cardoletti said, it is “more necessary than ever before to strengthen the rescue capacity, which is still insufficient”.
Laurence Hart, director of the IOM Coordination Office for the Mediterranean, said this shipwreck demonstrates how the phenomenon of migration by sea must be tackled by all European nations.
New approach needed
This requires humanitarian support and adopting an approach that considers the multiple drivers that are causing people to flee, she said.
The IOM Missing Migrants Project reports that at least 220 people, including those who perished on Sunday, have died or gone missing along the central Mediterranean routein 2023.
Women farmers in Sudan are being encourage to playing a more active role in their communities.
The livelihood of many farming families is under threat due to the cumulative effects of conflict, economic and political instability, coupled with increased water consumption from population growth and agricultural development; climate change is the latest threat.
Women in Sudan’s southern White Nile State, who are disproportionately affected by these natural and manmade hazards, are being encouraged to take a more active decision-making role in community projects which include building a water harvesting reservoir and planting drought-resistant and higher yielding crops.
Read more here about how other farming communities around the world can learn from Sudan’s farmers and fight their own water crises and adapt to climate change.
The two processes are complementary, guided by the imperative of making the world safer from communicable diseases and ensuring equitable responses to public health threats, said Ashley Bloomfield, former Director-General of Health of New Zealand, who co-chairs the working group on updating the 2005 WHO International Health Regulations, which concluded its latest round of discussions on Friday.
“The efforts to update the International Health Regulations and draft apandemic accord share a number of common themes, including the importance of equity in access to health, collaboration and capacity building,” he said. “It is important that there is consistency and alignment across the two processes.”
Facing COVID-19 challenges
A total of 307 amendments to the WHO International Health Regulations came in response to challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic. As of Tuesday, WHO reported a total of 757,264,511 confirmed cases, including 6,850,594 deaths, since the start of the pandemic in 2020.
“COVID-19 showed us that having a good, strong set of international health regulations is essential, and showed where the current regulations need to be improved,” Dr. Bloomfield said.
During the week-long working group session, he said governments had focused on making their countries, and the international community, better prepared for future emergencies. They also stressed the importance of enhancing capacity building, especially in low-income countries; access to benefits arising from sharing pathogens; equitable access to medical countermeasures; and enhanced cooperation and information sharing.
Making the world safer
“The ongoing pandemic has underscored the importance of countries working together collaboratively, and supporting WHO in its vital work, to make the world safer,” he said. “The tone of the discussions and progress made during this week’s meeting clearly show that countries understand the responsibility they have to ensure this process is successful.”
Abdullah M. Assiri, Saudi Arabia’s Deputy Minister of Health and working group co-chair, said the 194-nation WHO membership is “in the driving seat” of the process of strengthening the current regulations.
“During the pandemic, the world faced the urgent need for functioning international instruments, and placed increasing importance in international organizations, such as WHO,” he said. “Updated regulations will enable the world to better detect outbreaks early and prevent them from developing into public health emergencies of international concern. This is about strengthening our collective ability to do that and to better protect everybody.”
The 2005 regulations had set out agreed approaches and obligations for countries to prepare for, and respond to, disease outbreaks and other acute public health risks. The working group is set to meet again in April to continue discussions.
The WHO working group met to consider 307 amendments proposed by governments to update current regulations.
New ‘pandemic accord’
On Monday, governments will begin negotiating the drafting of a WHO instrument on pandemic prevention, preparedness, and response. Referred to as a pandemic accord, the “zero draft” of the agreement will be the focus of discussions during the week-long session.
Calls for action to draft the accord came following the World Health Assembly’s special session in December 2021, in recognition of the failure of the international community in showing solidarity and equity in response to the coronavirus pandemic.
Global health strides
The International Sanitary Regulations, issued in 1951, preceded the landmark 2005 WHO regulations. Both follow more than a century of global health strides, dating back to the first International Sanitary Conference, held in Paris in 1851, which drafted quarantine regulations to stem the spread of cholera, yellow fever, and other deadly pandemics at the time.
At the UN General Assembly’s first-of-its-kind science session, held in early February, epidemiologists and researchers had called for a global pandemic warning system. Suggestions included forging a new global digital collaboration comprising a network of researchers connected through an open-source data science platform capable of quantifying, modeling, and ultimately solving any climate and health problem at any scale.
Mr. Guterres praised the many African Union (AU) initiatives aimed at bringing about this vision for the continent – including Agenda 2063 a blueprint for the Africa of the future, and the Decade of Women’s Financial and Economic Inclusion – and the decision to focus on the African Continental Free Trade Area at the Summit which, he said, represents a “truly transformative pathway to job creation and new sources of prosperity for Africans, especially for the youth”.
Tests on every front
Nevertheless, the UN chief did not underestimate the “enormous tests” Africa is facing, crises that are “greater than any in our lifetimes”, and demanded action.
On the economic front, Mr. Guterres called for more financial support for a continent that is, he said, being hit by a dysfunctional and unfair financial system, inequalities in the availability of resources for the recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, and a cost-of-living crisis exacerbated by the consequences of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
The financial system, declared the UN chief, routinely denies African countries debt relief, and charges extortionate interest rates, starving them of investment in vital areas, such as health, education, and social protection.
The answer, according to Mr. Guterres, is a radical transformation of the international financial system, centred on the needs of developing countries.
Ensure a just transition to clean energy
Moving to the climate crisis, Mr. Guterres acknowledged that a transition to a clean energy future must address issues of energy access and development challenges, on a continent rich in fossil fuel sources, where millions are without electricity.
He said that, in order to decarbonize and develop, African countries need wider access to technologies such as battery-storage systems, components, and raw materials.
A “tidal wave of support” from developed countries is needed, he said, to match the leadership shown by several countries on climate issues; he cited Kenya’s green economy strategy, efforts to protect the tropical forests of the Congo, South Africa’s Just Transition Energy Partnership, and the AU’s ambitious Green Stimulus Programme.
This support, continued Mr. Guterres, must include delivering on a fund for the losses and damage caused by the crisis, a doubling of adaptation finance, and ensuring that every country has early warning systems in place, affording protection from extreme climate shocks.
Africa needs peace
On the subject of peace and security, Mr. Guterres noted that the UN’s role is becoming more complex each year, with more conflicts, terrorism, and insecurity. He called for a more flexible and efficient system, as outlined in the UN New Agenda for Peace, which is aimed at reinforcing the Organization’s peace missions.
This new agenda, explained the Secretary-General, needs to link peace to sustainable development, climate action, and human rights, with a greater participation of women and youth.
Mr. Guterres concluded by expressing his hope that the Twenty-First Century could be Africa’s century, and the determination of the UN to work with each African country, in order to free the continent’s enormous potential, and overcome the obstacles that are blocking its path.
“This is a challenge that we can master with ingenuity and determination,” said Csaba Kőrösi, calling for science-based solutions and solidarity, as he delivered a keynote speech at the high-level symposium on “Integrated Water Cycle Management in the post-COVID-19 era.”
He said when the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) were crafted, the full magnitude of climate change impacts through droughts and floods was not yet prominent enough to allow for factoring explicit flood and drought related indicators into SDG6, the Goal related to water and sanitation.
He compared the current challenge to that of the ill-fated Apollo13 moon mission that managed to return to Earth after encountering a disastrous mechanical problem.
“In 1970, ingenuity and determined action brought the astronauts back to earth alive,” he said, stressing that it will take the same kind of resolve to cope with flood risks.
Besides climate change-induced threats, he pointed out that poor flood protection and management, and reckless land use are also driving disaster risks.
More commitments expected at Water Conference
Calling for solutions based on resilience, sustainability and inclusiveness, he stressed the essential need to strengthen transnational alliances, such as the UN Water Convention of 1992, which is managed by the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE), and reiterated his calls for a global water information system.
In five weeks, the General Assembly will convene the landmark UN Water Conference, with Japan co-chairing the summit’s interactive dialogue on climate, resilience, and environment, he said, encouraging the Japanese leadership in these areas.
He expressed hope that the Water Conference will produce “the commitments that will enable us to catalyze the global water information system, the early warnings for all initiative and the strengthened science partnerships we all need to face what is coming.”
In his video message, Li Junhua, Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs, said that a main outcome of the Water Conference is the Water Action Agenda, a platform where action-oriented voluntary commitments are being collected.
“If we are serious about changing the game on water and flood management, I am counting on you, dear colleagues, to bring your most imaginative and forward-thinking commitments to the Conference in March,” he said.
Dressed in black with a flowing cape and extravagantly oversized hat, performer Kurt Layne’s distinctive macabre ensemble blends influences from film depictions of the American wild west with West African culture. He cuts an imposing figure as he struts along a road bringing to life a traditional Carnival character, the Midnight Robber.
He recently performed in Tobago Carnival, where he took the opportunity to share his story about staying safe during the pandemic. His performance aimed at educating people was personal.
“My mum had passed away from COVID,” he said. “I would tell anyone, and especially those close to me, to always stay on the right track in terms of keeping up with the COVID protocols.”
“Pow pow, I shot COVID dead,” he declared, grabbing the attention of a group of kids with his ‘Robber Talk’.
Kurt Layne’s ominous delivery invokes the best of the character’s oral skill and energetic delivery to drive home a message of hope and optimism to his young listeners.
“Join hands with we; each other do their part and for sure, we’ll have a great start!”
The twin island Republic of Trinidad and Tobago was dramatically affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Over 4300 died from the disease and the economy which is largely based on oil and gas production suffered as demand for fuel plummeted during the global lockdown.
The Caribbean nation reopened for public gatherings in April 2022 and six months later the inaugural Tobago Carnival was launched on the smaller of the two islands, where Kurt Layne and other traditional festival favourites performed.
Dame Lorraine, a temptress with exaggerated voluptuous curves, is another of the traditional mas (short for masquerade) characters found in Caribbean carnival celebrations.
Played by Lesley-Ann Ellis, the character performs provocative dance moves wearing costumes inspired by 18th and early 19th century French colonial plantation owners.
Dame Lorraine isn’t associated with verbose social commentary but in this case Lesley-Ann Ellis works a calypso song into the traditional dance in order to focus on encouraging people to continue sanitizing hands and wearing protective masks.
“This thing has to end so cough in your sleeve; stay your distance, let this virus leave.”
Both performers worked with the Verified Initiative which was developed by the United Nations with the support of the social impact agency Purpose to fight disinformation about COVID-19 and to provide trustworthy, life-saving information and fact-based advice about the disease.
In Trinidad and Tobago, guided by the United Nations Information Centre for the Caribbean Area – based in Port of Spain – Purpose worked with such local stakeholders as the Tobago House of Assembly to deliver messages that were relevant to the national cultural context.
Oral traditions
Oral traditions are perfectly suited to getting across COVID-19 information.
Pupils of Signal Hill Secondary School in Tobago worked with the Verified Initiative to develop messaging encouraging vaccination against COVID-19.
Student, Clorysa Gill explained how the performance, known as “speech band” can captivate a crowd. “When you say, ‘stop yuh bow, Mr. Fiddler,’ the way you project your voice and the tone you say that, that could tell you OK, people listening to my speech now.”
Those pro-vaccination and anti-disinformation messages will resonate at, arguably, the largest cultural festival on the twin islands, the Trinidad and Tobago Carnival. The event which brings together the 1.5 million inhabitants of the islands and which attracts thousands of international visitors is taking place for the first time since 2020, on February 20-21.
“Carnivals like the one held in Tobago are the ideal setting to reach a large number of people with the messages of the Verified campaign,” said Liliana Garavito Canon, the Director of the United Nations Information Centre for the Caribbean Area.
“Among the many positive messages is one which says that healthfulness and celebration can co-exist,” she added. “Everyone just has to act on accurate information to protect themselves and remain COVID-19 free.”
“Peace is not just about signing an agreement,” said Miroslav Jenča, UN Assistant Secretary-General for Europe, Central Asia and Americas, who briefed members during a meeting requested by the Russian Federation – as the one-year mark nears, since the Kremlin launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Mr. Jenča stressed that turning words on paper into action on the ground is particularly important given the current complexity of the situation in Ukraine, as well as its implications for the future of Europe’s security architecture “and the international order itself.”
Ceasefire on paper
The Minsk accords – also known as the Minsk II agreement – were signed in February 2015 by representatives of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), Russia, Ukraine and the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic and Luhansk People’s Republic.
The agreement laid out a series of political and military steps to end the fighting between Government forces and separatists in eastern Ukraine.
Among other provisions, the Minsk accords committed signatories to an immediate and comprehensive ceasefire in certain areas of Donetsk and Luhansk regions – an element that is widely viewed as never having taken effect.
Mr. Jenča reminded the Security Council on Friday that the UN has played no formal role in any mechanism related to the peace process in Ukraine, over the last eight years.
It was not invited to be a participant in the various negotiations in Minsk, or to the 2014 and 2015 agreements themselves, and it was not involved in the implementation efforts led by the OSCE’s Trilateral Contact Group – made up of representatives of three parties.
However, the UN has consistently supported its implementation, including through the Security Council’s unanimously adoption of resolution 2202 (2015) on 17 February 2015.
The Organization has also offered support, where requested and appropriate, and provided expert support to the OSCE’s now-defunct Special Monitoring Mission in eastern Ukraine.
At the same time, said Mr. Jenča, the UN stands firm in its principled support for Ukraine’s independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity within its internationally recognized borders.
‘Profound shock and disappointment’
Also briefing the Council was Martin Sajdik, who served as Special Representative of the OSCE for the Minsk negotiations from 2015 to 2019.
Apart from Minsk II, he provided an overview of other diplomatic strides and setbacks during his tenure, agreeing that many provisions lacked the political will needed to become reality on the ground.
Spotlighting the OSCE’s focus on the safety and needs of civilians on both sides of the contact line, he said the number of civilian victims had dropped significantly in the years before the present outbreak of fighting.
Among other successes, water management and conditions at border crossing points had improved by 2019, a year that saw – for the first time since the onset of fighting in 2014 – not a single child killed as a result of the hostilities.
Against the backdrop of those hard-won gains, Mr. Sajdik expressed his “profound shock and disappointment” over the spiralling violence that has rocked Ukraine since 2022.
On the heels of recent news reports about Canada and the United States shooting down several flying objects, including an alleged Chinese ‘spy balloon’, inside their borders, WMO points out that weather balloons provide just a tiny fraction of the millions of observations gathered worldwide daily.
On Thursday, US President Joe Biden made public remarks after days of speculation over three unmanned aerial objects shot down last weekend by the US military, saying that they were “most likely tied to private companies, recreation or research institutions.”
Valuable input for global system
More than 50 satellites collect information from space, and about 400 aircraft operated by some 40 commercial aircraft companies gather input from the skies, notes WMO.
About 400 moored buoys, 1,250 drifting buoys, and 7,300 ships help from the seas in addition to 10,000 automated and land-based observing stations across the planet.
WMO/J Feast
A weather balloon is prepared for release at an Australian Antarctic station.
1,000 daily flights
Every day, free-rising latex balloons are released simultaneously from almost 900 locations worldwide. Nearly 1,000 balloons gather daily observations that provide input in real-time.
The valuable information gathered contributes to computer forecast models, local data for meteorologists to make forecasts and predict storms, climate monitoring and data for research to better understand weather and climate processes.
Computer forecast models that use weather balloon data are used by all forecasters worldwide, WMO said.
Equipped with battery-operated radiosondes that capture observations, the floating information collectors are airborne for around two hours.
Up to 35kms high
They measure pressure, wind velocity, temperature and humidity from just above ground, to heights of up to 35 kilometres, sustaining temperatures as cold as -95°C (-139°F), before bursting and falling back to Earth under a parachute.
Playing a key role as part of the world’s global observing network for decades, they are the primary source of above-ground data. More than two thirds of weather balloon stations make observations twice a day and another 100 and 200 report daily.
Their valuable input feeds the Global Observing System, among the most ambitious and successful instances of international collaboration of the last 60 years, WMO said.
The system consists of individual surface and space-based observing systems owned and operated by a plethora of national and international agencies.
Johannes Fromholt is currently near the frontline in Donetsk Oblast and has been describing the support the UN is providing.
“I am currently in Kurakhove, which is close to the frontline. We see heavy fighting, which has intensified even in the past week. We came here as part of a UN interagency humanitarian convoy, to provide communities with humanitarian assistance.
Of course, there is extensive damage; some towns in this area are 80 to 90 per cent damaged, some even more. So actually, you could say they don’t even exist anymore. Even on the way to Kurakhove a missile strike occurred in a nearby city, which killed three people and injured 12.
It’s important that we continue supporting, as much as possible, the frontline locations with humanitarian assistance. In Kurakhove where I currently am, there are approximately 12,000 people in need. This humanitarian convoy is the first of twelve convoys going to front line locations in the next five days.
In total across the country, there are nearly 18 million people, that’s almost 40 per cent of the Ukraine population in need of humanitarian assistance. And this includes the western parts of Ukraine, to a lesser extent, the center and north, but mainly in the southern and eastern parts of Ukraine, where we also have the frontline at the moment.
A woman walks past a destroyed apartment block in western Ukraine.
There are 5.3 million IDPs, internally displaced persons, within Ukraine and we know that around eight million people have also fled to neighboring countries.
Milder winter
Luckily, it’s been a somewhat mild winter compared to Ukrainian standards, but people still need to stay warm. They have been provided with basic humanitarian assistance such as food, hygiene items, winter clothes, solar lamps, as people are really staying down in the bunkers, especially in the areas where there’s shelling on a daily basis.
These bunkers and basements are, of course, cold as there’s no electricity in these frontline locations.
There has been a massive scale-up in needs for generators, water pumps and water systems in the last two or three months since the Russians started attacking and destroying critical infrastructure, which we have supported.
And there are people with incredible humanitarian needs on the other side of the frontline in Russian-held territory. At the moment, the UN has not been able to access these areas.
As IOM, we are supporting both the war affected communities and the people staying behind. But we also supporting especially the IDPs in regions further away from the frontlines.
So far, we have supported 102 collective centers with various types of relief to improve living conditions inside the centers.
We have provided emergency shelter kits for people staying in damaged apartments or houses. We have also been distributing cash to over 70,000 people who are very close to the frontline locations. This is actually an approach that the government would like other humanitarian actors to use.
Psychosocial support
One other concern is supporting mental health services and psychosocial support, especially for people in the frontline locations, but also people who are on the move following the outbreak of war broke.
People are resilient and try to adapt, but after some time, of course they need support to talk about their emotions and feelings. And this not only includes IDPs, but also veterans and the families coming back from the war.
One year into the war, it’s important that we try to end it as quickly as possible.
António Guterres told reporters outside the Security Council in New York that aid “must get through from all sides” and the funding would cover an initial period of three months.
He said a similar appeal is being finalised for survivors across the border in Türkiye.
‘Immense’ need
In the immediate aftermath of the earthquakes, the United Nations rapidly provided $50 million through the Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF), but the needs are immense”, he said.
“The Syria effort brings together the entire UN system and humanitarian partners and will help secure desperately needed, life-saving relief for nearly 5 million Syrians – including shelter, healthcare, food and protection.”
He said providing the relief was the most effective way for countries to help the war-shattered country, which is still in the grip of a 12-year civil war, with much of the quake zone in the northwest border region, controlled by opposition fighters, with many living there displaced multiple times and already in a state of humanitarian crisis.
“We all know that lifesaving aid has not been getting in at the speed and scale needed”, the UN chief said, with millions of people “struggling for survival, homeless and in freezing temperatures.”
‘Doing all we can’
“We are doing all we can to change this but much more is needed” he declared.
“I have an urgent message to the international community: the human suffering from this epic natural disaster should not be made even worse by manmade obstacles – access, funding, supplies.
“Aid must get through from all sides, to all sides, through all routes – without any restrictions”, he emphasized, noting that following Syria’s assurances last night, two extra crossings were now open to allow more aid into the northwest.
“As we speak, an 11-truck convoy is on the move to cross through Bab Al-Salam with many more to come”, he said.
Time for ‘concerted action’
He called on all Member States, and others in the donor community, “to fully fund this effort without delay and help the millions of children, women and men whose lives have been upended by this generational disaster.
“This is a moment for unity, for common humanity and concerted action.”
No restrictions
Asked if a Security Council resolution was needed to cement the bilateral agreement between the United Nations and Syrian authorities, Mr. Guterres said the reality was that the crossings were open, and movement was taking place.
Replying to another question about having to negotiate with military opposition leaders in the northwest beyond the control of Syrian authorities, he repeated his call for all aid corridors to be opened, “without restrictions”.
