© UNICEF/Lana Slezic | Najeeba Ahmadjan travels uphill on a donkey to reach vaccination sites at remote villages in Faizabad, north-east Afghanistan, during the first round of Maternal and Neo-natal Tetanus (MNT) vaccination. (April 2004). ​​​​​​​ The UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) backs vaccination programmes in over 95 countries with the support of partners and through the “sheer determination” of volunteers.  They… Read More

Close to 363 million learners worldwide have been impacted said UNESCO, as it convened a videoconference of higher education officials to step up an emergency response to minimize learning disruptions worldwide. According to data from the agency, the COVID-19 crisis is keeping one-in-five students worldwide away from school, so far, and an additional one-in-four from higher education classes. Fifteen countries… Read More

“We envisage a slowdown in the global economy to under two per cent for this year, and that will probably cost in the order of $1 trillion, compared with what people were forecasting back in September,” said Richard Kozul-Wright, Director, Division on Globalization and Development Strategies at UNCTAD. Launching the UNCTAD report as world financial markets tumbled over concerns about… Read More

 “As we mark this sombre moment, the World Health Organization reminds all countries and communities that the spread of this virus can be significantly slowed or even reversed through the implementation of robust containment and control activities”, the UN agency said in a statement. WHO urged countries to continue efforts that have been effective in limiting the number of cases… Read More

So far, no imminent specific shortages have been identified, and manufacturing has resumed in most parts of China, but the private sector needs to be involved, to ensure that countries can access life-saving products, said Tedros. “You’ve heard me talk about the market failure for personal protective equipment. We look forward to businesses stepping up to play their part. We… Read More

The global scale and speed of the current educational disruption is unparalleled Audrey Azoulay, Director-General, UNESCO Disadvantaged children are the worst-hit by the emergency measures, declared UNESCO Director-General Audrey Azoulay: “While temporary school closures as a result of health and other crises are not new, unfortunately, the global scale and speed of the current educational disruption is unparalleled and, if… Read More

In a report launched on Thursday, UNAIDS noted that almost 40 years into the fight, AIDS is still the leading cause of death for women aged 15 to 49 years, with roughly 6,000 young women aged between 15 and 24 acquiring HIV every week.  It underscores that the next generation of the HIV response must make gender equality, and the… Read More

The move came following a recommendation from UN Secretary-General António Guterres to Member States, on February 29, to amend the format of the 64th session of the conference, which was originally due to last several days (March 9 to March 20), and would have welcomed representatives of Member States, UN entities and non-governmental organizations from around the world. On Monday,… Read More

In remarks made at a joint press conference with the head of the World Bank Group, the IMF Managing Director, Kristalina Georgieva, said that the UN-backed global funds would make up the shortfall, in effect, by offering to inject around $50 billion into low-income and emerging market nations, pending requests for support. “Thanks to the generosity of our shareholders, we have about $1… Read More

The new fighting exacerbates displacement caused by renewed clashes involving pro-Government forces and Houthi rebels around Marib, Sana’a and Al Jawf Governorates, which forced 5,000 families to flee their homes, according to a situation update from UNFPA, the UN Population Fund, which focuses on sexual and reproductive health.   Yemen is the world’s largest humanitarian crisis and displaced persons remain in need of protection, shelter and lifesaving health services.   Intense fighting… Read More