Africa

Following is the text of UN Secretary-General António Guterres’ video message to the thirty-fifth Assembly of the Heads of State and Government of the African Union, in Addis Ababa today:

In the Democratic Republic of the Congo, following Tuesday’s attack in Ituri province, United Nations peacekeepers are patrolling the area with reinforced troops to provide security around the Savo displaced persons site and are facilitating medical supplies and evacuations to Bunia for wounded civilians.

At a meeting today on the Sahel region, the Emergency Relief Coordinator for the United Nations said that nearly 15 million people in Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso will need humanitarian assistance in 2022.  This is 4 million more than one year ago.

In Ethiopia, the United Nations and humanitarian partners have been forced to reduce aid distribution in Tigray as fuel supplies are blocked from entering the area.  Last week, food aid reached only 10,500 of the 800,000 people in need.  The humanitarian response is being scaled up in accessible areas in Amhara and Afar.

The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights said it is deeply concerned by recent incidents in Bosnia and Herzegovina and Serbia that saw individuals glorify atrocity crimes and convicted war criminals target certain communities with hate speech, warning of a potential uptick in such acts in 2022, an election year.

Piracy and armed robbery at sea are costing Gulf of Guinea States $1.94 billion annually, with an additional $1.4 billion being lost in port fees and import tariffs, a senior United Nations official told the Security Council today, as the 15-member organ explored ways to address recent security challenges in West Africa and the Sahel.

Mahamet Saleh Annadif, Head of the United Nations Office for West Africa and the Sahel (UNOWAS), told the Security Council this morning that concern that the terrorist threat from Sahel countries could expand to the Gulf of Guinea is now a reality and that insecurity is compromising progress in the entire region.

Despite some progress in the electoral arena, countries in Central Africa continue to grapple with the serious challenges of terrorism, dire food insecurity, climate change and the COVID‑19 pandemic, the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for the subregion told the Security Council today.

International Labour Organization (ILO) officials in Myanmar called on employers to help prevent workplace violence and harassment.  The organization has received increased reports of such incidents, particularly among women and vulnerable groups, since the military takeover in February and amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres and African Union Commission Chairperson Moussa Faki Mahamat today welcomed the continuing strong cooperation between the two organizations.