Africa

Following is UN Secretary-General António Guterres’ message for the International Day for People of African Descent, observed on 31 August:

The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs is concerned about flooding in West and Central Africa that, just two months into the rainy season, has impacted over 700,000 people. The Central Emergency Response Fund allocated $10 million this year to Congo, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Niger.

With the seventy-eighth session drawing to a close, the General Assembly today adopted numerous texts on a variety of topics, including one that honours the history, culture and struggles of women and girls of African descent around the world.

The UN Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO) reports that following negotiations it dismantled a militia camp set up by the CODECO armed group in a school in Fataki, in Ituri Province. Nearly 450 students that had been forced to relocate can now return to school for the upcoming year.

Africa has articulated a clear and compelling vision for its representation on the Security Council, that body heard today at a historic high-level debate on enhancing the continent’s effective participation in the United Nations organ tasked with maintenance of peace and security.

Following are UN Secretary-General António Guterres’ remarks to the Security Council debate on “Maintenance of Peace and Security: Addressing the Historical Injustice and Enhancing Africa’s Effective Representation in the United Nations Security Council”, in New York today:

Following is UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed’s message on the occasion of the African Caucus Meeting “Facilitating Intra-African Trade — Catalyst for Sustainable Economic Growth in Africa”, in Abuja today:

In Afghanistan, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs today said that it, along with its partners, are coordinating with the de facto authorities there on the response to the heavy rainfall and flash flooding that have impacted the east and north-east of the country earlier this week.

In Ukraine, attacks today and over the weekend continue to impact civilians in front-line areas. Authorities reported that, on 13 July, an attack on a railway in the Kharkiv region of eastern Ukraine caused nearly 30 civilian casualties, including children.

Measures to address insecurity, humanitarian crises, shrinking civic spaces and other threats must place people at the forefront and will be more effective if done collectively, the head of UN efforts in West Africa and the Sahel told the Security Council today, as he reported on the state of a region that — while notching certain successes — is grappling with profound challenges.