Armenia

Food systems caused more than one third of global greenhouse gas emissions, according to a new Food and Agriculture Organization/European Commission study, which says food system emissions are estimated at 34 per cent of the total.  Top emitters are China, Indonesia, United States, Brazil, European Union and India.

United Nations Children’s Fund Representative (UNICEF) in Nigeria Peter Hawkins calls on those responsible for the mass abduction of girls from a State-run school in Zamfara to release them immediately and for the Government to take steps to ensure their safe release and the safety of other schoolchildren in the country.

The United Nations team, led by Resident Coordinator Stefan Priesner, is helping authorities in Malaysia launch a national COVID-19 vaccination programme.  More than 500,000 people have registered to receive the vaccine, which aims to reach 80 per cent of the population, 24 million people, by March 2022.

The following statement was issued today by the Spokesman for UN Secretary‑General António Guterres:

More than 47,000 Ethiopians have arrived in Sudan seeking safety, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) said today.  A small number of Eritrean refugees also arrived from Tigray.  UNHCR and Sudanese authorities have now moved more than 11,000 refugees 70 kilometres from the Ethiopian border.

The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) said carbon dioxide continues to be at record highs, despite COVID-19 lockdowns around the world.  According to the WMO Greenhouse Gas Bulletin, carbon dioxide levels saw a growth spurt in 2019 and the annual global average breached the significant threshold of 410 parts per million.

COVID-19 could push more people to move out of necessity, as hunger surges among migrant and displaced communities, the International Organization for Migration and the World Food Programme warn in a new report.  The World Bank expects a 14 per cent drop in remittances to low- and middle-income countries by 2021 which will impact food security.

The Humanitarian Coordinator in South Sudan, Alain Noudéhou, has condemned the killing on 29 October of an aid worker in the greater Pibor area, stressing that it is unacceptable that eight humanitarian workers have already lost their lives this year in South Sudan while providing aid to people in need.

The following statement was issued today by the Spokesman for UN Secretary-General António Guterres:

A new Food and Agricultural Organization report warns that the Sustainable Development Goals will not be achieved by 2030 unless the world’s forests are restored.  Regional responses are making significant advances and 63 countries and other entities have committed to restoring 173 million hectares, but more needs to be done.