Donors pledged $1.4 billion to respond to the drought in the Horn of Africa – the worst in the region in four decades – that has left more than 15 million people severely food insecure in Ethiopia, Kenya and Somalia, according to the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Of the total, $1 billion will go towards immediate and life-saving aid, such as food.
In progress at UNHQ
Noon Briefings
The United Nations Environment Programme today released a report saying sand, the world’s second most exploited resource, must be recognized as a strategic resource and its extraction from rivers and marine ecosystems and its use must rethought, as they can cause erosion and threaten livelihoods.
The United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) today strongly condemned the widespread sexual violence, as well as killings of civilians, and attacks on aid workers in Leer County. UNMISS has carried out 10 verification missions and says that 72 civilians were killed, and 64 cases of sexual violence have been recorded.
The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and United Nations Environment Programme expressed grave concern today over the arrest, detention and sentencing of four environmental human rights defenders in Viet Nam on charges of tax evasion and urged Vietnamese authorities to ensure environmental advocates can operate freely.
Over 1 million children in Ghana, Kenya and Malawi have received one or more doses of the world’s first malaria vaccine thanks to a pilot programme coordinated by the World Health Organization. The agency estimates that, if widely deployed, the vaccine could save the lives of an additional 40,000 to 80,000 children annually.
United Nations staff in South Africa say they are working closely with national and local authorities to support regions impacted by last week’s devastating floods, including providing dignity packs, blankets, food and other necessities in Kwazulu-Natal and Eastern Cape Provinces, and working to restore access to services and Internet connectivity.
The number of hungry people in the Horn of Africa could soar from 14 million to 20 million by the end of 2022 without desperately needed rains and urgent humanitarian funding, the World Food Programme (WFP) warned today. Somalia faces famine, half a million Kenyans are a step away from catastrophic hunger, and Ethiopia is already well above emergency thresholds.
The Houthis movement — also known as Ansar Allah — have signed an action plan with the United Nations to end and prevent the recruitment and use of children in armed conflict, the killing and maiming of boys and girls, attacks on schools and hospitals and other grave violations. Virginia Gamba, Special Representative for Children and Armed Conflict, signed the action plan as a witness in New York.
The World Food Programme (WFP) says its operational costs for West Africa are expected to expand by $136 million as a result of rising fuel and food prices. Some 43 million people are expected to face acute food insecurity by June. Before the Ukraine conflict WFP had already forced to cut rations in Nigeria, Central African Republic, Chad, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Mali and Niger.
United Nations humanitarian officials say an estimated 7.7 million people in South Sudan — that is about 63 per cent of the population — are likely to face crisis or worse levels of food insecurity through July, according to the latest food security analysis. In 2021, 5.3 million people received food, health, water and sanitation, nutrition assistance and other critical services.