#COVID-19

Humanitarian partners in Honduras launched a flash appeal for $69.2 million to help the Government respond to the needs of 450,000 vulnerable people affected by Hurricane Eta, which caused catastrophic damage.  Given the recent new tropical storm Iota, the plan will be updated following assessments of its impact.

Following are UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed’s remarks, as prepared for delivery, to the Joint Meeting of the Economic and Social Council and the Peacebuilding Commission, “Fostering global solidarity in response to coherent and conflict sensitive responses to the COVID-19 pandemic and its socioeconomic impacts”, held on 19 November:

Following are UN Secretary-General António Guterres’ opening remarks to the open session of the eleventh Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)-United Nations Summit, held today:

Following are UN Secretary-General António Guterres’ remarks, as delivered, to the annual ministerial meeting of the “Group of 77” developing countries and China, today:

In Somalia, flash floods have affected nearly 73,000 people, displacing more than 13,000 and causing four deaths, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs reports.  The United Nations and partners have mobilized pre-positioned supplies to help those affected and provided shelter to at least 6,000 people.

Following is the text of UN Secretary‑General António Guterres’ video message for the “Madrid Call to Action,” held today:

Following is the text of UN Secretary‑General António Guterres’ video message at the twentieth meeting of the Council of Heads of State of Member States of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), held today:

The Emergency Relief Coordinator reported that six humanitarian workers were lost in targeted attacks in Somalia, in two separate incidents in South Sudan, and in north-west Syria.  “This cannot be tolerated,” he said, calling the attacks a violation of international law and an “obscene act against people working hard” to help the world’s vulnerable.

The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) launched the Food Coalition, a multi-stakeholder, multi-sectoral alliance that aims to ensure global food access and increase the resilience of agri-food systems.  The pandemic could add 132 million more people to the world's undernourished in 2020, FAO says, on top of the 690 million hungry people in 2019.

The General Assembly decided today that Headquarters will host a special session at the level of Heads of State and Government on 3 and 4 December in response to the COVID‑19 pandemic.  It also debated the annual report of the Human Rights Council and earmarked 1 December for a special solemn meeting in memory of the victims of the Second World War.