Economic issues

The United Nations team in Timor-Leste, led by Roy Trivedy, the Resident Coordinator, is supporting local authorities following floods that have impacted Díli and other parts of the country.  The Government says there have been more than 30 deaths and over 13,500 people are living in evacuation sites.

The Economic and Social Council opened its annual financing for development forum today amid warnings that, with more than 3 million lives lost to COVID-19 and infections still on the rise, Governments must urgently heed the lessons learned thus far if they are to avoid a lengthy global recession.

Following are UN Secretary-General António Guterres’ remarks to the opening of the 2021 Economic and Social Council Forum on Financing for Development, in New York today:

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

After La Soufriere volcano erupted today in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, the United Nations Emergency Technical Team for Barbados and the Eastern Caribbean Countries met to discuss the pre-positioning of relief items.  The World Food Programme and the United Nations Children’s Fund are also readying supplies.

The World Food Programme (WFP) said today that, due to significant funding gaps, it is cutting food rations for refugees and internally displaced people in South Sudan.  The cuts will affect nearly 700,000 of them and they will now receive 50 per cent of a full ration, down from 70 per cent.

Following is a transcript of UN Secretary-General António Guterres’ press conference with Prime Ministers Justin Trudeau of Canada and Andrew Holness of Jamaica on the high-level event on debt and liquidity, in New York today:

With many countries continuing to struggle to overcome the human and economic devastation from COVID-19, United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres convened a meeting of world leaders on Monday, 29 March, to urge the international community to take additional and urgent action to ensure a robust recovery.

The global economy is set to grow by 4.7 per cent in 2021, faster than the 4.3 per cent predicted in September, says a United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) report released today.  It sees a misguided return to austerity, after a destructive recession, as the main risk to the global outlook. 

Following is the text of UN Secretary-General António Guterres’ video message for the “Target Gender Equality Live” event organized by the United Nations Global Compact, today: