Environmental issues and sustainable development

Following are UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed’s remarks at the opening of the 2025 high-level political forum on sustainable development, in New York today:

Following is a transcript of UN Secretary-General António Guterres’ press conference to launch the 2025 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) Report, in New York today:

In the Democratic Republic of the Congo, UN peacekeepers have established two mobile operating bases in the villages of Ofaye and Bakunvutu in Djugu territory, in the Ituri territory. These mobile bases will help peacekeepers to respond quickly to local threats posed by armed groups in the areas.

Following are UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed’s remarks at the opening ceremony of the International Conference on the Blue Economy in the Gulf of Guinea, in Yaoundé, Cameroon, today:

Following are UN Secretary-General António Guterres’ remarks to the BRICS [Brazil, Russian Federation, India, China and South Africa] Summit session titled “Environment, COP30 and Global Health”, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, today:

The Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees estimates 2.5 million refugees worldwide will need to be resettled in 2026, down from 2.9 million in 2025, even as the global number of refugees continues growing. This is mainly due to the changed situation in Syria, which has allowed for voluntary returns.

A World Meteorological Organization (WMO) report notes that Asia is currently warming twice as fast as the global average. This is fuelling more extreme weather and taking a heavy toll on the region’s economies, ecosystems and societies.

Women in Afghanistan are falling significantly behind global standards for human development, a UN-Women report released today states. The country has the second-widest gender gap in the world, with a 76 per cent disparity between women’s and men’s outcomes in health, education, financial inclusion and decision-making.

The UN Humanitarian Coordinator in Chad, François Batalingaya, said today the country is in crisis with the east reaching a breaking point. Floods impacted nearly 2 million people last year; 3 million people are struggling to feed themselves. The $1.4 billion Humanitarian Needs and Response Plan is only 9 per cent funded.

In Ukraine, attacks across the country, which started last night and continued this morning, have reportedly killed over 45 civilians. The UN and humanitarian partners are providing immediate assistance in the impacted regions, including construction materials, hygiene kits, emergency shelter and psychological support.