Environmental issues and sustainable development

In a report published ahead of World Children’s Day, marked on 20 November, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) noted that racism and discrimination against children based on their ethnicity, language and religion are rife in countries across the world.

The Secretary-General, welcoming the agreement by all parties to continue the Black Sea Grain Initiative to facilitate grain, foodstuffs and fertilizers export from Ukraine, said the United Nations is also fully committed to removing the remaining obstacles to exporting food and fertilizers from the Russian Federation.

Today is International Day for Tolerance. The resolution proclaiming the Day was adopted by the General Assembly in 1996, and among other things, the Day aims to foster mutual understanding among cultures and peoples.

The United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in the Central African Republic facilitated a school’s reopening in the Haute-Kotto Prefecture. Deployed there to deter armed groups and help restore socioeconomic activities, peacekeepers also provided school supplies and have launched a community violence reduction project.

The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) today released a report showing that economic losses from drought, floods and landslides have rocketed in Asia. According to WMO, in 2021 alone, weather and water-related hazards caused total damage of $35.6 billion, affecting nearly 50 million people.

Following are UN Secretary General António Guterres’ remarks at the launch of Climate TRACE’s emissions inventory, in Sharm el-Sheikh today:

The United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in the Central African Republic (MINUSCA) reports that it is continuing to support the national authorities in preventing and reducing violence at the community level.

In Sri Lanka, the United Nations team’s revised Humanitarian Needs and Priorities Plan aims to help 3.4 million people, with immediate food assistance for 2.4 million food-insecure people and support 1.5 million people in agriculture and fishing to revive severely disrupted food systems.

Following are UN Secretary General António Guterres’ remarks at the release of the report of the High-Level Expert Group on Net-Zero Commitments of Non-State Actors, at Sharm El-Sheikh, today:

In Afghanistan, the United Nations Resident Coordinator there called for urgent collective action to halt the devastating impact of climate change in the country. He warned that Afghanistan is one of the countries least prepared to face climate shocks.