In progress at UNHQ

Hungary


Lise Grande, Humanitarian Coordinator for Yemen, says cholera tops the list of concerns over Hodeidah, an epicentre of the 2017 outbreak, among the worst in modern history.  Meanwhile, 25 per cent of children in the city are suffering from acute malnutrition, and without nutritional support, 100,000 will be at risk.

In Syria, the Syrian Arab Red Crescent is delivering United Nations humanitarian aid for more than 92,000 people to Talbiseh in northern rural Homs and Tlul Elhomor in southern Hama.  This is the first convoy to northern rural Homs since a convoy reached Dar al‑Kabira and surrounding areas on 4 March.

In the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the World Food Programme today said it is energizing two key elements of its emergency operation to prevent famine in war-ravaged Kasaï:  cash distributions to the most vulnerable and specialist support to check acute malnutrition in women and young children.

Today, the Secretary-General will designate Malala Yousafzai as a United Nations Messenger of Peace, with a special focus on girls’ education.  A global advocate for girls’ education and Nobel Peace Laureate, she will become the youngest-ever Messenger and the first to be designated by the current Secretary-General.

The Secretary-General, in his first field visit, arrived in Somalia earlier today to highlight the ongoing risk of famine and cholera faced by millions in the country and appeal for international support.  More than half the population is in need of humanitarian aid and 300,000 children are acutely malnourished.