Iraq

Today, the United Nations Development Programme released its 2019 Human Development Report on Inequality titled “Beyond Income, Beyond Averages, Beyond Today”, which identifies a new generation of inequalities that are driving the global protests sweeping the world, including the gap in basic living standards.

Years of urgent, unfinished business in Iraq — and a resulting “crisis of confidence” among its people — have culminated in civil unrest and the deaths of more than 400 people since October, said the senior United Nations official in the country today, as she briefed the Security Council on the latest developments.

The Special Representative for Iraq told the Security Council that hundreds of thousands of Iraqis - from all walks of life – have taken to the streets out of love for their homeland, expressing frustration for the lack of progress and calling for the country to reach its full potential for the benefit of all Iraqis.

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

Following earthquakes that struck Albania and Bosnia and Herzegovina this morning, two United Nations Disaster Assessment and Coordination technical support members will be deployed to Albania.  The United Nations stands ready to provide assistance if required, and is in contact with local authorities.

The United Nations Environment Programme and its partners released a report stating that countries plan to produce 120 per cent more fossil fuels by 2030 than can be burned under the 1.5°C warming limit, creating a “production gap” that makes climate goals more difficult to reach.  The report also details options for closing the gap.

The World Health Organization (WHO) launched a pilot programme to prequalify human insulin to increase treatment for diabetes in low- and middle-income countries — part of WHO’s efforts to address the growing diabetes burden.  Some 65 million people with type 2 diabetes need insulin, but only half of them can access it, largely due to high prices.

Pneumonia is preventable but this forgotten epidemic remains the leading killer of children under the age of five, claiming  more than 800,000 lives last year, or one child every 39 seconds, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) warned today, which is World Pneumonia Day.

The Food and Agriculture Organization launched a $7.1 million project supported by the Global Environment Facility to make forest data more accessible, transparent and available.  The project aims to help developing countries to meet the Paris Climate Agreement's enhanced transparency requirements, and will benefit 26 targeted countries.

Food prices rose in October for the first time in five months as international sugar and cereal quotations climbed significantly, FAO reports.  Wheat and maize export prices increased sharply due to reduced crop prospects as rice prices slipped, owing to subdued demand and prospects of an abundant basmati harvest, FAO said.