In Vanuatu, the World Food Programme’s Pacific Humanitarian Air Service today transported 15 metric tons of critical medical and food supplies for over 250,000 people, about 80 per cent of the population, that have been impacted by the two category 4 cyclones and earthquakes that hit the country in early March.
Lebanon
In Afghanistan, due to lack of funds, the World Food Programme (WFP) today said that it has been forced to drastically reduce critical lifesaving assistance in March to millions of vulnerable Afghanis. In March, at least 4 million people will receive just half of what they need to get by.
United Nations humanitarian partners are providing water, hygiene and sanitation services, and shelter materials to temporary displacement sites in Malawi, and food and water treatment chemicals to Mozambique, following the destruction wrought by Tropical Cyclone Freddy. Heavy rain and wind continue to hamper those operations.
Following the earthquakes, as of today, 730 trucks carrying aid provided by seven United Nations agencies crossed from Türkiye to north-west Syria using the three available border crossings.
Costa Rica will be the first country in Latin America to have a National Artificial Intelligence Strategy, having concluded a Government agreement with the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) on an ethical approach supportive of human rights.
The United Nations Resident Coordinator in China today said he is deeply saddened by the tragic loss of lives and destruction caused by the 5 September earthquake in Sichuan Province. He said the Organization stands ready to assist and support the Government of China’s valiant rescue efforts.
Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed is in Niger for the Africa Regional Forum on Sustainable Development, organized by the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa and the Government of Niger. As Africa Regional Coordination Platform Chair, she will also meet with United Nations regional directors and coordinators.
The UN refugee agency (UNHCR), together with 41 international and national partners, launched today the 2023 funding appeal for over $500 million to provide life-saving assistance to more than 900,000 refugees in Sudan, the second-largest asylum country in Africa.
Marking peacekeeping’s seventy-fifth anniversary, the Peacekeeping Department is launching a campaign, Peace Begins with Me, which promotes understanding of challenges faced by communities in conflict, demonstrates peacekeeping’s impact and calls for a global movement for peace.
In Lebanon, the UN refugee agency (UNHCR) donated 1,000 cholera testing kits, administered over 900,000 oral cholera vaccines and provided refrigerators and solar panels to ensure continuous access to electricity in support of the Ministry of Public Health’s efforts to combat the cholera outbreak which began in October.