Mozambique

United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres announced today the appointment of Mirko Manzoni of Switzerland as his Personal Envoy for Mozambique.

The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) today said that more than 5 million families across Africa, Asia, and Latin America and the Caribbean spend over 40 per cent of their non-food household expenses on maternal health services.  The costs of prenatal care and delivery services can deter women from seeking medical attention.

Following is UN Secretary-General António Guterres’ message to the International Donors Conference in Beira, Mozambique, today:

The United Nations is supporting the Government of Mozambique, which beginning today is convening a pledging conference for recovery and reconstruction in the wake of the devastation caused by Tropical Cyclones Idai and Kenneth.

Relief organizations in Mozambique are working to contain a cholera outbreak in the north of the country after water sources were contaminated and health clinics damaged by Cyclone Kenneth, according to the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.

Unfolding developments in Benin are under close watch following the 28 April legislative elections, from which opposition parties were barred.  Noting with concern the ongoing tensions and unrest, the United Nations calls upon all Beninese to exercise maximum restraint and resolve differences through dialogue.

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

This week is World Immunization Week, and UNICEF is highlighting the dangers of the global rise in measles cases.  Executive Director Henrietta Fore said today:  “If we are serious about averting the spread of this dangerous but preventable disease, we need to vaccinate every child, in rich and poor countries alike.”

High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet today strongly condemned the beheading of 37 men in Saudi Arabia, most of them Shi’a Muslims, despite the repeated appeals by the United Nations about the lack of due process and fair trial guarantees.  She appealed to the authorities to halt pending executions.

The World Health Organization (WHO), United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF), Global Vaccine Alliance and the Sudanese Ministry of Health today launched a vaccination campaign in Sudan to vaccinate over 11 million children against measles and polio.  Measles is the third largest cause of mortality in infants in Sudan.