United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres has appointed Ola Almgren of Sweden as the UN Resident Coordinator in Myanmar, with the host Government’s approval. Mr. Almgren will also serve as UN Humanitarian Coordinator.
In progress at UNHQ
Myanmar
The United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) today said that the Myanmar has conveyed to Bangladesh’s Government the names of 3,450 Rohingya refugees who have been cleared for return to Myanmar’s Rakhine State. UNHCR called Myanmar’s engagement a positive step in affirmation of the right to return of Rohingya refugees.
Aware of the Syrian Government’s announcement this morning on the resumption of military operations in the country’s northwest, the United Nations continues to call on all parties to the conflict to protect civilians and civilian infrastructure at all times.
At its eighty-third meeting, on 30 July 2019, the Security Council Working Group on Children and Armed Conflict, in connection with the examination of the fifth report of the Secretary-General on children and armed conflict in Myanmar (document S/2018/956), agreed to convey the following messages through a public statement by the Chair of the Working Group:
The World Health Organization (WHO) Director General announced today he will reconvene the Emergency Committee on Ebola to assess the threat after yesterday’s confirmation of the first case in Goma, eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. He also raised concerns about targeted attacks against the Ebola health response.
A new United Nations report on Afghanistan has found that continued focus and efforts are needed to advance the nation’s anti-corruption reforms. It describes how corruption there is eroding public trust and confidence in Government institutions and hindering efforts to bring peace and prosperity to the country.
As of yesterday, some 1,705 probable and confirmed cases of Ebola have been recorded in the Democratic Republic of the Congo since the outbreak was declared on 1 August 2018, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs reports. About 1,122 people, or two thirds of reported cases, have died since then.
The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) launched a report today saying that the demand for sand has led to pollution, flooding, drought, beach erosion and reduced deposits in river deltas. With global demands at 40-50 billion tonnes a year, UNEP warned that sand is being used faster than it can be replenished.
In Libya, the Secretary-General’s Special Representative, Ghassan Salamé, continues his outreach to interlocutors, meeting with Government officials, a group of elders and tribal leaders to offer the United Nations full support to help thousands of civilians affected by heavy fighting in southern Tripoli.
The World Health Organization (WHO) says most Ebola response activities have been relaunched in Butembo in the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s North Kivu Province following a slowdown caused by the attack that left Cameroonian doctor Richard Valéry Mouzoko dead and two other people injured.