Nigeria

United Nations humanitarian agencies and their partners are asking donors for an initial $350 million to rapidly scale up logistics services, aimed at supporting countries disproportionately affected by cancelled flights and disrupted supply routes to combat the COVID-19 pandemic.

A new report by the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) shows that as of 6 April, 96 per cent of all worldwide destinations have introduced travel restrictions in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.  Millions of jobs could be lost in the sector.

Three new Ebola cases were confirmed in the Democratic Republic of Congo since 10 April, with more expected to be identified, as the World Health Organization’s Emergency Committee concluded that the outbreak still constitutes a Public Health Emergency of International Concern.

A new International Labour Organization report finds that COVID-19 is expected to wipe out 6.7 per cent of working hours globally in the second quarter of 2020, equivalent to 195 million full-time workers.  The report highlights the worst affected sectors and regions, and outlines policies to mitigate the crisis.

The Secretary-General condemned the double suicide bombing by suspected Boko Haram fighters on 5 April in Amichidé, in the Far North region of Cameroon, reiterating the United Nations continued support to countries in the Lake Chad Basin as they address the security, economic and humanitarian challenges posed by that group.

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) is sending equipment to more than 40 countries to help them use nuclear-derived technology to rapidly detect COVID‑19.  Dozens of labs will receive diagnostic machines to speed up national testing, biosafety supplies and personal protection equipment.

The following Security Council press statement was issued today by Council President José Singer Weisinger (Dominican Republic):

In north-east Nigeria, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said that 7.9 million people — more than 1 out of every 2 people in Borno, Yobe and Adamawa States — need aid in 2020.  With an upsurge in attacks in the area over the past year, aid agencies have been forced to scale down their work.

While the number of journalists killed worldwide dropped by nearly half in 2019 to the lowest annual toll in more than a decade, they continue to face risks and perpetrators enjoy almost total impunity for these crimes, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization reported today.

The Humanitarian Coordinator for the United Nations in Iraq expressed her strong concern today over the suspension in granting access letters to humanitarian actors carrying out critical missions in support of the country’s vulnerable people.