The following statement was issued today by the Spokesman for UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon:

Following is a statement issued by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today on the one-year anniversary of the abduction of schoolgirls in Chibok, north-eastern Nigeria:

Zainab Bangura, the Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Sexual Violence in Conflict is my guest today.  She will brief you on the Secretary-General's latest report, which is scheduled to be discussed in the Security Council tomorrow.

Following is the text of UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s video message to the high-level special session on the two water Conventions during the seventh World Water Forum held in Daegu, Republic Of Korea, today:

The Central African Republic was entering a “crucial” phase of its delicate return to stability, the Special Representative in the country told the Security Council today, stressing that support from international and regional partners was critical for ensuring a smooth political transition and access to those still in desperate need of humanitarian assistance.

Imposing sanctions on individuals it said were undermining the stability of Yemen, the Security Council today demanded that all parties in the embattled country, in particular the Houthis, immediately and unconditionally end violence and refrain from further unilateral actions that threatened the political transition.

The following Security Council press statement was issued today by Council President Dina Kawar (Jordan):

The following Security Council press statement was issued today by Council President Dina Kawar (Jordan):

DOHA, 14 April — Pulling up the weeds of corruption would allow human rights and freedoms to blossom and, in turn, develop into steady economic growth, delegates heard today as the thirteenth United Nations Congress on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice concluded its high-level segment and held a plenary debate on successes and challenges in implementing policies and strategies to promote the rule of law along with sustainable development.

In a quest to reach agreement on the population issues that were central to defining and implementing a post-2015 vision for sustainable development, the Commission on Population and Development opened its forty-eighth session today under the theme, “Realizing the future we want:  integrating population issues into sustainable development, including in the new agenda”.