In the wake of the General Assembly’s renewed commitment to galvanizing political momentum towards implementation of the Millennium Development Goals by 2015, it was crucial for international partners to cooperate on redressing the ills of the world’s most strife-ridden continent, said delegates gathered today for their annual joint debate on development in Africa.

A multilateral agreement on nuclear weapons would reflect the belief that such an instrument could prevent the use or threat of use of nuclear weapons and create a climate for negotiating a ban on the use of nuclear weapons and help diminish their role, said India’s representative in the First Committee (Disarmament and International Security) today, upon the introduction of three draft resolutions.

Taking action for the first time during its current session, the Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural) today approved a text recommending to the General Assembly the adoption of a resolution setting out United Nations standards for the treatment of women prisoners and non-custodial measures for women offenders, also known as the “Bangkok Rules”.

Following is UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s message, delivered by B. Lynn Pascoe, Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs, to the Friends of Democratic Pakistan Ministerial Meeting, in Brussels, today, 15 October:

Following is UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s message for United Nations Day, to be observed on 24 October:

Member States, representatives of non-governmental organizations and United Nations officials will explore practical measures to alleviate the disproportionate burden of unemployment on young people as well as inadequate opportunities for decent work when they meet at New York Headquarters to commemorate the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty on 18 October, under the theme “From Poverty to Decent Work: Bridging the Gap.”

Following are UN Deputy Secretary-General Asha-Rose Migiro’s remarks at the African Union Ministerial Launch of the African Women’s Decade in Nairobi, today, 15 October:

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

As the Sixth Committee began its deliberations on the status of the Protocols Additional to the Geneva Conventions of 1949, and relating to the protection of victims of armed conflicts, delegates expressed grave concerns about the accountability of Member States and urged greater compliance to all provisions in the Conventions and Additional Protocols.