The security crisis in the Democratic Republic of the Congo threatens to frustrate favourable developments in the wider Great Lakes region, the Security Council heard today, as members welcomed that country’s recent admission into the East African Community and stressed the need to combat the illicit trade of natural resources that continues to fuel conflict.

On 18 April, United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres appointed Anthony Ohemeng-Boamah of Ghana as the United Nations Resident Coordinator in Guinea-Bissau, with the approval of the host Government.

On 16 April, United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres appointed Khaled El Mekwad of Egypt as the United Nations Resident Coordinator in Bahrain, with the approval of the host Government.

While international standards guarantee the rights of indigenous peoples to self-determination, territories and resources, these fundamental freedoms are trampled upon in the name of mining, logging, oil, gas exploration and even conservation deemed essential to national development, speakers told the Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues today, laying out recommendations for transnational businesses to respect their traditional knowledge and inherent dignity.

Senior United Nations officials today urged the Security Council not to forget about the dire humanitarian situation in Syria in light of other conflicts, as members discussed the recent conclusion of the seventh session of the Constitutional Committee and diverged over appropriate modalities for providing life-saving aid.

The Economic and Social Council continued its annual forum on financing for development today, holding a special high-level meeting with the Bretton Woods institutions (the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF)), the World Trade Organization (WTO) and the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), to discuss solutions for securing an inclusive and sustainable recovery amidst the economic fallout from COVID-19 and rising geopolitical tensions.

Experts outlined demographic and development-based approaches to “building back better” from the coronavirus pandemic while advancing towards full implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, as the Commission on Population and Development’s annual session entered its second day today.

The United Nations Environment Programme today released a report saying sand, the world’s second most exploited resource, must be recognized as a strategic resource and its extraction from rivers and marine ecosystems and its use must rethought, as they can cause erosion and threaten livelihoods.  

Amid growing criticism of inaction by the Security Council on the war in Ukraine, the General Assembly adopted a landmark resolution today aimed at holding the five permanent Council members accountable for their use of veto.

Following are UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed’s remarks at the launch of the United Nations Global Assessment Report on Disaster Risk Reduction 2022 — “Our Work at Risk:  Transforming Governance for a Resilient Future”, in New York today: