Global economic activity was forecast to slowly gain momentum in 2013-2014, but growth would continue to be below potential and employment gains — especially in developed countries — would remain weak at best, top United Nations officials said today at a Headquarters press conference.

After meeting with Ugandan President Museveni and Government ministers, the Secretary-General and the World Bank President travelled to Addis Ababa to attend events celebrating 50 years of the Organization of African Unity and the African Union. While there, the Secretary-General will also participate in meetings addressing regional concerns.

Representing only 3 per cent of United Nations budget, the world body’s human rights treaty bodies still lack the necessary resources to overcome backlogs and delays, several of their chairs said at a Headquarters press conference today.

The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs says there are severe humanitarian needs in Gao, eastern Mali, where the amount of drinking water available has declined by 60 per cent over the past weeks. Some neighbourhoods do not have water at all due to dysfunctional pumps and lack of electricity.

The landmark World Conference on Indigenous Peoples -- to be held in 2014 -- should bring critical indigenous voices to discussions leading up to the post-2015 development agenda, indigenous leaders and other experts said at a Headquarters press conference today.

Today is the International Day of United Nations Peacekeepers. In a message to mark the occasion, the Secretary-General noted that 111 peacekeeping personnel died last year, and more than 3,100 have lost their lives during the UN’s 65-year history of peacekeeping.

United Nations peacekeepers must be constantly equipped with more and better tools and skills so they could fully meet their mandates in increasingly risky environments, Hervé Ladsous, Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations, said at Headquarters today.

A number of Central Asian nations face human rights challenges, including restrictions on the rights of expression and free assembly, and a lack of space for a strong and vibrant civil society, the senior United Nations human rights official said at a Headquarters press conference today.

Culture, education and health were at the forefront of discussions throughout the twelfth session of the Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues, a panel of experts said today, stressing that those basic human rights must be woven into the post-2015 development agenda to ensure that indigenous peoples’ voices were respected around the world.

New global partnerships should be a core part of the transformative shifts needed to eradicate extreme poverty by 2030 and build on the achievements of the Millennium Development Goals, members of a high-level panel said today at a Headquarters press conference.