Stephanie Williams, the Secretary-General’s Special Adviser on Libya, welcomed in Tunis today members of the High Council of State, who will participate in determining the constitutional basis for national elections. It is extremely important to respect the will of 2.8 million registered Libyan voters, she said.
In progress at UNHQ
Noon Briefings
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) today released a report that says that groundwater, which accounts for 99 per cent of all liquid freshwater on Earth, is being undervalued, mismanaged and even abused.
United Nations staff in Myanmar report that civilians continue to suffer amid a worsening humanitarian crisis and continued fighting. Nearly 890,000 people are displaced across the country, humanitarian needs are rising and aid workers face limited access, which is hampering the planned scale-up of assistance for 2022.
A total of 36 donors at yesterday’s pledging event for Yemen pledged nearly $1.3 billion, only 30 per cent of the roughly $4.3 billion required for an efficient and effective response to the humanitarian crisis. Unprecedented funding shortages are forcing reductions and closures of life-saving aid.
Four peacekeepers were injured near Tessalit yesterday, following an attack on their convoy using an improvised explosive device, the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA) reports. They were evacuated to Bamako, the capital, for medical treatment.
Humanitarian affairs officials in Somalia say an estimated 4.5 million people — including 671,000 who are internally displaced — are affected by the intensifying drought emergency. Health authorities have reported a measles outbreak, and at least nine related deaths in Jubaland state.
More than 70 per cent of South Sudan’s people will struggle to survive the peak of the 2022 lean season, amid unprecedented food insecurity due to conflict, climate shocks, COVID-19 and rising costs, the World Food Programme (WFP) warned today. WFP says 8.3 million people could face extreme hunger within months.
Malawi confirmed its first polio case in 30 years on 16 February, which was also Africa’s first polio case in in more than five years. So far, there has been no further spread of the disease, thanks to swift and concerted efforts by the national authorities, with support from the World Health Organization and UNICEF.
The United Nations Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) said they are closely following reports about the mobilization of forces and movement of large convoys of armed groups that have increased tensions in and around Tripoli. The Mission calls on all parties to refrain from any action that could lead to armed clashes.
The United Nations Interim Security Force for Abyei (UNISFA) is deeply concerned about renewed violence in the south of the Area, which has led to deaths and the displacement of thousands, saying long-standing grievances and disputes between communities in Abyei and neighbouring areas have resulted in weeks of violence.