Peacekeeping

The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) launched today its Global Forest Resources Assessment report and its first online interactive platform containing detailed regional and global analyses of forests in 236 countries and territories, enabling the agency to better respond to deforestation and biodiversity loss.

Officials at the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) say locust swarms linked to climate change remain a serious threat to food security in parts of East Africa, India and Pakistan.  United Nations agencies are helping affected areas by providing data on weather, climate and the desert locust life cycle. 

The World Health Organization and the United Nations Children’s Fund warned today that disruptions in the delivery and uptake of immunization services caused by the COVID-19 pandemic is causing an alarming decline in the number of life-saving vaccines for children around the world, threatening hard-won progress.

The following Security Council press statement was issued today by Council President Christoph Heusgen (Germany):

The following statement was issued today by the Spokesman for UN Secretary-General António Guterres:

The local de facto authorities in Yemen have officially communicated to the United Nations their approval for a UN-led technical assessment and repair mission on board the oil tanker Safer off the coast of Ras Isa.  The experts will advise on any remaining measures that would be needed to avoid a catastrophic oil spill.

Wildlife crime threatens both biodiversity and human health, according to a new United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) report.  It finds that many illegally trafficked animals may spread diseases to people, and the pangolin — a possible source of COVID-19 — remains the most trafficked mammal in the world.

The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees reports that it is providing tents, water, tanks and toilets to the more than 3,000 refugees from the Democratic Republic of the Congo that arrived in north-western Uganda last week during a temporary opening of two border crossing points.

Addressing rights violations as warning signs of conflict is even more urgent in the COVID-19 era, the United Nations senior human rights official told the Security Council in a 7 July videoconference meeting, as she spotlighted the role peacekeepers can play in monitoring virus-related stigma, hate speech and the impact of containment measures on vulnerable groups.

The United Nations is mobilizing to help fight COVID-19 in the Dominican Republic, where about 37,000 cases and 800 deaths are confirmed.  The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) is supplying ventilators while Rome-based food agencies led a virtual farm training to help people generate additional income.