Yemen

The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) says that recent insecurity in several areas in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo has forced tens of thousands of people to flee for safety and caused many humanitarian organizations to suspend or limit their activities.

To stem the growing threat of famine in Yemen, the international community must act urgently to unblock imports, ensure distribution of aid and counteract a lack of foreign exchange in the war-torn gulf nation, the United Nations top humanitarian affairs official told the Security Council this afternoon.

Marking International Day of Rural Women, the Secretary-General said rural women and girls are crucial in building a prosperous, equitable and peaceful future.  He called on countries to take action to ensure that women and girls fully enjoy their human rights, including the rights of land and security of land tenure.

The UN refugee agency today drew attention to a collapsing health situation among refugees and asylum-seekers at off-shore facilities in Papua New Guinea and Nauru, calling on the Government of Australia to urgently act to prevent a further tragedy to people forcibly transferred under its off-shore processing policy.

Today marks the International Day of the Girl Child.  Under the 2018 theme “With Her: A Skilled Girl Force”, it celebrates today’s generation of girls preparing to enter a world of work being transformed by innovation and automation.  In his message, the Secretary-General noted that his Youth2030 strategy aims to work with girls.

One week after the earthquake and tsunami that hit Central Sulawesi in Indonesia, the humanitarian country team has launched a $50 million response plan.  The United Nations resident coordinator there said the plan will provide immediate relief items, and the logistical support needed to provide aid to those in need.

The World Health Organization today launched its first global guidelines on sanitation and health, warning that the world will not achieve universal sanitation coverage by 2030 without comprehensive policy shifts and more investment.

Against a “bleak” landscape in Yemen marred by a worsening humanitarian crisis, intensified fighting and attacks cutting off vital food and trade routes, the international community must take swift, concerted action to prevent a widespread famine, the United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs told the Security Council today.

The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and its partners have identified 155 children orphaned or left unaccompanied as a result of the latest Ebola outbreak in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, the agency reports.  The outbreak has claimed 97 lives, according to the World Health Organization.

A new report released today says that the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) mobilized $25 million to increase resilience and restore more than 800 buildings for the most vulnerable people in Dominica and Antigua and Barbuda, which were hit by two powerful back-to-back hurricanes a year ago.