Zimbabwe

In Zimbabwe, where 60 per cent of the population is projected to be food insecure by the end of 2020, the World Food Programme appealed for $250 million to prevent a human catastrophe.  A nationwide COVID-19 lockdown has led to joblessness in urban areas, growing hunger in rural areas and hyperinflation that has made basic goods unaffordable.

The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees has launched an $186 million appeal to provide lifesaving protection and assistance to refugees, internally displaced persons, returnees and host communities in the Central Sahel, The number of displaced in Burkina Faso has more than quadrupled in the past year.

A new International Labour Organization report finds that COVID-19 is expected to wipe out 6.7 per cent of working hours globally in the second quarter of 2020, equivalent to 195 million full-time workers.  The report highlights the worst affected sectors and regions, and outlines policies to mitigate the crisis.

The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) reports that the voluntary repatriation of registered Afghan refugees in Pakistan has been suspended and it has closed several repatriation centres until further notice due to the Government’s precautionary steps to mitigate the spread of COVID-19.

Almost 300,000 people in Burkina Faso have been forced to flee their homes since last December and nearly 766,000 in total are displaced as of today.  More than half the internally displaced have inadequate shelter or none at all, and $10 million has been allocated from the Central Emergency Fund to help them.

Some 6.7 million people in Zimbabwe urgently need humanitarian aid as drought, crop failure, Cyclone Idai’s aftermath and macroeconomic challenges force many to spend at least 70 per cent of their disposable income on basic food, the Office of the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs reports.

The Special Representative for Iraq told the Security Council that hundreds of thousands of Iraqis - from all walks of life – have taken to the streets out of love for their homeland, expressing frustration for the lack of progress and calling for the country to reach its full potential for the benefit of all Iraqis.

United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres has appointed Maria do Valle Ribeiro of Ireland as United Nations Resident Coordinator for Zimbabwe, with the host country’s agreement.

United Nations humanitarian officials in the Philippines report that the Government declared a national dengue epidemic yesterday.  There have now been more than 146,000 reported cases of dengue fever and 622 confirmed fatalities since the beginning of 2019, mostly affecting children between 5 and 9 years old.

Across parts of Bangladesh, monsoon rains have led to flooding and landslides that has reportedly killed at 30 people affected 2 million.  The Government is providing food, shelter and emergency cash assistance, and the United Nations and aid partners are supporting water and health-related efforts.