Latest news on the Asia-Pacific region from the United Nations
- The Russian invasion of Ukraine has been the “main contributing factor” to the potentially devastating one per cent drop in projected global economic growth this year, UN development economists UNCTAD said on Thursday, in the body’s latest global economic update.
- A month since Russia invaded Ukraine, 4.3 million children – more than half of the country’s estimated 7.5 million child population – have been displaced, the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) said on Thursday.
- The war in Ukraine is not only a “horror unfolding before our eyes”, but also an “assault on some of the most vulnerable people and countries” across the world, said the UN chief on Wednesday, convening the first meeting of the steering committee which will guide the creation of a new UN crisis response group to help mitigate the worldwide impact of Russia’s invasion.
- The UN General Assembly met on Wednesday for its second emergency session on the Ukraine crisis since Russia invaded the country on 24 February, with two similar but different resolutions placed before delegates, addressing the unfolding humanitarian crisis.
- World TB Day is marked on 24 March, and this year, the World Health Organization (WHO) has called for urgent investment in the fight against tuberculosis, “to save millions more lives”.
- Amid growing donor fatigue and a brutal war in Ukraine that has diverted the world’s attention, the world must not forget millions of people in need across the Middle East and North Africa, the UN chief told the Security Council on Wednesday.
- Women across the world face unacceptable mistreatment during childbirth, according to a new study from the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Human Reproduction Programme (HRP) launched on Wednesday.
- In Kenya, a trailblazing sustainable agriculture project has helped hundreds of farmers move away from the harmful practice of growing tobacco, in favour of a healthier alternative, the UN said on Wednesday.
- Following a U-turn over re-opening girls’ secondary schools in Afghanistan on Wednesday, the UN human rights chief shared her “profound frustration and disappointment” that six months after the Taliban seized power, high school girls have yet to return to the classroom.
- Following a U-turn over re-opening girls’ secondary schools in Afghanistan on Wednesday, the UN human rights chief shared her “profound frustration and disappointment” that six months after the Taliban seized power, high school girls have yet to return to the classroom.
- Jarno Habicht has worked with WHO for the last 19 years and served as WHO Representative in Ukraine since 2018. He explains how WHO prepared for armed conflict in the country, and how it has responded to health-related issues since the Russian invasion.
- Speakers in the Security Council on Tuesday denounced evictions and demolitions by Israeli authorities of Palestinian-owned properties, as the Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, Tor Wennesland, expressed regret that “little progress” has made by the sides in upholding obligations under the Council’s landmark resolution 2334.
- While humanitarian assistance has been successful in averting a catastrophe, Haiti is experiencing a persistent rise in hunger levels, with many citizens suffering acutely, the World Food Programme (WFP) said on Tuesday.