UN in Washington |
Anthony Banbury, UN Assistant-Secretary General for Field Support, participated in a panel discussion at a Brookings Institution event titled, United Nations Peacekeeping Operations: Fit for Purpose?, on October 18 in Washington. He discussed how the United Nations is reforming its peacekeeping operations by seeking ways to reduce costs and become more efficient. Listen to the full audio of the event.
| |
Calendar |
October 24
United Nations Day is observed
World Development Information Day is observed
Security Council holds an open briefing on the Middle East.
A panel discussion and launch of e-learning courses on the "Implementation of Security Council resolution 1325 (2000) in Africa and Latin America and the Caribbean" takes place at UN headquarters. This event is being co-organized by the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN-Women) and the Permanent Mission of Norway.
A panel discussion on "2013: International Year of Quinoa and its contribution to food security and nutrition" takes place at UN headquarters. This event is being co-organized by the Permanent Mission of the Plurinational State of Bolivia, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).
Fourth Session of the Conference of the States Parties to the United Nations Convention against Corruption begins in Marrakech, Morocco through October 28.
Sha Zukang, Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs, is in Seoul, where he will open the High-Level Forum on Global Geospatial Information Management. Mr. Sha will then travel to Israel, where he will open a preparatory meeting for Rio + 20.
October 25
The Security Council holds a private meeting on the International Court of Justice (ICJ). It is also briefs and holds consultations on the African Union-United Nations Mission in Darfur (UNAMID).
October 26
The Security Council adopts a resolution on C�te d'Ivoire sanctions. It also briefs and holds consultations on Libya and Western Sahara.
October 27
World Day for Audiovisual Heritage (UNESCO) is observed.
The Security Council adopts its annual report. It will also be briefed and hold consultations on Somalia.
October 28
Patricia O'Brien, UN Under-Secretary General for Legal Affairs, speaks at a UNA-NCA's International Law Committee event titled, Legal Issues Facing the United Nations - Reflections from Three Years as Legal Counsel, beginning at 1 p.m. at the UN Foundation. To RSVP please visit unanca.org
The Security Council holds an open debate on women and peace and security (resolution 1325).
*****
Watch live coverage of many of the events listed above at www.un.org/webcast
| |
UN News Center - New York |
|
|
|
|
|
October 20, 2011, United Nations, New York - Ian Martin (on screen), Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Libya and Head of the United Nations Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL), briefs members of the press on the death of Colonel Muammar al-Qadhafi, via videolink from Tripoli, during the noon press briefing at UN headquarters. Mr. Martin called the news a "key moment" in the Libyan political transition. Pictured right is Martin Nesirky, Spokesperson for the Secretary-General. UN Photo/Paulo Filgueiras
|
|
|
|
UN Libyans must come together and reconcile after Qadhafi's death, says Secretary-General
United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has called on all sides in Libya to lay down their arms and work together peacefully to rebuild the North African nation amid reports that Colonel Muammar al-Qadhafi has been killed.
|
United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon
|
"Clearly, this day marks an historic transition for Libya," Mr. Ban said at UN headquarters in New York on October 20, reacting to the reports of the death of the Libyan leader and the end of fighting in Sirte and other cities.
"In the coming days, we will witness scenes of celebration, as well as grief for those who lost so much," he stated. "Yet let us recognize, immediately, that this is only the end of the beginning. The road ahead for Libya and its people will be difficult and full of challenges."
Pro-Qadhafi forces and rebels have been engaged in fighting for months after a pro-democracy movement emerged at the start of the year, similar to the popular uprisings witnessed in other parts of the Middle East and North Africa.
Read more
Related Headline
Libya: UN human rights office calls for probe into Qadhafi's death
|
Guatemala, Morocco and Pakistan elected to two-year terms on Security Council
Guatemala, Morocco and Pakistan will serve as non-permanent members of the 15-member Security Council in 2012-13 after winning their seats during the first round of elections held earlier today.
United Nations member states voted in the General Assembly by secret ballot for five non-permanent seats divided by geographical grouping - three from the Africa and Asia-Pacific grouping, one from Eastern Europe, and one from Latin America and the Caribbean.
To win election, a country must receive a two-thirds majority of those countries present and voting, regardless of whether or not they are the only candidate in their region. Voting continues until the two-thirds threshold is reached for the required number of seats.
Today's elections are being held to replace the departing members of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Brazil, Gabon, Lebanon and Nigeria.
The new members will join Colombia, Germany, India, Portugal and South Africa, whose terms end on December 31, 2012, and the five permanent Council members, which each wield the power of veto - China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom and the United States.
Read more
|
As food crisis grips North Korea, UN aid chief urges world to not 'turn our backs'
The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) cannot feed its people for the "foreseeable future," the United Nations relief chief reported today, urging the world to step up humanitarian support and not "turn our backs" on a population where an estimated six million people now depend on food aid. |
October 18, 2011, Hamhung City, North Korea - Valerie Amos (right), Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs, visits a classroom in the Provincial Boarding School supported by the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) and the World Food Programme (WFP) in Hamhung City, Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea). UN Photo/David Ohana
|
Valerie Amos, the UN Emergency Relief Coordinator, told journalists after a five-day visit to the North Korea this week that the country remains "highly food insecure," with daily rations recently reduced, unreliable food supplies, restricted agricultural production and many children left stunted. "New solutions are needed if we are to see an end to this chronic, seemingly never-ending crisis," she told a press briefing in Beijing, held immediately after her departure from North Korea. Ms. Amos visited two hospitals, an orphanage, a biscuit factory, a communal farm, a local market, a medical warehouse and a public distribution centre during her mission. She also met with government officials, UN agency staff, representatives of non-governmental organizations, donors, diplomats, health workers and mothers. She found that steadily deteriorating living conditions since the mid-1990s meant many people in North Korea were increasingly vulnerable. Read more
|
UN agencies and US Peace Corps cooperate in fighting hunger
The United Nations and the United States Peace Corps signed an agreement on October 20 to cooperate in combating worldwide hunger by increasing food security in the 76 countries where the more than 8,600 US volunteers currently work.
The agreement, signed by the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and UN World Food Programme (WFP) at their Rome headquarters, builds on years of cooperation with the 50-year-old US organization.
The Peace Corps has worked with FAO and WFP in nearly 40 countries, sharing techniques and practices identified to promote food security through broad-based citizen participation, education, and capacity building. In Swaziland, WFP provided Peace Corps volunteers training on sustainable gardening and organic farming techniques and worked with the volunteers to provide nutrition and hygiene education to children.
In Liberia, four volunteers have been assigned to WFP to provide information to community leaders on proper food storage, handling, and cooking at local schools, while in Namibia, the Peace Corps has worked with FAO in organizing a community garden workshop to grow vegetables.
Read more
|
World Soccer great Ronaldinho aims to score goals in UN campaign against AIDS
The United Nations has a new striker on its team to defeat HIV/AIDS, Brazilian soccer star Ronaldinho, who will now parlay his devastating skills on the sports field into raising awareness among young people worldwide to help block further infections.
A two-time World Player of the Year for the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA) and star of countless matches on his country's national team and top European sides Paris Saint-Germain, Barcelona and Milan, the 31-year-old attacking midfielder and forward has accepted an invitation from the Joint UN Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) and Brazil's Health Ministry to promote AIDS awareness through sport.
Ronaldinho's 'new cap' is just the latest example of close collaboration between UN agencies and the world of sport to advance humanitarian causes. "I am honored to stand together with UNAIDS and the Ministry of Health of Brazil in the response to HIV," he said. "I am delighted to make a small contribution to this important cause by doing what I do best: playing football.
Read more
|
Week in Pictures
Mother and Child at UN-Supported Pediatric Hospital in North Korea
October 18, 2011, Hamhung City, North Korea - A mother and her child at the Provincial Pediatric Hospital in Hamhung City, Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea). The hospital is supported by the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF), World Food Programme (WFP), and World Health Organization (WHO). UN Photo/David Ohana
|
_______________________________
Secretary-General Meets 2011 UN Disarmament Fellows
|
October 19, 2011, United Nations, New York - UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon (right) addresses this year's participants of the United Nations Fellowship Programme on Disarmament. UN Photo/Eskinder Debebe
|
|
|
About the United Nations in Washington
As the United Nations office in Washington, D.C, the UN Information Center serves as the focal point for UN news and information to advance understanding of the UN and its work, and to serve as a resource for United States government officials, NGOs, civil-society organizations and the American people.
United Nations. It's your world.
|
|
|