Daily Wrap

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Daily Wrap 27 August 2020 UNESCO UNESCO launches Beirut recovery fund for culture, heritage and education To support the rehabilitation of schools, historic heritage buildings, museums and the creative economy, which suffered extensive damage in the deadly explosions that shook Beirut earlier this month, the head of the UN cultural agency on Thursday launched an international fund-raising appeal.   Culture and Education © OCHA 'Widespread' COVID-19 transmission, limited testing, deepen Syria's humanitarian woes COVID-19 is having a dramatic impact on health services in Syria, where limited testing is obscuring the real extent of the pandemic, the UN's Deputy Emergency Relief Coordinator said on Thursday. Humanitarian Aid © UNICEF/Everett Globally, 1 in 3 children missed out on remote learning when COVID-19 shuttered schools For at least 463 million children whose schools closed due to COVID-19, "there was no such a thing as remote learning," the head of the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) said on Thursday, as the agency launched a new report outlining the limitations of remote learning and exposing the deep inequalities in access.   Culture and Education UNDP Bangladesh/Fahad Kaizer Committee to review global treaty on response to health emergencies An independent expert committee will be established to examine various aspects of the international treaty that governs preparedness and response to health emergencies, the head of the World Health Organization (WHO) announced on Thursday.  Health Photo: MINUSCA UN rights expert calls for ceasefire, commitment from all stakeholders to ensure free elections in Central African Republic The UN's expert on human rights in the Central African Republic (CAR) issued a series of recommendations on Wednesday to ensure that citizens – after years of civil unrest – can freely decide the future of their country during presidential elections on 27 December. Human Rights Unsplash/Dalia Mu Deliberate silencing of peaceful voices in Iraq 'unacceptable', says UN human rights chief A new UN report launched on Thursday highlights human rights violations and abuses that were committed during recent demonstrations in Iraq and calls for immediate action for justice. Human Rights © John Isaac / World Bank Human rights are the 'means by which governments can successfully beat pandemics', says UNAIDS chief Some of the world's most marginalized and defenseless communities have fallen victim to violence and other rights abuses during the COVID-19 pandemic, prompting the UN agency dedicated to tackling the AIDS virus to urge Governments to protect the most vulnerable, particularly key populations at higher risk of HIV.  Health WHO/PAHO Togo overcomes 'sleeping sickness' as a public health problem The West African nation of Togo has eliminated human African trypanosomiasis or "sleeping sickness" as a public health problem, becoming the first in the continent to achieve the milestone, the UN World Health Organization (WHO) has said.  Health Coronavirus Portal & News Updates Readers can find information and guidance on the outbreak of the novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) from the UN, World Health Organization and UN agencies here. For daily news updates from UN News, click here. unsubscribe from this list | update subscription preferences