Daily Wrap

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Daily Wrap 29 September 2020 UNICEF Nepal Millionth death from COVID-19 'an agonizing milestone': UN Secretary-General With over one million lives now lost to COVID-19 globally, UN Secretary-General António Guterres has said that while the "agonizing milestone" is a "mind-numbing figure", the world must never lose sight of each and every individual life.  Health UN Photo/Loey Felipe As historic virtual debate wraps, 'our political leaders demonstrated their commitment to multilateralism,' says UN Assembly President For the first time in the history of the United Nations, global leaders were not able to meet in person for the General Assembly's annual debate, but the 193-Member body's President said on Tuesday that the precautions forced by the COVID-19 pandemic "did not prevent multilateralism from operating at the highest levels." UN Affairs UN Photo/Loey Felipe The UN is 'right platform' to address global challenges – Tanzanian Ambassador The COVID-19 outbreak reminds the world that we need "to enhance solidarity within the multilateral system" to confront global challenges, the representative of Tanzania told the closing session of the UN's annual high-level session on Tuesday. UN Affairs UN Photo/Loey Felipe Nuclear threat against North Korea 'continues unabated', UN ambassador tells Assembly During the past several decades, North Korea has done "everything possible" to safeguard peace and security on the Korean peninsula, the country's representative told the UN high-level General Debate on Tuesday. UN Affairs UN Photo/Loey Felipe At UN, Uganda highlights COVID-19 response, commitment to sustainable development Through deliberate and targeted actions, Uganda has been able to contain the spread of COVID-19, the country's representative to the UN told the General Assembly, adding that the Government also prioritized sustainable recovery from the pandemic in its national plans.  UN Affairs UNDP PAPP/Abed Zagout UN Middle East envoy urges sides to engage 'before it is too late' Israeli and Palestinian leaders, and their international partners, must urgently resume peace efforts "before it is too late", UN Middle East envoy Nikolay Mladenov told the Security Council on Tuesday, echoing the Secretary-General.  Peace and Security UN Photo/Loey Felipe Climate change 'the defining challenge of our generation' says New Zealand Ambassador There is no vaccine against climate change, the Permanent Representative of New Zealand told the UN General Assembly debate on Tuesday, noting that now more than ever, the international community must "step up, collectively and in the common interest." UN Affairs UN Photo/Rick Bajornas To UN, Israeli Prime Minister says 'no doubt' more Arab countries will soon join 'circle of peace' While telling the UN General Assembly on Tuesday there was "good news" to report about the "expanding circle of peace" between Israel and some Arab countries, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also accused Hezbollah militants of storing weapons in a residential area of Beirut. UN Affairs UN Photo/Rick Bajornas Pandemic shows international cooperation 'delivers results', says German Foreign Minister The COVID-19 pandemic has revealed how international cooperation "delivers results" in efforts to resolve conflict, though there is still a long way to go, Germany's Foreign Minister told the UN General Assembly in a pre-recorded speech broadcast on Tuesday.  UN Affairs UN Photo/Rick Bajornas Bilateral cooperation 'only way' to resolve repatriation issue, Myanmar Minister tells General Assembly Bilateral cooperation is the only way to effectively resolve the repatriation issue between Myanmar and Bangladesh, the Minister of the Office of the State Counsellor of Myanmar, told the UN General Assembly.  UN Affairs UN Photo/Rick Bajornas UAE expresses hopes for Middle East peace talks following 'historic' accord with Israel The historic agreement normalizing relations between Israel and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) should boost efforts towards achieving regional peace and a brighter future for generations to come, the UAE's Foreign Affairs Minister told the UN General Assembly in a pre-recorded speech broadcast on Tuesday.  UN Affairs WFP/Hugh Rutherford Protect the world from sliding into global recession, urges UN chief The economic and social consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic "are as bad as we feared", the UN Secretary-General said, as he warned that the international community must act now if it is stave off a global recession, which could wipe out decades of development gains.  Economic Development UN Photo/Martine Perret WHO promises 'robust' investigation of sexual abuse allegations against workers in DR Congo The UN World Health Organization (WHO) on Tuesday, promised that any of its staff working as part of the agency's Ebola response team in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) found to have been involved in sexual exploitation and abuse, would face "serious consequences, including instant dismissal." Law and Crime Prevention UNOCHA/Alioune Ndiaye Redouble efforts against 'global scourge' of gender-based violence, intensified by pandemic: Guterres  From domestic violence to sexual abuse, online harassment and increased child marriage, gender-based violence (GBV) is "a global scourge" that is being exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, the UN chief said on Tuesday.  Women © WFP/Musa Mahadi Flooding leaves South Sudan facing threat of 'catastrophic' hunger levels  Torrential rains and flooding across South Sudan have created the threat of "catastrophic" levels of hunger and left hundreds of thousands homeless, UN humanitarians said on Tuesday.  Humanitarian Aid UN OCHA/Gema Cortes COVID-19: 'Legitimate concerns' must be heard, and fears addressed over misinformation Amid continuing uncertainty, fear and anxiety around the world over the COVID-19 pandemic, senior UN officials are keen to stress the legitimacy of concerns, listen carefully to citizens around the world, and help them distinguish between misinformation and accurate information, based on science.  Health FAO/G. Agostinucci Food loss and waste 'an ethical outrage', UN chief says on International Day New approaches and solutions are needed to address worsening food loss and waste, the UN Secretary-General has said, in a message marking the first ever International Day of Awareness of Food Loss and Waste Reduction.  SDGs 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