September 22, 2019 No comments
Ahead of UN summit, leading scientists warn climate change ‘hitting harder and sooner’ than forecast
INTERNATIONAL, 22 September 2019, Climate Change - Top climate scientists issued a report on Sunday showing that over the last several years, sea-level rise, planetary warming, shrinking ice sheets and carbon pollution have accelerated; a sobering call to action for political leaders headed to New York for summit-level climate change talks tomorrow at the United Nations. The landmark new report, which will be presented to the UN Climate Action Summit, underlines the glaring – and growing – gap between agreed targets to tackle global warming and the actual reality. Compiled by the UN World Meteorological Organization (WMO), the report, United in Science, includes details on the state of the climate and presents trends in the emissions and atmospheric concentrations of the main greenhouse gases. WMO | OMM ✔@WMO Landmark multi-agency...
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September 22, 2019 No comments
With five billion set to miss out on health care, UN holds landmark summit to boost coverage
INTERNATIONAL, 22 September 2019, Health - Some five billion people risk missing out on health care in 2030, unless countries close glaring gaps in health coverage, a new report revealed on Sunday, as the UN prepares to host a landmark summit to speed up progress on universal health care. The study, “Primary Health Care on the Road to Universal Health Coverage”, estimates that around 60 million lives could be saved by upping annual spending on primary health care in low and middle-income countries by some $200 billion per year. Whilst overall coverage has increased steadily since 2000, the UHC report shows big health service gaps in the poorest countries, and those affected by conflict. Rural areas tend to suffer from lower coverage , due to a lack of...
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September 21, 2019 No comments
At UN, youth activists demand bold climate action, vow to hold leaders accountable at the ballot box
INTERNATIONAL, 21 September 2019, Climate Change - Students and young activists on Saturday threw down the gauntlet to world leaders heading to United Nations Headquarters next week for high-level climate talks, demanding that they “stop wasting time” and work harder to curb carbon emissions, “or we will vote you out.” “We have been waiting for you!” Jayathma Wickramanayake, the UN Youth Envoy, said, welcoming the boisterous crowd of young climate leaders, who made it clear from the very start of the day-long event that global political leaders are now on notice: they must make radical changes to shift the world away from fossil fuels and towards clean energy, protect our oceans, and promote sustainable consumption. This first-ever UN Youth Climate Summit follows Friday’s global ‘climate strike’, which saw millions of...
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September 21, 2019 No comments
UN chief urges restraint following reported Saudi-led assault in Yemen
INTERNATIONAL, 21 September 2019, Peace and Security - Amid reports of a Saudi-led coalition airstrike near Yemen’s port city of Hudaydah, Secretary-General António Guterres expressed concerns for the attacks in a Saturday statement attributable to his Spokesperson, Stephane Dujjaric. An early morning strike on 20 September in the vicinity of the Al Hali District of Hudaydah governorate-in the country’s western coast- was carried out by a Saudi military operation, according to media reports. The assault comes after Yemen-based Houthi rebel forces launched two drone attacks on major Saudi oil facilities on 14 September, a violation of UN ceasefire agreements reached at peace talks in Sweden last year. “The Secretary-General continues to urge all parties to exercise maximum restraint and ensure adherence to the terms of the Hudaydah Agreement of...
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September 21, 2019 No comments
UN chief calls for ‘a fair globalization’ with first-ever Global Goals Summit
INTERNATIONAL, 21 September 2019, SDGs - “We need more investment, more political action, more priority for a fair globalization”, said UN Secretary-General António Guterres in an interview on Thursday, when asked about his expectations for the first-ever Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) Summit, on 24-25 September at New York headquarters. Mr. Guterres emphasized that, with just over 10 years to go, the world is not on track to hit targets related to sustainable development, and urged world leaders to “take the decisions necessary, in order to come together more effectively to make sure that the 2030 Agenda is successfully implemented”. Accelerating progress towards a better future In 2015, the Member States of the UN adopted the landmark 2030 Agenda, which provides a blueprint for the transition to a healthier...
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