INTERNATIONAL – A new report released by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) reveals that least 800,000 children have been forced to flee their homes as a result of the conflict in northeast Nigeria between Boko Haram, military forces and civilian self-defence groups.

Released a year after 200 girls were abducted in Chibok, UNICEF’sMissing Childhoodsreveals that the number of children running for their lives within Nigeria, or crossing over the border to Chad, Niger and Cameroon, has more than doubled in just less than a year.

“The abduction of more than 200 girls in Chibok is only one of endless tragedies being replicated on an epic scale across Nigeria and the region,”saysManuel Fontaine, UNICEF Regional Director for West and Central Africa. “Scores of girls and boys have gone missing in Nigeria – abducted, recruited by armed groups, attacked, used as weapons, or forced to flee violence. They have the right to get their childhoods back.”

The Missing Childhoods report outlines how the conflict is exerting a heavy toll on children in Nigeria and across the region in an increasing number of ways. As well as being killed, maimed and displaced, children are being used within the ranks of Boko Haram – as combatants, cooks, porters and look-outs.

Young women and girls are being subjected to forced marriage, forced labour and rape, while students and teachers are being deliberately targeted. More than 300 schools were damaged or destroyed and at least 196 teachers and 314 schoolchildren killed by the end of 2014.

In response to the crisis, UNICEF has stepped up its humanitarian response over the past six months, providing over 60,000 children affected by the conflict in Nigeria, Niger, Cameroon and Chad with counselling and psychosocial support to help them ease the pain of their memories, reduce stress and cope with emotional distress.

The agency is also working with partners to provide safe water and life-saving health services, to restore access to education by creating temporary learning spaces, and to deliver therapeutic treatment to malnourished children.

In order to maintain its relief efforts in Nigeria and neighbouring countries, UNICEF is urging international donors to ramp up their financial support, as the agency is facing a severe funding shortfall. It has received only 15 per cent of the $26.5 million required for its humanitarian response in Nigeria for 2015, and no more than 17 per cent of its appeal for Cameroon, 2 per cent for Niger and one per cent for Chad.

UNICEF has released its report at the same time as it makes efforts to draw attention to the devastating impact of the conflict on children across the region using the hashtag#bringbackourchildhood. As part of that drive, UNICEF is using Snapchat – a social platform where messages appear briefly – to highlight the plight of the hundreds of thousands of children who are missing out on their childhoods as a result of the conflict.

To tell the stories of the children who have fled the violence, UNICEF and leading Snapchat artists will share images based on drawings made by children in Nigeria, Chad, Niger and Cameroon. The artwork reflects what children miss from home and the emotional wounds and suffering they have endured, including seeing their parents and siblings killed, tortured or abducted.

INTERNATIONAL – Marking International Day of Human Space Flight, the United Nations today 12 April, spotlighted the contribution of space science and technology to sustainable development and underscored the need to push the boundaries of exploration for the benefit of all people.

“I am confident that the International Day of Human Space Flight will remind us of our common humanity and our need to work together to conquer shared challenges,”Secretary-GeneralBan Ki-moon said on theDaymarked worldwide on 12 April.

“I hope it will also inspire young people in particular to pursue their dreams and move the world towards new frontiers of knowledge and understanding," the UN chief added.

In 2011, the General Assembly declared 12 April International Day of Human Space Flight to reaffirm the important contribution of space science and technology in achieving sustainable development. The Assembly also expressed interest in promoting and expanding the exploration and use of outer space for peaceful purposes.

This day, 12 April back in 1961 was the date of the first human space flight, carried out by Yuri Gagarin, a Soviet citizen. This historic event opened the way for space exploration.

“Yuri Gagarin's journey as the first human in space 54 years ago has inspired us all to advance the boundaries of exploration”, said United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA) Director, Simonetta Di Pippo.

To mark the day, UNOOSA has launched the fourth edition of its 'Messages from Space Explorers', a collection of messages from Space Explorers serving as a memorabilia of their contribution and inspiration to future generations.

“Recording the messages of the many men and women who have travelled into space allows us to commemorate the role these people have played as Ambassadors for humankind,” said Ms. Di Pippo.

The new edition – available on UNOOSA's website in six different languages - contains messages from space explorers from France, Germany, Italy, Japan, and the United States. One of the featured explorers, Scott Kelly is currently on a one year mission aboard the International Space Station (ISS), which started on 28 March 2015.

The autograph album also contains a copy of the signed sheets received from 57 other space explorers from 20 nations, among which Valentina Tereskhova of Russia, the first woman in space, and Charles F. Bolden, the current NASA Administrator, and copy of the autographs of Yuri Gagarin, and Edward H. White, the first American to walk in space.

INTERNATIONAL – As the 13th United Nations Congress on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice opened in Doha, Qatar, on Sunday 12 April,Secretary-GeneralBan Ki-moon and other high-level UN officials said that preventing crime and promoting the rule of law are crucial to support sustainable development.

“All societies need fair criminal justice systems, effective, accountable institutions, and access to justice for all”, Mr. Bansaidin a keynote speech at the opening ceremony of the Crime Congress.

“Accountable security services can go a long way toward ending cycles of violence. Strengthening legal rights helps to address inequalities,” he added.

“There can be no sustainable development without human rights and the rule of law”, the Secretary-General declared.

Hundreds of policymakers and practitioners in the area of crime prevention and criminal justice, as well as experts from academia, representatives of intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations, specialized agencies and other UN entities, and the media are attending the forum, which is held every five years.

The DohaCrime Congress, which will run through 19 April, was opened by the Prime Minister of Qatar, Abdullah bin Nasser bin Khalifa Al Thani. It is happening a few months before a major summit in New York in September on the future global development agenda.

The Congress adopted on Sunday the 'Doha Declaration', a political document that puts an emphasis on important aspects of fighting transnational organized crime and strengthening criminal justice systems and crime prevention.

“This September, Member States will consider a post-2015 development agenda that can pave the way to a better future for billions of people”, Mr. Ban said. “Success requires that the new agenda and sustainable development goals reflect the centrality of the rule of law”.

The UN Secretary-General said that “international cooperation and coordination are critical, particularly in areas such as combatting transnational organized crime and terrorism”.

“I encourage every country to ratify and implement the conventions against drugs, crime and corruption, and the international instruments against terrorism, and to support the important and varied work of the UN Office on Drugs and Crime”, he added.

“We must also adapt to changing times. Cybercrime has now become a business which exceeds billions of dollars a years a year in online fraud, identity theft, and lost intellectual property. It affects millions of people around the world, as well as businesses and Governments. We must also address the growing links between organized crime and terrorism”.

During the ceremony, three representatives of the Youth Forum, which took place before the Congress, delivered to the participants the Doha Youth Forum statement, which includes their recommendations on the main themes that will be discussed at the Congress.

UN General Assembly President Sam Kutesasaidthat the Crime Congress is “an important forum to focus on crimes affecting the ability of millions of people around the world to realize a life of prosperity and dignity”.

Mr. Kutesa called the participants of the Congress “to use this forum to generate concrete ideas that can positively contribute to the on-going negotiating process for the post-2015 development agenda in the area of crime prevention and criminal justice”.

UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) President Martin Sajdik and UNODC Executive Director Yury Fedotov also delivered remarks at the opening of the Crime Congress.

“We are all gathered here to further advance our united response to crime”, Mr. Sajdik said. “Although planned already years ago the timing of our congress cannot be better. After the Sendai conference on Disaster Risk Reduction of last March our congress here is another landmark meeting in this absolutely crucial year for global development”.

Mr. Fedotovsaidthat “the 13th Congress offers a timely opportunity to further advance global action, and promote a holistic approach that integrates effective crime prevention and criminal justice measures into the wider UN agenda, including in work on human rights, gender equality and protection of children”.

“The Congress is an excellent opportunity to extend and enhance international cooperation to counter transnational organized crime, terrorism and illicit financial flows, and to ensure that our responses are fast, smart and able to cope with new threats”, he added.

INTERNATIONAL – The humanitarian situation in Yemen is “getting worse by the hour,” the United Nations Humanitarian Coordinator for the country warned today 10 April, saying that the escalating conflict has put millions of people at risk of physical injury or death.

“We should not forget that the current conflict in Yemen takes place against the backdrop of a humanitarian crisis of a protracted nature and of a size and a complexity which is amongst the largest in the world,” said Johannes van der Klaauw told the press in Geneva.

“That was already the case before, and this current conflict has aggravated the situation and has made the population increasingly vulnerable,” he added.

The ground attacks and airstrikes which has now spread to most of the country is quickly unravelling “anything there was left” of basic services including health care, safe water and availability of food.

Already before the latest escalation of the conflict, 16 million of the 25 million Yemenis required, and are requiring, humanitarian assistance to meet their most basic needs. As I said, the conflict is aggravating the needs of the most vulnerable and putting others at grave risk.

“Ordinary Yemeni families are struggling to access health care, water, food and fuel –commodities that are basic requirements for their survival,” the Humanitarian Coordinator said.

Thousands of Yemeni families have had to flee as a result of the fighting, and we see now the regional dimension of the flows out of Yemen into Djibouti and the autonomous parts of Somalia, Somaliland and Puntland.

Civilian infrastructure, including schools, health facilities, markets, power plants and warehouses has been damaged and disrupted by the fighting. Shortages of food and fuel are now being reported across the country. Many areas in the country are also experiencing frequent power cuts, shortages of water and fuel. In the second city of the country, Aden, one million people risk being cut off from access to clean drinking water within a matter of days.

Health facilities are also under great strain: they lack fuel for the generators and water necessary to maintain basic operations. There is an urgent need for support to mass casualty management, including trauma kits and other medical supplies.

“We do our utmost to deliver life-saving assistance and protection services, to the extent possible, through our national UN staff and the national staff of international NGOs [non-governmental organizations], as well as through a strong network of national community-based NGOs,” Mr. van der Klaauw said.

Thus far, humanitarian partners have provided medical supplies and trauma kits for 18 hospitals throughout Yemen. And Yemeni national staff working for the United Nations and international organizations are risking their lives to deliver life-saving assistance to people in need. Three Yemeni aid workers were recently been killed in crossfire in Aden while trying to save lives.

The Humanitarian Coordinator urged all parties to the conflict to ensure that civilians are protected and that the civilian infrastructure is protected.

“We must be able, as aid workers, to safely deliver this life-saving assistance in all affected areas in Yemen. To this end, I have been calling, and doing it again this morning, on all the parties for an immediate humanitarian pause in this conflict,” he said.

At the same press conference, several UN agencies briefed journalists on the situation in Yemen regarding health facilities, the status of refugees, children and food security. Ahmed Shadoul from the World Health Organization (WHO), via the telephone from Jordan, said that according to the latest figures, at least 648 people had been killed and 2,191 people had been injured since the fighting in Yemen has escalated in recent weeks. WHO has appealed that all parties to the conflict to keep health facilities safe. With a shortage of medical equipment and teams, WHO is doing its best to provide more than 20 hospitals with supplies but the fuel shortages remains a major problem.

Adrian Edwards, for the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR), reported a rise in people fleeing by boat across the Gulf of Aden to countries in the Horn of Africa – historically a major route travelled by refugees and migrants headed in the opposite direction. The announced that it is making plans to be able to receive up to 30,000 refugees in Djibouti over the next six months and up to 100,000 people in Somaliland and Puntland, Somalia. Inside Yemen, UNHCR's operations to protect and assist the 250,000 refugees continue where possible.

Meanwhile, the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) said that the conflict continues to exact a heavy toll on children. Thousands of families across the country had left their homes in search of safer places and hospitals and are under increasing pressure as they struggle to manage mass casualties with little supplies. Reinforcements brought in today could make the difference between life and death for children and their families, but they were not enough and UNICEF plans more airlifts.

The conflict is also threatening the country’s already fragile food security, the World Food Programme (WFP) warned, expressing alarm that food and fuel shortages could push even more people into hunger in a country where more than 10 million people are already suffering from food insecurity. WFP is continuing to work where through its 185 national staff and its partners to reach those most in need. Despite security challenges, the Programme and its partners distributed food assistance last week to nearly 30,000 internally displaced people.