UNited Nations

1. Nearly half a billion people can’t find decent work; unemployment set to rise: new UN labour report

   Around half a billion people work fewer paid hours than they would like, or are not getting enough access to paid work, shows a study published by the International Labour Organization (ILO) on Monday, which also forecasts that unemployment will rise by about 2.5 million this year.

2. Major humanitarian hub in north-east Nigeria burned in attack

   The top UN aid official in Nigeria has condemned a weekend attack against a major humanitarian facility in the north-east of the country. 

3. East Africa locusts threaten food insecurity across subregion, alerts UN agriculture agency

   Ethiopia, Kenya and Somalia are dealing with desert locust swarms of “unprecedented size and destructive potential” that could spill over into more countries in East Africa, the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) warned on Monday.

4. Latin America and Caribbean region deadliest for journalists in 2019

   Twenty-two journalists were reported killed in the Latin America and Caribbean region in 2019, making it the deadliest part of the world for the press, followed by 15 in Asia-Pacific, and 10 in Arab States.

5. Smokers who quit one month before surgery reap benefits: UN health agency

   Tobacco smokers who quit at least four weeks before undergoing surgery not only have a lower risk of complications, but also show better results six months later than those who continue, the United Nations health agency  said on Monday.

6. World leaders must address ‘shameful’ disparities in education spending: UN children’s agency

   A new report from the UN Children’s Fund, UNICEF, shows that a third of adolescent girls from the poorest households have never been to school, and spending on education is heavily skewed towards wealthier households.

7. ‘This terrible situation cannot be allowed to continue’, UN chief tells world leaders at major Libya summit

   Speaking at a major, high-level summit on Libya, held in the German capital Berlin on Sunday, UN Secretary-General António Guterres evoked the disastrous humanitarian situation faced by thousands of civilians, as conflict in the North African country grows deeper and more destructive.

8. Former UN chief Perez de Cuéllar celebrates his 100th birthday

   The fifth Secretary-General, Javier Perez de Cuéllar, whose UN career began with the first ever General Assembly meeting in 1946, celebrates his 100th birthday on Sunday.

9. Urgent need for ‘immediate’ solutions to combat drug-resistant infections, warns WHO  

   Drug-resistant infections are on the rise as private investment in new antibiotic development declines, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Friday.

10. Haiti earthquake victims honoured at UN, with pledge to safeguard the nation’s future

    More than 200,000 Haitians who perished in the devastating earthquake which struck the island nation ten years ago, were honoured in a solemn ceremony of remembrance at UN Headquarters in New York on Friday, along with 102 staffers who died – the single greatest loss of life in the Organization’s history.