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In March 2020, the Government of Panama announced restrictions on movement to contain the spread of COVID-19. The first weeks of lockdown were an uncertain time, says Venus Tejada, president of the Panamanian Association of Trans People.  

The UN country teams continue their efforts to provide local and national authorities worldwide support in the fight against COVID-19. Today, we highlight some of those efforts.

Dorys Yessenia Reyna, 41 years old, is a high school teacher, mother, entrepreneur and a religious leader. She’s committed to supporting women and girls who face violence in their lives and homes.  Sadly, she has her own experience in this area.  

The town of Kodok sits on the west bank of the Nile in the north of South Sudan. You can’t get there by road and there are no commercial flights that go there. That means that outside help is hard to get. 

Haryati Jonet, known as Yatie, has been using drugs since she was a teenager. At the age of 15, she was thrown out of her home. Pregnant and alone she began using drugs.

You are dependent on your husband, or your parents, or your uncle, or other people. They may show some kindness, but often it is coupled with scorn. They see you as a burden. They take their frustration and anger out on you. They do not send you to school, for they say it is not worth it. They use cruel names to speak of you. They do not feed you enough. They hit you. They may have their way with you.  

World Environment Day, which fell on 5 June, marked the official launch of the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration, a global push to revive natural spaces lost to development. In the lead-up to the Decade’s launch, we are looking back on some of our most popular restoration-related stories, including this piece originally published in September 2020.

"Water is everything to me. Nowadays, I really need it, water balances me; I need to observe it and always be in contact with cities near the water. At the same time water mobilizes me, I suffer when I see the pollution.  My motivation is to find solutions to this problem that affects everyone," explains Yago.  

Through the COVAX Facility, UN teams across the globe are working effortlessly to ensure vaccine equity worldwide.  

Bosnia and Herzegovina

Bosnia

At the 2019 launch of the UN Disability Inclusion Strategy, the Secretary-General said that the UN should lead by example and raise its standards and performance on disability inclusion. That includes all UN digital platforms. The UNSDG website and social media channels are walking the talk on boosting accessibility.