United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres has appointed Jaap van Hierden of The Netherlands as the United Nations Resident Coordinator in Micronesia, with the host Government’s approval. He will have additional responsibility for programme matters in Kiribati, the Marshall Islands, Nauru, and Palau.
Rural women have great potential as leaders and entrepreneurs. They also have the desire to lead. But they face many obstacles: few job opportunities, low levels of education, and lots of unpaid work. They are also often openly discouraged by their loved ones to pursue their dreams, pressured by traditional stereotypes.
Celebrating the UN’s 75th anniversary last year, prompted major internal discussion about its future, and a new direction away from the post-World War Two consensus of its early days. These reflections have resulted in Our Common Agenda, a landmark new report released today by the UN Secretary-General, setting out his vision for the future of global cooperation.
The COVID-19 pandemic continues its deadly march around the world. How will countries be able to “build back better” from this calamity? We know, in this respect, that the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are key.
Adisa's schedule to make sure water is available at home required her to travel some 1.5 kilometres to fetch from a stream. After a hectic day, walking to get water was another strenuous task. Today, Adisa, a 28-year-old mother of five, no longer rushes from work.
In the southern region of Madagascar, hundreds of thousands of people are suffering from one of the worst droughts in the region in 40 years. In the town of Amboasary Atsimo, for example, about 75 per cent of the population is facing severe hunger and 14,000 people are on the brink of famine. UN Resident Coordinator Issa Sanogo recently visited the region, where the population is facing a severe humanitarian crisis.
Socotra, south of the Arabian Peninsula, means “island abode of bliss” in Sanskrit. It is a hub for people on holiday from around the world who go to enjoy the breathtaking landscape and fascinating fauna, as well as diving, snorkeling, and trekking.
It is 5 a.m. and Ceferina, a 30-year-old migrant day labourer, or jornalera, begins her day in southern Jalisco, Mexico. She and her family live in a shelter and work in vegetable and sugar cane fields. They live and work alongside other jornaleras families from different parts of the country, mainly from the south of Mexico.
One day some years ago, Chief Egunu Williams had just returned home from his farm in the south of Nigeria when a man from a nearby community came asking for a loan.
Life was hard for Violeta and her family in their little village Kabash, a two-hour drive from the town of Puka. Everything was far away — the health clinic, the hospital, the local administrative offices.
With tears in her eyes, she remembers the time when her little daughter collapsed and just barely regained consciousness, with no nearby hospital to take her. She also learned that both her daughters had been born with mental health issues and congenital heart disease. They needed specialized medical care, which was accessible only in town.
