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UN DAILY NEWS from the
UNITED NATIONS NEWS SERVICE
9 May, 2008 =========================================================================
UN APPEALS FOR $187 MILLION TO AID MYANMAR CYCLONE VICTIMS
The United Nations today appealed for $187 million to help provide humanitarian relief to some 1.5 million people severely affected by the recent cyclone in Myanmar for the next six months.
Launching the Flash Appeal in New York on behalf of 10 UN agencies and 9 non-governmental organizations, the UN’s top relief official emphasized that “the extent of the humanitarian catastrophe is enormous.”
Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and UN Emergency Relief Coordinator John Holmes noted that the number of those severely affected is between 1.2 and 1.9 million. But he added that “the numbers of people in need may well increase further as we come to understand better the situation on the ground.”
Cyclone Nargis, which struck the South-East Asian nation on 2 May, left a path of death and destruction across the Irrawaddy delta region and the country’s largest city, Yangon. The Government estimates that more than 22,000 people have died and over 41,000 remain missing.
Mr. Holmes noted that the number of deaths has been climbing daily and “could be anywhere between 63,000 and 100,000, or possibly even higher.”
Stressing the need to act quickly and for the Government to facilitate aid delivery, he said that “the sooner humanitarians are allowed in, and the less procedural and other obstacles we encounter, the more lives we can help save.”
He later told reporters that countries at the launch voiced strong hope that the cooperation which is necessary between the international community and the authorities in Myanmar will be “as forthcoming, as flexible, and as rapid as possible to make sure that not only material relief goods can get in but also humanitarian aid workers.”
Today’s Appeal covers 12 areas, with the largest portion of the funding sought for food, water and sanitation, logistics, health and shelter. The UN World Food Programme (WFP) is seeking $56 million to provide daily food rations to 630,000 people in severely affected areas or temporary shelters.
Also, the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) has appealed for $10 million to assist poor farming and fishing communities devastated by Cyclone Nargis, which made landfall in the Ayeyarwady (Irrawaddy) delta region last Friday and then moved on to Myanmar’s largest city, Yangon.
FAO said the five worst-affected areas – Ayeyarwady, Yangon and Bago Divisions, and Mon and Kayin states – are considered Myanmar’s food bowl, producing much of the country’s staple food of rice and fish, and the overall food security situation in Myanmar is “seriously threatened.”
The UN Population Fund (UNFPA), which is appealing for $3 million, said today that tens of thousands of pregnant women made homeless by the cyclone urgently need lifesaving assistance. UNFPA is working with humanitarian partners to mobilize emergency reproductive health supplies, including safe delivery kits, for those affected.
The agency added that disasters like Cyclone Nargis put expectant mothers and their babies at special risk because of the sudden loss of medical support, compounded by trauma, malnutrition and disease. Another $8.2 million is being sought by the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) to meet the critical needs of children and women in the wake of the tragedy.
Mr. Holmes said he will be allocating $20 million immediately from the UN Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) to projects from the Flash Appeal to help ensure that the most urgent needs can be addressed quickly. Some $77 million has been pledged so far by countries, toward the Appeal and in bilateral assistance.
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SECRETARY-GENERAL URGES US BUSINESS LEADERS TO HELP FIGHT GLOBAL POVERTY
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today urged members of the business community in the United States city of Atlanta to help the United Nations in its efforts to combat global poverty, arguing that this is good for the world and the bottom line.
“Never has the global corporate community been so engaged as it is today,” he said. “Look at what the Gates Foundation is doing in health care. Look how Rotary International, supported by Atlanta’s Centers for Disease Control and some of your most forward-looking companies, is on the verge of eradicating polio.”
The world’s poorest need international help from a range of players, he said. “The United Nations cannot do it alone. We need you.”
He argued for an approach that promotes self-sufficiency. “Unless the world’s poor become better able to fend for themselves, they – and we – are lost,” he told the gathering at the headquarters of the Coca Cola company, which is a member of the UN’s voluntary corporate citizen initiative known as the Global Compact.
The Secretary-General said companies are introducing new technologies that are sparking local entrepreneurship and, in the process, creating growth and promoting new markets. “Vodaphone and Tata, to name but two, have discovered that cell phones are about far more than voice communication. Poor farmers in Africa and India use them to check market prices and get information about when and what to plant. This transforms their lives.”
Sales are “exploding,” he said, and “along the way, both companies find that they are contributing in a big way to solving the global food crisis – by advancing local development and helping to boost agricultural production.”
Some 5,000 companies, in 120 countries, belong to the UN’s Global Compact. Addressing those that have not joined the initiative, the Secretary-General said, “I urge you to sign up. After all, we are in this together.”
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BAN KI-MOON ‘DEEPLY CONCERNED’ AT CONTINUING VIOLENCE IN LEBANON
The United Nations Secretary-General has expressed his deep concern at the continuing violence in Lebanon and has called on all parties to exercise restraint.
Lebanon’s capital Beirut has been rocked by clashes between pro- and anti-government militias for the past three days. The country’s parliamentary system is paralysed and the position of President has remained unfilled since November.
“Everything should be done at this time to keep the situation from deteriorating. The parties should address their political differences through peaceful means and dialogue,” UN spokesperson Marie Okabe told reporters.
She added that Mr. Ban is aware of the continuing mediation role of the Secretary-General of the Arab League and offered his full support.
In a statement to the press read out yesterday by Ambassador John Sawers of the United Kingdom, which holds the Security Council’s rotating presidency for May, the 15-member body stressed the need to uphold the stability and sovereignty of Lebanon, urged all sides to exercise calm and restraint, and called for the immediate re-opening of all roads.
This followed a briefing to the Council by UN Special Envoy Terje Roed-Larsen, who said that Lebanon is facing its worst crisis since the country’s civil war. He said that all militias in the country had to be disarmed and that political dialogue among the Lebanese parties was the only way to resolve outstanding issues.
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DENMARK A LEADER ON COMBATING TORTURE, BUT UN EXPERT HAS SOME CONCERNS
While lauding Denmark’s efforts to combat torture, an independent United Nations human rights expert who just visited the country said the country still has room for progress.
In a statement issued today to mark the completion of his visit to both Denmark and Greenland, Manfred Nowak said that Denmark “is the central player in mobilizing the international community by putting forth resolutions on combating torture every year,” and added that, “without question, the international community has much to benefit from Denmark’s example.”
Mr. Nowak, who is the UN’s Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, said that he had “received no allegations of torture and very few complaints of ill-treatment from detainees.”
He said there was generally a “high standard of conditions of detention inside Danish prisons,” and cited the fact that many jails in Denmark are open institutions and have a mix of male and female prisoners, with facilities for children of imprisoned parents.
At the same time, Mr. Nowak expressed some reservations about Denmark’s record. He called for a specific crime of torture to be included in Denmark’s criminal law, and said that the use of solitary confinement should be reduced, “based on unequivocal evidence of its negative mental health effects upon detainees.”
Mr. Nowak also called on Denmark to refrain from using “diplomatic assurances” to allow suspected terrorists to return to countries known for their practice of torture.
Referring to Greenland, the Special Rapporteur said he “regretted” that action against domestic violence has so far not received adequate attention despite the severity of the problem.” Mr. Nowak recommended that Greenland’s Government develop and implement a plan of action on domestic violence.
He also welcomed a Danish Government investigation into alleged rendition flights of suspects by the United States Central Intelligence Agency, using flights through Denmark and Greenland.
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KILLING OF KENYA STAFFER SECOND LOSS THIS WEEK FOR UN FOOD AGENCY
The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) has spoken out against the murder of the head of its office in north-western Kenya who was shot dead by unidentified gunmen, the second such killing of the agency’s staff this week.
Silence Chirara, a 37-year-old father of two who was coordinator of WFP’s logistics operation for southern Sudan, was ambushed on Wednesday while driving a clearly marked UN vehicle in the town of Lokichoggio. The gunmen escaped.
“We are all shocked at this savage killing of Silence Chirara and condemn it in the strongest terms,” said Kenro Oshidari, WFP Representative in Sudan, who flew to Lokichoggio on Thursday.
Mr. Chirara, a Zimbabwean national who joined WFP in 1996, had worked in Iraq, Guinea-Bissau, Zimbabwe and Indonesia. He started working in Lokichoggio, a major relief hub and access route for aid delivery to southern Sudan, in March 2006.
“In all the places that Silence served, he was an incredible source of comfort and help to his colleagues. He was a valued Logistics Officer known to never step away from a challenge. This is a moment of great sorrow, for Silence’s family, especially his wife and two children, friends and those at WFP who worked side-by-side with him over the years,” said WFP Executive Director Josette Sheeran.
UN Security and the Kenyan police are investigating the crime.
Earlier this week, one of WFP’s truck drivers in Somalia was shot dead by militiamen who stopped the agency’s food convoy at an illegal checkpoint.
UN Security and the Kenyan police are investigating the crime.
Earlier this week, one of WFP’s truck drivers in Somalia was shot dead by militiamen who stopped the agency’s food convoy at an illegal checkpoint.
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THOUGH MAKING ‘VERY GOOD PROGRESS,’ AFRICA STILL FACES CHALLENGES, SAYS UN OFFICIAL
Africa is making “very good progress,” but must tackle challenges in areas including transportation, infrastructure and water, a senior United Nations said today, as the annual Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD) is under way in New York.
Kathleen Abdalla, Officer-in-Charge of the Division for Sustainable Development, pointed to Africa’s “unprecedented growth,” with its economy growing some 6 per cent in 2005-2006 and 7 per cent last year. She also cited progress made in education, with more children attending primary school.
“But poverty remains high and there are many challenges in Africa,” she told reporters at UN Headquarters.
Ms. Abdalla noted that agriculture productivity is low, and the continent must face other issues such as land tenure, credit availability and limited access to energy.
“One of the reasons that it’s so important to deal with Africa in connection with agriculture is because a very substantial proportion of the labour force in many African countries still depends on agriculture,” David O’Connor, Chief of the Policy Integration and Analysis Branch of the Division for Sustainable Development, said.
He cited that up to 60 per cent of the labour force works in agriculture. With the young age structure of the African population and the speedy population growth, ever greater numbers of people are entering the labour force every year.
“If agriculture cannot absorb them, of course, you have a serious problem,” Mr. O’Connor observed, adding that it is extremely difficult to boost the productivity of labour with the number of people working in the agricultural sector increasing as quickly as it is.
Examples of successes in countries such as Ghana and Malawi show that “technology alone doesn’t do it. Aid certainly doesn’t do it,” according to Peter Hartmann of the International Institute for Tropical Agriculture in Nigeria.
Speaking to reporters at the press conference, he said that a holistic approach is necessary to address challenges to agriculture in Africa.
“There will be a lot of pain right now for the short term… but we need to look forward and see how we can bring to the world a new, more stable food system given the projections of demands and population growth,” Mr. Hartmann said.
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ROMANIA: EVACUATION TRANSIT CENTRE TO BE CREATED – UN REFUGEE AGENCY
An evacuation centre – the first of its kind in Europe – for those urgently needing international protection will be created in Romania, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) announced today.
The agreement to establish the centre took place in Bucharest yesterday between the Romanian Government, UNHCR and the International Organization for Migration (IOM).
The new facility will “provide a temporary safe haven with effective and immediate protection for individuals or groups who need to be evacuated immediately from life-threatening situations before being resettled to other countries,” Jennifer Pagonis, UNHCR spokesperson, told reporters in Geneva.
“We are grateful to the Government of Romania for this important contribution to our efforts to protect refugees against forced return and other threats to their physical safety,” she added.
Noting that resettlement countries have committed to support this scheme, Ms. Pagonis appealed to other nations for financial assistance for the new centre.
In a related development, Belarus has signed an agreement with UNHCR and other organizations to regularly carry out joint border monitoring missions to ensure that asylum seekers have access to both the country and to asylum procedures.
The arrangement also covers counselling, medical and emergency aid, as well as help for those who are not eligible for international protection and wish to return to their home countries.
Belarus, a transit country and destination for migrants and asylum-seekers, maintains tight border controls with the three European Union (EU) nations – Lithuania, Poland and Latvia – it borders, while having an essentially open border with Russia.
This new scheme is part of a project funded by the EU. UNHCR entered into similar agreements with Hungary in 2006 and Slovakia last year, and are key elements of the agency’s 10 Point Plan of Action for Eastern and South Eastern borders of the EU on handling flows of migrants and asylum seekers.
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MORE THAN 100 STATES REVIEW GLOBAL PACT ON NUCLEAR WEAPONS CONTROL – UN
Over 100 States took part in a two-week meeting seeking to pave the way towards the review of the United Nations-backed Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), which forms the foundation of the world’s nuclear non-proliferation regime.
This gathering, which wrapped up today, was the second of three sessions of the Preparatory Committee of the Parties to the Treaty on the NPT.
Participants held constructive discussions on substantive issues, such as nuclear non-proliferation, disarmament, nuclear weapon-free zones and the peaceful use of nuclear energy.
The meeting ended with the adoption of a report detailing substantive and procedural issues.
Both the third session of the Committee, to be held from 4 to 15 May 2009, and the Review Conference, from 26 April to 21 May 2010, will take place in New York.
The UN serves as the Secretariat for the NPT.
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UN, FIFA JOIN FORCES TO SCORE DEVELOPMENT GOALS
Ahead of the 2010 FIFA World Cup and the 2015 deadline for the United Nations Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), the world body and the Fédération Internationale de Football Association have agreed to further their collaboration to enhance the role of sports in furthering peace.
The decision was reached at a meeting today at FIFA headquarters in Zurich between the football organization’s President, Joseph S. Blatter, and Wilfried Lemke, the Secretary-General’s Special Adviser on Sport for Development and Peace.
“In recent years much has been achieved using football, as the world’s most popular sport, as well as other sports” in areas including health, children’s rights, education and the fight against racism, said Mr. Lemke, who served as the general manager of the first division German football club Werder Bremen for 18 years.
“These efforts exemplify the important role sport can play in the achievement of the MDGs,” he added, commending FIFA’s “Football for Hope” initiative seeking to further development targets.
The FIFA head stressed that the upcoming World Cup in South Africa “represents a great opportunity and a major responsibility to provide the country as well as the whole African continent with the means to progress and develop.”
Next month, Mr. Lemke, appointed to his current position on 18 March, is slated to attend the UN Human Settlements Programme (UN-HABITAT) International Youth Crime Prevention and Cities Summit in Durban, and will also meet with the local organizing committee of the World Cup in the South African city.
Also today in Zurich, he held talks with Johann Koss, four-time Olympic gold medal winning speed skater, who serves as a Goodwill Ambassador for the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and runs the non-governmental organization Right to Play (RTP).
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FOOD CRISIS, MYANMAR FEATURE IN ASSEMBLY PRESIDENT’S TALKS WITH TURKISH OFFICIALS
General Assembly President Srgjan Kerim is wrapping up his official visit to Turkey, where he discussed issues such as the global food crisis, the recent tragedy in Myanmar and United Nations reform with the country’s officials.
As Mr. Kerim and Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan discussed the global food crisis, the President noted that “this is an issue where articulate and well coordinated action on the part of all Member States of the United Nations is necessary.”
He said he expected the international Task Force set up by Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon last week to tackle the global rise in food prices “to make an immediate assessment of the scope and nature of the problem of the crisis and as soon as we have that assessment, the General Assembly can make an evaluation about what should be done and how it can be engaged.”
The Task Force, which brings together the heads of key UN agencies, the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and experts from the around the globe, will hold its first meeting in New York next Monday.
In addition, the Geneva-based UN Human Rights Council has announced it will hold a special session on the food crisis on 23 May.
Mr. Kerim told Prime Minister Erdogan that he would support convening a special session of the Assembly, as the solution to the crisis had to be on a political level. He also called for world leaders to give their full support to the UN high-level meeting on the issue to be convened from 3 to 5 June in Rome.
Prime Minister Erdogan agreed that any response to the food crisis should be within the framework of the UN.
The situation in Myanmar, where an estimated 1.5 million people are in need of humanitarian aid following last weekend’s deadly cyclone, was also discussed. The President reiterated the urgency with which the authorities in Myanmar should fully cooperate with the international community, particularly the UN.
The President and the Prime Minister also discussed current Assembly priorities including UN reform, a topic that also featured in Mr. Kerim’s talks with President Abdullah Gul. The Turkish leader supported the idea of the intermediary approach as the one best to achieve results at this stage. At the same time, he also agreed with Mr. Kerim that a more profound reform, which went beyond numbers, was ultimately necessary.
Foreign Minister Ali Babacan also expressed similar views on Council reform during his meeting with Mr. Kerim. In addition, the two men focused on the activities of Turkey in support of UN peacekeeping activities and in the Alliance of Civilization initiative. The Foreign Minister noted that Turkey will be hosting the Forum of the Alliance of Civilizations in April 2009. He also stressed Islam and modernity are not conflicting concepts.
President Kerim also drew attention to the potential for Turkey to play a unique role in development issues as a middle-income donor country with a clear interest in the affairs of least developed countries. At the request of the UN Country Team, Mr. Kerim also raised the issue with the Foreign Minister of having the Turkish Government facilitate the building of a new UN House in Ankara.
While in Turkey, Mr. Kerim also delivered a lecture at Bilkent University on the role of the UN in the era of globalization. Among other topics, he focused on the need to change the way international organizations operate in a new global environment characterized by the rise of non-State actors.
He pointed out that in an evolving international system prone to rapid changes and crisis situations, traditional attributes of power lost their significance, speed was more important than size and the traditional balance of power based on deterrence had to give way to a new understanding based on an equilibrium of shared interests.
The UN provided the most suitable framework for this new culture of international relations as it has the broadest global agenda, a near universal membership and a unique convening power, the President said.
Mr. Kerim now heads to Egypt, where he will be meeting with Foreign Minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit and address the Egyptian Council for Foreign Affairs, before travelling on to Israel.
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DJIBOUTI TO WORK WITH UN TO ELIMINATE FEMALE GENITAL MUTILATION
Djibouti has become the first country to launch a joint programme by United Nations agencies to move more quickly to eliminate female genital mutilation (FGM).
The joint programme, run by the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the UN Population Fund (UNFPA), is to begin in a country where nine out of every ten females has undergone the harmful practice.
Djibouti’s First Lady, Kadra Mahamoud Haïd, who officially launched the programme yesterday, said that it was “a route towards social progress, a tool to fulfil basic human rights, especially on integrity and dignity for girls and women.” She also noted that, since FGM is gender-based violence, the Government of Djibouti, “has set up legal and institutional mechanisms to eradicate the violence.”
A World Health Organization (WHO) study in six African countries found that women who have undergone FGM face significantly higher risks of extensive bleeding, prolonged labour and death when giving birth.
UNICEF estimates that around 3 million girls are at risk of FGM every year.
Speaking on behalf of the UN, Margaret Thuo said that “every community desires to live in dignity and with security,” but added that this is not possible when the human rights of one segment of society are denied.
Djibouti’s Minister of Women’s Promotion, Family Welfare and Social Affairs, Nimo Boulhan, said, “whatever the justifications are, we need to address this problem and stop subjecting girls and women to unnecessary suffering.”
The UNFPA/UNICEF Joint Programme and Trust Fund to accelerate the abandonment of Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting aims to build partnerships with Government, donors, foundations, the media and religious leaders.
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MONEY RUNNING OUT FOR IRAQI REFUGEE CRISIS, WARNS UN AGENCY
The United Nations refugee said today that it could soon be forced to reduce or even halt assistance to hundreds of thousands of Iraqi refugees unless donors provide more funds.
The UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) said there was a $127 shortfall for health, education and food assistance for Iraqi refugees. “We will not be able to help hundreds of thousands of the most vulnerable Iraqi refugees and internally displaced if we do not receive funding for the remainder of 2008,” said High Commissioner António Guterres. “Without this support, the humanitarian crisis we have faced over the past two years may grow even larger,” he added.
A total of 4.7 million Iraqis have been uprooted as a result of the crisis in their country. Of these over 2 million are living as refugees in neighbouring countries – mostly Syria and Jordan – while 2.7 million are internally displaced inside Iraq.
UNHCR said that, without extra funding, it would not be able to cover all the basic health needs of Iraqi refugees, and many seriously ill Iraqis will not be able to receive their monthly medication. A growing number of Iraqis are fleeing their country in search of medical treatment after the collapse of health services in their homeland. Since January some 170,000 refugees have received basic health care assistance in Syria and Jordan.
In addition, UNHCR may be forced to reduce food aid to 150,000 refugees, forcing them into “further destitution,” while efforts to double the number of Iraqi refugee children in school, from 70,000 to 140,000 may have to be cut back, leaving many of them to miss out on education.
Omar, a 69-year-old refugee from Baghdad, interviewed by UNHCR, said that he will die a “slow death” if assistance is stopped. His family has depended on food and medical aid since arriving in Syria in 2006, and pay rent out of remittances from Iraq which he described as “our only way to survive.”
In a related development, UNHCR announced it had contracted the International Medical Corps (IMC) to run clinics in Damascus, the first time an international non-governmental organization (INGO) has worked with Iraqi refugees in Syria.
To date, INGOs have not been given permission to work with Iraqi refugees in Syria. The Syrian Arab Red Crescent has been UNHCR’s main partner along with a number of small local charities. IMC will start work at a time when Syrian Arab Red Crescent clinics are facing rising numbers of Iraqi patients. UNHCR surveys have found that more than 18 per cent of registered Iraqi refugees in Syria suffer from a serious medical condition.
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DARFUR: UN, AU ENVOYS ALARMED BY VIOLENCE BETWEEN GOVERNMENT AND REBELS
Speaking out against the recent stepped up violence between the Sudanese Government’s forces and a rebel group, the United Nations and African Union (AU) envoys spearheading efforts to reach a durable political settlement in the war-ravaged Darfur region today underscored the civilian suffering resulting from the fighting.
Jan Eliasson and Salim Ahmed Salim said in a statement that they are “alarmed and deeply troubled” by the military escalation between the Government and the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM).
Noting that all sides have agreed that there is no military solution to the five-year conflict in Darfur, the parties must “act accordingly.”
The statement added that “this escalation can only cause more suffering for the people and more damage and destruction for Darfur,” and urged the sides to refrain from taking further military action.
“The parties have a serious responsibility to ensure the protection of innocent civilians who have suffered far too long,” Mr. Eliasson and Mr. Salim stated.
“The deteriorating situation in Darfur and the region bring further urgency for the need to engage in dialogue on security issues, to lay the basis for a serious peace process in Darfur.”
More than 200,000 people have been killed and at least 2.5 million displaced from their homes since 2003, when rebels began fighting Government forces and allied Janjaweed militiamen in the arid and impoverished region on Sudan’s western flank.
Earlier this week, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon strongly deplored the recent bombings of villages in North Darfur which resulted in a number of deaths and injuries, and called on all parties to the conflict to cease hostilities and ensure the protection of civilians.
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BAN KI-MOON GATHERS GLOBAL HEALTH EXPERTS TO IMPROVE CARE FOR WORLD’S POOREST
United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and global health leaders meeting at the Carter Center in the United States city of Atlanta today agreed on measures to help make childbirth safer and tackle other challenges facing the world’s poorest and most vulnerable people.
“We are here not only because global health is an enormous challenge, but also because we can do something about it,” Mr. Ban said at a press conference following his meeting with leading global health experts from civil society, academia, philanthropy and the private sector gathered at the Carter Center, with its founder, former US President Jimmy Carter, in attendance.
The meeting attracted the participation of Margaret Chan, the Director-General of the World Health Organization, and previous WHO chief Gro Brundtland, the former Prime Minister of Norway and a member of the Elders, a group of world leaders whose goal is to contribute their wisdom, independent leadership and integrity in tackling some of the world’s toughest problems.
The Secretary-General said participants had a productive session. “We have achieved consensus on the urgency of strengthening health systems to serve all, especially the poorest and most vulnerable,” he said.
Maternal health was a key focus of the discussions. “We have outlined concrete options to make the process of giving birth safer for mothers, and debated concrete means to improve women’s health,” the Secretary-General announced.
A mother dies every minute from complications of pregnancy and childbirth. Maternal health is the slowest moving target of the Millennium Development Goals – the goals that all countries have agreed to reach by 2015 to lift people out of poverty.
“It is unacceptable that over half a million mothers die every year,” declared Mr. Ban. “We must put a stop to these senseless deaths.”
Dr. Chan said women’s health is critical. “The world in the last 20 years failed to take care of its women,” she said. The maternal mortality rate had not budged in those two decades. She decried the fact that half a billion women die in childbirth each year and another half a billion suffer from neglected tropical diseases.
Dr. Brundtland agreed that “on the side of mothers, the world is really far away from any improvements and we need to now focus again so that we don’t have a woman dying every minute because of childbirth.” She said the international community knows what works. “The resources are not outrageous – $10 billion is nothing in our world today to really make a serious impact on these kinds of issues,” she said.
The Secretary-General said participants also targeted neglected diseases like guinea worm and river blindness that “can be eliminated if we only take the time to do so.”
More than 1 billion people — one sixth of the world’s population — suffer from one or more tropical diseases that are neglected in terms of the international response. Experts say eradication of some of these diseases is possible if treatment is scaled up in the poorest countries, but they caution that functioning and affordable health systems must be in place for progress to be achieved.
President Carter said this was “one of the most important meetings” that he would attend this year. He stressed that to address global health problems, “it is not only a matter of health care but of economic progress for the poorest people on earth.”
In his comments to reporters, Mr. Ban also expressed concern about the situation in Myanmar, calling on the authorities to allow aid and humanitarian workers into the country without any hindrance. “I appeal to them strongly to do all they can to facilitate this aid.”
Mr. Ban warned that inaction would be deadly. “If early action is not taken and relief measures put in place, the medium-term effect of this tragedy could be truly catastrophic,” he said, calling for an end to political differences to address the tremendous challenges ahead. “The sheer survival of the affected people is at stake.”
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UN-BACKED SCHEME TARGETS INEQUALITY IN NEPAL’S RURAL COMMUNITIES
The United Nations rural development arm announced today that it is providing $4 million towards a project that aims to tackle the exclusion of groups such as women, dalits and indigenous peoples in rural communities in Nepal.
The Poverty Alleviation Fund is a $113 million community-driven project partly financed by the UN International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), and which focuses on groups that have been traditionally excluded, mainly for reasons of gender, ethnic origin, caste and location.
The pilot phase of the project began in 2004 in six of the poorest and most remote districts of Nepal. Once it took off and demand grew, it quickly expanded to its activities to 25 districts.
The grant agreement signed today in Rome by Lennart Båge, IFAD’s President, and Krishna Gyawali, Nepal’s Joint Secretary, Ministry of Finance, will support the project’s second phase, which involves continuing the work from the pilot phase and expanding it to all 75 districts by the end of the year.
Among its many benefits, the project will build roads and bridges, improve water supplies, sanitation, schools and health services, and develop community infrastructure such as small-scale irrigation. It will also help create opportunities for the poorest and most excluded people to earn an income.
“The Poverty Alleviation Fund is seen as a model because of its successful track record in effectively reaching poor communities and marginalized groups within them,” said Kati Manner, IFAD’s country programme manager for Nepal.
The project brings to 12 the number of IFAD-supported programmes and projects in Nepal, with loans and grants worth $130.9 million.
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TOP UN OFFICIAL IN ASIA-PACIFIC JOINS CALL FOR URGENT ACCESS TO MYANMAR
Echoing calls on the Myanmar authorities to facilitate the delivery of humanitarian aid in the wake of the deadly cyclone which has left some 1.5 million people in need, the top United Nations official in the region today urged the Government to act quickly to avert an even worse tragedy.
“The situation is getting critical and there is only a small window of opportunity if we are to avert the spread of diseases that could multiply the already tragic number of casualties,” said Noeleen Heyzer, Executive Secretary of the UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP).
The UN humanitarian chief has warned that the situation in Myanmar following last weekend’s cyclone has become “increasingly desperate.” The storm left a path of death and destruction across the Irrawaddy delta region and the country’s largest city, Yangon.
Both Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs John Holmes and Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon have voiced their disappointment at the limited progress made in gaining access to Myanmar, where some 1.5 million people are believed to be severely affected by the disaster.
Ms. Heyzer “urged again the Myanmar authorities to issue visas expeditiously, and if possible, exempt all visa requirements for all UN aid workers, so that aid can reach the people as quickly as possible.”
She also said she plans to personally go as soon as possible to Myanmar to show her solidarity with the people of the South-East Asian nation and to meet with the Government to discuss access and humanitarian assistance.
Meanwhile, UN agencies are continuing to mobilize efforts to assist those in need. The UN World Food Programme (WFP) yesterday airlifted enough high energy biscuits for 21,000 people, most of which has been delivered over the last 24 hours to the hardest-hit areas. Today, two WFP flights arrived with enough high-energy biscuits to feed 95,000 people.
The agency has decided to send in two relief flights as planned tomorrow, while discussions continue with the Government of Myanmar on the distribution of the food that was flown in today, and that has not been released to WFP, spokesperson Bettina Luescher told reporters in New York.
“We’re trying everything to resolve the situation at the airport but we are very encouraged that we were able to distribute food,” she stated.
In addition, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) said today it is hoping to start airlifting 57 tonnes of emergency shelter – for some 22,000 people – from its stockpile in Dubai.
The first load of 32 tonnes of aid cargo – mainly urgently needed shelter materials such as plastic sheeting, blankets and kitchen sets – is set to be transported on a WFP aircraft, with another 25 tonnes of supplies expected to be airlifted over the weekend on a joint charter flight.
The agency is also emptying its stockpile in north-western Thailand to deliver some 5,000 plastic sheets and some 200 tents to people in desperate need of shelter across the border.
“We are seeking all possible means to send urgent shelter materials and household supplies to victims of the recent cyclone in Myanmar,” UNHCR’s Jennifer Pagonis told reporters.
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