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Our news page provides you with a round up of UN news related to economic development, humanitarian aid, climate change, and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). You will find the summary of news articles together with a link to the news source.

News
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Climate crisis: Satellites and AI offer hope for global action, says UN weather agency

Climate crisis: Satellites and AI offer hope for global action, says UN weather agency

18 Sep 2024

Amid renewed warnings from leading climate scientists that global warming could reach 3C above pre-industrial levels this century, the head of the UN World Meteorological Organization (WMO) insisted on Wednesday that new technology and AI offer the opportunity to implement the drastic action needed to resist the existential crisis. 

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World News in Brief: Yemen detainee appeal, Typhoon Yagi impacts, ease asylum seekers’ plight, mpox cash boost

World News in Brief: Yemen detainee appeal, Typhoon Yagi impacts, ease asylum seekers’ plight, mpox cash boost

18 Sep 2024

Regional directors from six UN agencies and three non-governmental organizations (NGOs) called on Wednesday for the immediate and unconditional release of scores of colleagues who have been arbitrarily detained in Yemen for 100 days.

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Nigeria: UN agencies assist families affected by floods

Nigeria: UN agencies assist families affected by floods

17 Sep 2024

UN agencies and their humanitarian partners are providing life-saving relief to families in Nigeria who lost their homes during recent flooding.

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More action on the ground needed to save civilian lives in Gaza, top UN official tells Security Council

More action on the ground needed to save civilian lives in Gaza, top UN official tells Security Council

16 Sep 2024

Not enough progress is being made in getting desperately needed aid and commercial goods into Gaza, the UN Senior Humanitarian and Reconstruction Coordinator for the Strip said in a briefing to the Security Council on Monday. 

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Climate change: Ozone layer still well on track for full recovery

Climate change: Ozone layer still well on track for full recovery

16 Sep 2024

New evidence in the World Meteorological Organization’s (WMO) annual Ozone and UV Bulletin published on Monday reveals strong evidence that the ozone layer is well on track for a long-term recovery.

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The push to connect a digitally divided world and counter AI threats

The push to connect a digitally divided world and counter AI threats

16 Sep 2024

A surge in the development of powerful artificial intelligence (AI) tools is already improving lives but is also bringing fresh urgency to calls for regulation, as more and more governments wake up to the risks. Effective global regulation to ensure that AI is developed safely for the benefit of all is urgently needed.

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‘Failing the stress test': UN chief calls for global finance overhaul

‘Failing the stress test': UN chief calls for global finance overhaul

16 Sep 2024

Some of the world’s poorest countries spend more on debt repayments than health, education and infrastructure combined, severely hampering their chances of developing their economies. The UN is calling for an overhaul of the entire international financial system, to reduce inequality and improve people’s lives.

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Nigeria: Hundreds of thousands in need of aid as flooding wipes out homes – WFP

Nigeria: Hundreds of thousands in need of aid as flooding wipes out homes – WFP

13 Sep 2024

UN humanitarians are rushing to assist scores of newly displaced people in northeast Nigeria, after torrential rains caused a dam to collapse and flood the area, the UN World Food Programme (WFP) said on Friday.

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Half the world lacks social protection amid climate crisis, ILO warns

Half the world lacks social protection amid climate crisis, ILO warns

12 Sep 2024

Social protection is essential to safeguard people from shocks, but half the world is without any coverage, including over 90 per cent of people living in climate-vulnerable countries, according to a new report released on Thursday by the International Labour Organization (ILO).

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Summit of the Future: ‘Critical’ opportunity for safer, more sustainable and equitable world

Summit of the Future: ‘Critical’ opportunity for safer, more sustainable and equitable world

12 Sep 2024

A once-in-a-generation UN summit bringing together countries from around the world marks a critical opportunity for far-reaching agreements on international collaboration for a safer, more sustainable and more equitable world, said UN Secretary-General António Guterres on Thursday as part of a global call to action to support the Summit of the Future, which begins on 22 September. 

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Guterres condemns death of 6 UNRWA staff and 12 others in Israeli strike, calls for independent probe

Guterres condemns death of 6 UNRWA staff and 12 others in Israeli strike, calls for independent probe

12 Sep 2024

The UN chief on Thursday described the continued lack of effective protection for civilians in Gaza during the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas as “unconscionable”.

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South-south cooperation can help solve ‘complex development context’

South-south cooperation can help solve ‘complex development context’

11 Sep 2024

Collaboration between developing countries, often known as south-south cooperation, can help to solve what a senior UN official has described as the world’s “complex development context.” 

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New how-to guide speeds global race for renewable energy

New how-to guide speeds global race for renewable energy

11 Sep 2024

Governments, industry and other key players can now deploy a new action-oriented toolkit to ensure the global energy transition unfolds with equity, justice and sustainability as demand for minerals for renewables is poised to almost triple by 2030, according to a report released on Wednesday by a diverse expert panel convened by the UN chief.

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Viet Nam mobilises massive response as Typhoon Yagi leaves a trail of catastrophe

Viet Nam mobilises massive response as Typhoon Yagi leaves a trail of catastrophe

11 Sep 2024

A massive disaster response has been launched in Viet Nam following widespread damage inflicted by Typhoon Yagi, the most powerful storm to hit the South China Sea in almost three decades, the UN Office of the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) has reported.

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UN firmly rejects allegations against agencies in Yemen

UN firmly rejects allegations against agencies in Yemen

11 Sep 2024

The United Nations on Wednesday firmly rejected allegations by the Houthis in Yemen that some UN agencies and partners have been “colluding to destroy” the country’s education system.

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WFP continues to support millions amid ongoing wars in Gaza and Ukraine

WFP continues to support millions amid ongoing wars in Gaza and Ukraine

10 Sep 2024

Nearly 50 million people in the Middle East, Northern Africa and Eastern Europe are not getting enough to eat, or double the number from before the Arab Spring over a decade ago, a senior official with the World Food Programme (WFP) said on Tuesday in New York. 

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The world must ‘wake up and help Sudan out of the nightmare of conflict’ says WHO’s Tedros

The world must ‘wake up and help Sudan out of the nightmare of conflict’ says WHO’s Tedros

08 Sep 2024

Sudan’s health system is “near collapse” after 16 months of war have left the country and its people facing what the UN’s top health official described on Sunday as the “perfect storm of crises”, which the world is largely ignoring.

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Investing in clean air can saves lives and combat climate change

Investing in clean air can saves lives and combat climate change

07 Sep 2024

The UN Secretary-General is marking ‘Clean Air Day’ with a call for global investment in solutions that tackle climate change and the increasing public health, environmental, and economic harm caused by air pollution. 

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UN leads search for synergy on climate and development

UN leads search for synergy on climate and development

06 Sep 2024

Governments, experts and civil society representatives met in Brazil this week for a UN-backed conference to examine solutions that address the interlinked challenges of the climate emergency and the sustainable development crisis. 

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Millions impacted by ‘catastrophic and massive floods’ in Bangladesh

Millions impacted by ‘catastrophic and massive floods’ in Bangladesh

06 Sep 2024

Recent “catastrophic and massive floods” in Bangladesh have affected millions of people across the country, including those in Cox’s Bazar where nearly one million Rohingya refugees from Myanmar live alongside host communities, spokesperson William Spindler told journalists in Geneva on Friday. 

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Climate change: ‘Graveyard of glaciers’ lays bare existential threat of melting ice

Climate change: ‘Graveyard of glaciers’ lays bare existential threat of melting ice

06 Sep 2024

Iceland´s glaciers are retreating so rapidly that future generations may wonder how the ancient island nation got its name. No surprise then that the land of the Vikings was chosen to house the world’s first global glacier graveyard which was unveiled at a ceremony last month, close to the capital Reykjavik.

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We must do more to keep the air we breathe clean: UN weather agency

We must do more to keep the air we breathe clean: UN weather agency

05 Sep 2024

Unchecked climate change, wildfires and air pollution continue to have “a spiralling, negative impact on health, ecosystems and agriculture”, with millions of deaths attributed to dirty air, the UN World Meteorological Organization (WMO) said on Thursday.

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Guterres underlines support for China-Africa partnership

Guterres underlines support for China-Africa partnership

05 Sep 2024

Joint efforts by China and Africa can spark new momentum for development on the continent, UN Secretary-General António Guterres said on Friday, at a high-level meeting in Beijing. 

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Private donations boost UN support for war-torn Gaza

Private donations boost UN support for war-torn Gaza

05 Sep 2024

From celebrities to civil society, a growing number of people around the world are providing unprecedented support for UNRWA, the UN agency supplying a lifeline to two million Palestinians trapped in war-torn Gaza.

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Over half a million people severely impacted by unprecedented flooding and windstorms in Yemen

Over half a million people severely impacted by unprecedented flooding and windstorms in Yemen

05 Sep 2024

Unprecedented floods and winds have displaced thousands of families, destroyed homes, and severely damaged critical infrastructure, impacting over half a million people in Yemen, the UN migration agency (IOM) said on Thursday.  

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World News in Brief: Aid trucks on Ukraine frontline, Africa schools close due to insecurity, Georgia rights defenders

World News in Brief: Aid trucks on Ukraine frontline, Africa schools close due to insecurity, Georgia rights defenders

05 Sep 2024

UN humanitarians continue to reach beleaguered communities stranded on the frontline in Ukraine. An inter-agency convoy delivered three trucks of aid to a community in the Kherson region on Wednesday – the ninth this year that has managed to get through.

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Catastrophic hunger doubles in 2024; Gaza and Sudan worst hit

Catastrophic hunger doubles in 2024; Gaza and Sudan worst hit

05 Sep 2024

The number of people experiencing catastrophic hunger has surged more than twofold in 2024, due largely to the ongoing conflicts in Gaza and Sudan, according to new figures released by the UN on Thursday.

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Tech progress, automation, AI, cut workers’ share of wealth: ILO

Tech progress, automation, AI, cut workers’ share of wealth: ILO

04 Sep 2024

The global trend for shrinking pay packets in heavily industrialized economies could be driven – at least temporarily - by tech innovations in the workplace such as automation and AI, the UN International Labour Organization, ILO, said on Wednesday.

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Asia-Pacific nations commit to ‘visionary blueprint’ for inclusive digital world

Asia-Pacific nations commit to ‘visionary blueprint’ for inclusive digital world

04 Sep 2024

At a major UN conference on Wednesday, Asia-Pacific nations pledged to bridge the digital divide and foster inclusive digital economies, stressing the importance of enhancing digital trust and literacy across the region.

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Make AI work for everyone, UN chief says

Make AI work for everyone, UN chief says

03 Sep 2024

The UN Secretary-General on Tuesday called for global cooperation in sharing the transformative potential of artificial intelligence (AI), warning that unequal access could exacerbate global inequalities.