Gender inequality in the labour market cost sub-Saharan African countries more than US$90 billion annually between 2010 and 2014.
That finding comes in the latest Africa Human Development Report which looks at efforts to accelerate women’s empowerment on the continent.
Anti-poverty policies often fail because of an inadequate understanding of the decisions poor people make.
That’s the view of Abhijit Banerjee, Professor of Economics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and author of Poor Economics, A radical Rethinking of the Way to Fight Global Poverty.
It’s imperative that people of the besieged Syrian town of Darayya are protected in any evacuation that takes place and that this takes place voluntarily.
That’s according to a statement released by the UN Special Envoy for Syria regarding the removal of both civilians and fighters from the city on Friday.
A deal to end the blockade was struck overnight between the government and opposition but the UN was not involved in the negotiations.
Jocelyne Sambira has more.
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An increase in competition for global water resources may lead to more conflict, the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) has warned.
Agriculture accounts for around 70 per cent of overall water usage around the world and the UN food agency says it must be better managed to ensure more equitable access.
Experts from around the world will convene in Stockholm, Sweden, from Sunday for the 2016 World Water Week.
Climate change is a major cause of displacement in Latin America, including in Mexico, a UN independent expert has said during a recent visit to Mexico City.
People in the Central American country are leaving certain areas affected by extreme changes in the weather according to Chaloka Beyani, Special Rapporteur of the United Nations Human Rights of Internally Displaced Persons.
Recent comments by a prominent politician in Burundi stating that the 1994 Rwanda genocide was a “fabrication of the international community” have been branded by a UN human rights expert as “simply unacceptable.”
UN Special Adviser on the Prevention of Genocide Adama Dieng said the statement, published on the website of the ruling political party, known as CNDD-FDD, was inflammatory and could be seen as an incitement to violence.
The conclusion of peace negotiations in Colombia has been welcomed by the United Nations.
The Government and the main rebel group, FARC, signed a peace agreement in Cuba on Wednesday.
Colombians will vote on whether to accept or reject the deal in a referendum set for October.
More than 200,000 people died and nearly seven million were uprooted during a half-century of fighting in the South American country.
Humanitarian convoys are “ready to depart” for the city of Aleppo in war-torn Syria to deliver aid after Russia agreed to a 48-hour humanitarian pause, UN officials announced on Thursday.
However, other parties on the ground have yet to give their security assurances. The city is divided with rebel forces controlling the east and government forces the west. Since 2012, the two parties have fighting for control of what was once Syria’s economic capital.
Italian authorities are doing “excellent” work carrying out search and rescue operations as well as responding to people’s needs after strong earthquakes struck the country, a UN official has noted.
A magnitude-6.2 earthquake and a series of aftershocks devastated the regions of Umbria, Lazio and Le Marche, killing around 250 people, media reports say.
On the same day in Myanmar, a 6.8 magnitude earthquake left three people dead, damaging ancient temples and cultural sites.
The issue of corruption in sport is “not something new” but it has become more visible over the past years because of the increasingly large amounts of money which are often involved.
That’s according to Ronan O'Laoire, a crime prevention and criminal justice officer at the United Nations’ Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC).
Ever-larger investments in sports events and athletes have led to an increase in illegal practices such as match fixing.
