General News

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon is urging governments to consider setting up a new global arrangement that integrates environmental, social and economic dimensions of sustainable development.

He made the call while presenting a report prepared by his High-level Panel on Global Sustainability to an informal plenary of the General Assembly.

Mr. Ban stressed the need to mobilize public support for an approach that guarantees the well-being of humanity, while preserving the planet for future generations.

Charles Appel reports.

Duration: 2'40"

Thirty years ago the Manila Declaration on the peaceful settlement of international disputes was adopted by the UN. Still, with all the conflict in the world today, the Philippine Ambassador says it remains relevant.

While the declaration takes its name from the capital of the Philippines where it was signed in 1982, it actually maps out a plan for all countries to follow in the peaceful settlement of international disputes.

More than five million people die as a result of smoking tobacco each year, according to a report published by the World Health Organization (WHO).

WHO says that an additional 600,000 people are also estimated to die from the effects of second-hand smoke.

It says tobacco kills more than tuberculosis, HIV/AIDS and malaria combined.

The agency describes tobacco as “the only legal drug that kills many of its users when used exactly as intended by manufacturers.”

In Hargeisa, the capital city of Somaliland, women do not have an easy life.

Violence, sexual abuses and violations of rights are a daily routine in the lives of many of them.

UN-supported organizations in Somaliland are providing medical, psychological and legal assistance to women and girls - particularly refugees and the internally displaced - who were gang raped and later gave birth.

Julie Walker reports.

Duration 2’07”

Actress and Goodwill Ambassador Ashley Judd came to the UN to discuss her life and her book “All That Is Bitter and Sweet: A Memoir”. In it she opens up about emotional and sexual abuse she endured as a child and what led to her work as a humanitarian activist fighting human trafficking.

The event was hosted by the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC). Ms. Judd has long been involved in humanitarian work, but it was only a few years ago that she took up the cause of fighting human trafficking. Since then she has been raising awareness about the issue.

Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children in Armed Conflict Radhika Coomaraswamy on Wednesday welcomed the International Criminal Court's (ICC) first verdict - the conviction of Thomas Lubanga for child recruitment.

She told Donn Bobb of UN Radio that "today, impunity ends for Thomas Lubanga and those who use children in armed conflict”.

Duration: 4'16"

The UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) could play a significant role within the global governance structure according to Konstantin Huber, an Executive Director at the World Bank and a Member of its Board.

Mr. Huber was part of a World Bank delegation attending a special two-day high- level meeting of ECOSOC with the Bretton Woods institutions, the World Trade Organization and the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development

Five million people in Yemen are not able to produce or buy the food they need, according to preliminary results of a survey conducted in November and December last year.

The survey, carried out by the World Food Programme (WFP)  in cooperation with the Yemeni Central Statistical Organization (CSO) and the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) shows that five million people are unable to produce or buy the food they need.

While more than half of the world is made of water, inequities exist that limit access for millions of people around the world.

The 6th World Water Forum taking place in Marseille, France from March 12-17 is attempting to come up with solutions to combat that. The goal is to tackle the challenges the world is facing and to bring water high on all political agendas.