One billion children—or half the world’s youngsters—are victims of violence, ranging from conflict and humanitarian crises to cyberbullying and recruitment by terrorist groups.

That’s according to UN expert Najat Maalla M’jid who advocates for governments, civil society and other stakeholders to put children at the heart of their policies.  May Yaacoub asked her about progress in the global effort to protect children.

La Guajira, Colombia’s northernmost region, is dry with desert landscapes. It’s prone to drought and food insecurity particularly in rural areas. In recent years, the economic crisis in neighboring Venezuela has pushed over a million migrants across the border, including 165,000 people into La Guajira. The influx  has put a strain on host communities, where food is limited and natural resources scarce, so the UN Food and Agriculture Organization decided to take action.

From FAO, Anais Hotin and Charlotta Lomas have this special report. 

UN human rights expert Agnès Callamard has been involved in some of the most talked-about stories of the past year..

Shortly after she called on the Maltese authorities to do more to find those responsible for the death of Maltese journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia, Conor Lennon from UN News asked her if she was surprised that the investigation into the death of Ms. Galizia has not made more progress.

As the first human rights issue to provoke wide international, slavery is perpetuated by traditional practices such as child and forced marriage, and by the fact that almost half the countries in the world have yet to criminalize it.

According to the latest UN figures, 40 million people were living in a state of modern slavery in 2016. One in four children are in forced labour, and about 98 per cent of women who are in forced labour have also been subjected to sexual exploitation.

Deeply rooted in fear, with victims often “not realizing” they’re enslaved, it becomes "invisible", and "clandestine”, leaving victims unprotected, said Urmila Bhoola, Special Rapporteur on Contemporary Forms of Slavery, who sat down with UN News's Ana Carmo to talk through its causes and consequences.