Arrival of South Sudan force allows peacekeepers to patrol “insecure roads”

The arrival of a UN regional force in South Sudan will enable the UN Mission in the country, UNMISS, to free up additional peacekeepers to mount “more patrols along insecure roads,” the head of the Mission, David Shearer, has said.  Mr Shearer, who is also the Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for South Sudan was speaking in the capital, Juba, following the weekend arrival of the first 120 soldiers of the Rwandan battalion of the Regional Protection Force. Dianne Penn reports.

Absolutely horrific” militia and government attacks in DRC’s Kasai region

The UN human rights office (OHCHR) has released a report of “absolutely horrific” accounts of killings and human rights violations against villagers in the Kasai region of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The report was based on interviews with nearly 100 refugees from the volatile region who have fled to neighbouring Angola. UN investigators were able to confirm that between March and June, 251 people were the victims of extrajudicial and targeted killings, often carried out on the basis of ethnicity. Matt Wells has more details.

UN agencies supporting Eritrea on sustainable development path

Helping Eritrea to confront challenges such as food insecurity and infant mortality is the goal of the latest five-year plan between the UN and the government.  The Horn of Africa country ranks at number 179 out of 188 nations on the UN Development Programme’s (UNDP) Human Development Index, which measures indicators such as life expectancy and education levels.  John Ging, Operations Director with the UN humanitarian affairs office, OCHA, travelled to Eritrea in July and visited various projects that are making a difference in citizen’s lives, such as a health clinic.  He told Dianne Penn how the UN has been supporting the country’s efforts to meet global development objectives.

Presenter: Dianne Penn

Duration: 10’00″