This is the News in Brief from the United Nations
UN working ‘intensively’ to stop Ebola in DR Congo, following second case in major border town
Senior UN officials tasked with controlling the Ebola outbreak in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) have responded to Tuesday’s confirmation of a second case of Ebola in Goma, a major trading town near the border with neighbouring Rwanda, which resulted in the death of the patient.
On Wednesday, David Gressley, the UN Ebola Emergency Response Coordinator, and Dr. Ibrahima Socé Fall, Assistant Director-General for Emergency Response at the World Health Organization (WHO), released a joint statement announcing that they are “working intensively” to halt any further spread.
Surveillance is being stepped up at all entry and exit points in the area, but more needs to be done to eradicate Ebola, the officials said, calling for a “strong, resilient health system” to avoid a resurgence of the disease in DRC.
The senior officials stated that there is no evidence that the second case in Goma is linked to the first confirmed case.
Speaking at a WHO press conference, Dr. Michael Ryan, the head of the agency’s Health Emergencies Programme, explained why it was important to investigate when the latest victim became infecte. d
Establishing when he became sick, also allows us to establish when he may have become exposed. If we triangulate that with his geographical location at that time, we have more information about where his potential exposures where. It will be based on the follow up investigations today that we will be able to get more precise on his potential exposures, but at this point we have no specific information regarding a specific exposure to a known Ebola case.
UN report shows continued economic slowdown for Latin America and Caribbean region
Economic growth in the Latin America and Caribbean region will continue to decline, largely due to increased uncertainty, weak investment, exports and consumption.
That’s the top-line outlook from the 2019 survey released by the UN Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean, or ECLAC, released on Wednesday.
The report says that economic growth will be only 0.5 per cent, down from 0.9 per cent in 2018. The slowdown will affect 21 of the 33 countries in Latin America and the Caribbean.
Recommendations for the affected countries include growth policies, tax evasion measures, and new taxes related to the digital economy, environment and public health.
UN chief welcomes Greta Thunberg’s decision to sail to Climate Summit
UN Secretary-General António Guterres tweeted on Wednesday that he is looking forward to meeting internationally renowned climate activist Greta Thunberg when she arrives in New York for the Climate Action Summit that will take place at UN Headquarters in September.
The UN chief wrote that Ms. Thunberg, and her generation, have “grasped the urgency of the climate crisis better than many others”, and that “it’s time we listen”.
The Summit will bring together governments, the private sector, civil society, local authorities and other international organizations to develop ambitious solutions to the climate crisis.
Thunberg announced on Monday that she will be sailing across the Atlantic on the sixty-foot racing boat Malizia II in mid-August, and will continue on to Chile for the COP25 Climate Conference in Santiago, which will take place in December.
