This is the News in Brief from the United Nations.

‘Moment for Nature’ examines interconnected environmental threats  

Countries are meeting at the UN in New York on Tuesday to examine the interconnected environmental threats that are affecting global efforts to achieve sustainable development. 

The ‘Moment for Nature’ debate was convened by the President of the UN General Assembly, Abdulla Shahid, who warned that less than eight years are left to halve global emissions, avoid catastrophic climate change, and limit global temperature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius. 

Mr. Shahid told participants that although things will only get worse as we continue to delay action, it is not too late to turn the situation around.

He said humanity possesses the know-how and resources to achieve sustainable transformations because technologies which were once inconceivable, such as renewables like wind and solar power, are now widely available. 

Voluntary repatriation of Congolese refugees from Angola resumes: UNHCR 

The voluntary repatriation of Congolese refugees from Angola has resumed following a two-year halt brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic, the UN refugee agency, UNHCR, reported on Tuesday. 

The first convoy of 88 Congolese refugees departed from the Lôvua settlement in northern Angola that morning and is expected to arrive in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) on Wednesday.  

Other convoys are scheduled in the coming weeks.  

Although conflict continues in eastern DRC, improvements in security in the west have re-opened the possibility for Congolese citizens to return to their homeland in dignity and safety. 

The voluntary repatriation is organized by UNHCR, together with the Governments of Angola and the DRC, in collaboration with the UN’s migration agency, IOM, and various partners.

UN releases $15 million to boost emergency food assistance in Central African Republic

The UN humanitarian affairs office, OCHA, has allocated $15 million to support a scale-up in food assistance in the Central African Republic (CAR), where more than two million people – roughly 36 per cent of the population – do not have enough to eat.

The contribution from the Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) comes at a time when a large part of the population lives in conflict-affected regions, where insecurity and displacement have reduced areas for cultivation and hampered access to markets.

The situation is further aggravated by the ongoing war in Ukraine, with the price of basic food items projected to increase by up to 70 per cent in August.

The funding will allow humanitarians to ramp up emergency assistance for 200,000 people in 10 areas where food insecurity is most severe.

UN agencies will expand food distributions and cash transfers, in addition to providing people with agricultural tools and seeds. Other measures are also planned, including increasing nutritional support to treat and prevent child malnutrition.

Dianne Penn, UN News