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News in Brief 15 August 2022

News in Brief 15 August 2022

One year since Taliban takeover women and children suffer

Marking one year since the Taliban’s took over Afghanistan, on Monday the UN warned about a situation that continues to deteriorate.

Over half of the country’s population now live below the poverty line, with nearly 23 million food insecure, according to Deputy Special Representative Ramiz Alakbarov.

And Afghan women and girls have seen “a significant rolling back of their economic, political, and social rights and a worrying escalation in restrictive gender policies and behaviours”.

Without the education, work and freedom of movement, they find themselves increasingly relegated to the margins, Mr. Alakbarov said.

Meanwhile, the head of UN Women, Sima Bahous, pointed out that the “deliberate slew of measures” against Afghan women and girls is also a terrible act of self-sabotage for a country facing huge challenges, including exposure to “global economic headwinds”. 

She urged the de facto authorities to open schools for all girls and allow women to employment and participate in politics.

UN chartered ship carrying wheat to Ethiopia readies to leave Ukraine 

The UN-chartered Brave Commander freighter ship is preparing to leave the Ukrainian port of Yuzhne, east of Odesa, carrying 23,000 metric tons of grain to Djibouti in East Africa.

From there, the grain will be transferred to Ethiopia under the World Food Program (WFP) initiative to unblock food shipments following Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Last month, Russia and Ukraine reached an agreement with the UN and Türkiye to restart Black Sea grain deliveries, which had triggered global food insecurity. 

Millions of people in Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia, South Sudan and Sudan, in particular, are facing dramatic food shortages, the UN warned.

About a dozen ships have left Ukraine since the July deal, but they had primarily transported corn for animal feed or biofuel, rather than wheat for human consumption.

Fifth attempt to pass UN Oceans Treaty begins in New York

Talks resume on Monday between UN Member States, aimed at finally completing a UN High Seas Treaty for ocean protection globally.

With two-thirds of the world's oceans outside of any country's territory, the largely unregulated waters face many threats, including overfishing and deep-sea mining. 

If agreed, 30 per cent of the world's oceans would be put into conservation areas by 2030. 

After ten years and four inconclusive sessions, at least 49 countries have committed to achieving a legal treaty and decided in March that a fifth and final session will be convened with the hope of signing the pact by the end of the year.

In addition to Covid-19, which had prevented countries from meeting, disagreements have continued over what should be included.

At a UN ocean conference in June, UN secretary-general, António Guterres, declared an “ocean emergency” and suggested the “egoism” of some governments was hampering efforts to agree on a high seas treaty.

Katilena Dartford, UN News 

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  • One year since Taliban takeover women and children suffer

  • UN chartered ship carrying wheat to Ethiopia leaves Ukraine 

  • Fifth attempt to pass UN Oceans Treaty begins in New York

Audio Credit
Katilena Dartford, UN News - Geneva
Audio Duration
2'47"
Photo Credit
UNAMA/Shamsuddin Hamedi