This is the News in Brief from the United Nations. 

Step up support for climate adaptation in developing countries: UN deputy chief 

The window of opportunity to avert the worst impacts of the climate crisis is closing, UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed warned environment ministers and others meeting in the Democratic Republic of the Congo on Monday. 

The capital city, Kinshasa, is hosting key talks ahead of the COP27 UN climate change conference in Egypt next month. 

Ms. Mohammed stressed that greater support for climate adaptation in developing countries “must be a global priority”, particularly progress on adaptation finance. 

She recalled that at last year’s COP26 conference in Glasgow, developed nations had promised to double adaptation support to $40 billion dollars a year by 2025.   

The UN deputy chief called for a clear roadmap on how the funding will be delivered, starting this year. 

She added that $40 billion is only a fraction of the $300 billion that developing countries will need annually for adaptation by the end of the decade. 

Africa: Economic slowdown to push millions more into extreme poverty  

Staying in Africa: 

The economic slowdown on the continent will push an additional 58 million Africans into extreme poverty this year, adding to the 55 million already there due to the COVID-19 pandemic. 

The stark assessment is among the findings in the latest report by UN trade and development body, UNCTAD, published on Monday. 

Following a 5.1 per cent rebound in 2021, Africa’s economic activity is expected to expand by a moderate 2.7 per cent this year, and 2.4 per cent in 2023, according to the report. 

Meanwhile, almost 60 per cent of Africa’s low-income countries are already in debt distress, or at high risk of it, as both private and public debt reach record levels. 

This comes as 60 per cent of African countries overall require food assistance as hunger spreads. 

Some African economies have benefited from the return of tourism, while fuel exporters have enjoyed rising energy prices, boosting revenue, the report said. However, the economic situation remains difficult in most places.  

Halt deforestation to fight climate change: FAO 

Countries must do more to halt deforestation, plant trees to make the planet “greener”, and use forests and trees sustainably, the head of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) said on Monday. 

FAO chief Dongyu Qu was speaking in Rome at the opening of the latest session of the UN agency’s Committee on Forestry. 

Mr. Qu told participants that deforestation and land degradation, together with biodiversity loss, are devastating the world’s ecosystems. 

He said halting deforestation “is key to tackling the climate crisis by both cutting greenhouse gas emissions by 14 percent and safeguarding more than half the Earth’s terrestrial biodiversity.” 

Meanwhile, planting more trees helps to restore degraded land, while using forests and trees sustainably contributes to carbon neutrality and improved food security. 

Dianne Penn, UN News.