More than 280 schools have been damaged by the earthquake that hit Ecuador on 16 April, leaving up to 120,000 children temporarily without education, the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) has said.

Deeply concerned that the agreed upon date for holding elections in Haiti was not met over the weekend and that no alternate electoral calendar was announced, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today reiterated his strong support for the completion, “without delay,” of the 2015 polls.

The Government of Ecuador and the United Nations today launched an urgent $72.7 million appeal to respond to the 7.8 magnitude earthquake that struck coastal provinces of north-west of the country less than a week ago, aiming to kick-start life-saving assistance, protection services and early recovery support to assist approximately 350,000 people over the next three months.

United Nations Emergency Relief Coordinator Stephen O’Brien said that more than 21,000 people are in need of immediate shelter following the 7.8 magnitude earthquake that struck Ecuador on Saturday night, while the Government has stepped up recovery efforts in conjunction with several UN agencies.