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The senior United Nations official who will act as head of the upcoming Third International Conference of Financing for Development, to be held in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa, announced today that among the meeting's “concrete deliverables” would be a commitment to establish a new technology bank for the least developed countries by 2017.

One year after the escalation of hostilities in Gaza, the United Nations Humanitarian Coordinator for the occupied Palestinian territory, Robert Piper, today expressed concern over the ongoing humanitarian situation and the slow pace of reconstruction there.

The top United Nations human rights official today expressed deep concern about the human rights implications regarding the scope of a new law on national security adopted by China on 1 July.

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today strongly condemned attacks by Boko Haram in Lake Chad Basin countries, including the deliberate targeting of Christian and Muslim worshippers during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan in Nigeria's northeast states of Borno and Yobe.

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon announced today that “a further inquiry or investigation would be necessary to finally establish the facts” of the death of the second Secretary-General of the United Nations, Dag Hammarskjöld, in a plane crash in Northern Rhodesia, now Zambia, along with 15 others more than 50 years ago.

The capacity of the United Nations and its partners to meet humanitarian needs is under “unprecedented strain,” Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon warned today at a forum in Oslo, Norway, where he highlight the critical role civil society plays as part of the global effort to save lives, support livelihoods and protect people from violence.

The United Nations Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) galvanized the world to produce the most successful anti-poverty movement in history, helped lift more than one billion people out of extreme poverty, made inroads against hunger and enabled more girls to attend school than ever before. However, despite remarkable gains, it will take more to ensure the poorest and most vulnerable people are not left behind.

Many parts of Europe have been impacted by a severe and unusually early heatwave since 27 June, the United Nations World Meteorological Organization (WMO) has said, warning of record-breaking temperatures and wildfires in North America and torrential downpours and widespread flooding in southern China.

The number of out-of-school children and adolescents around the world has risen to worrying levels, dealing a potential blow to education targets aimed at achieving universal primary and secondary education, a new United Nations report has warned.

Use of oral vaccines is proving to be an effective tool to control outbreaks of cholera, the United Nations World Health Organization (WHO) said today, adding that the deadly water-borne disease is a major public health concern from Tanzania to South Sudan, and Nepal to Yemen.