Every year, trillions of dollars - equivalent to more than five percent of global GDP - are paid in bribes or stolen through corruption, the United Nations reported on the International Day which serves to highlight the pervasive crime, marked this Sunday.
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights reaches its 70th anniversary on Monday, a chance to highlight the many important breakthroughs brought about by the landmark UN document, and to remind the world that the human rights of millions are still being violated on a daily basis.
The current rise in hate speech, racial tensions and identity-based violence is alarming, the UN Special Adviser on preventing genocide said on Friday, highlighting his concern that ‘complacency is still strong’, when it comes to stopping the mass-killing or extinction of national, ethnic, racial or religious groups.
Paving the way to the key UN migration conference in Marrakech, Morocco, which it is hoped will agree new measures to make life safer and more dignified for people on the move, UN agencies held a series of side events to highlight the different aspects of migration, paying special attention to the most vulnerable, and the challenges they face on their often perilous journeys.
As hundreds of decision-makers are gathering in Marrakech to agree new standards for global migration, the United Nations climate change conference ‘COP24’ is looking at concrete ways to help countries tackle large-scale displacement caused by the impacts of climate change, including water scarcity, flooding, storms and rising sea levels.
For the first time, more than half of the world’s population of nearly 8 billion will be using the internet by the end of 2018, the United Nations telecommunications agency announced on Friday.
Marking International Civil Aviation Day, the United Nations aviation agency, ICAO, is showcasing the socio-economic benefits and “tremendous” opportunities presented by the global journey towards sustainable development.
The mission of the UN’s Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF), which enables humanitarian responders to deliver life-saving assistance whenever and wherever crises strike, is more critical than ever, said Secretary-General António Guterres on Friday, as a key pledging conference got underway at UN Headquarters in New York.
Noting some progress in greening the global construction industry, the United Nations environment agency (UNEP) co-released a report on Friday at the COP24 climate conference in Katowice, Poland, sounding the alarm on the need for “dramatic action” to reduce the sector’s greenhouse gas emissions.
Costa Rica’s is taking the lead in promoting the socially-conscious production of pineapples whilst protecting the environment, thanks to a project supported by the UN Development Programme (UNDP).
