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The United Nations Secretary-General, Kofi Annan, today voiced deep concern about the impact of the renewed hostilities on civilian populations in Aceh, Indonesia, particularly by the reports of extra-judicial killings and widespread burning of schools.

Reacting to a call by regional leaders for a peaceful end to the decades-long conflict in Colombia, United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan today welcomed their support for his continuing involvement in bringing about a negotiated settlement.

The United Nations General Assembly today cleared the way for the full $1 million amount of the world body’s 2001 Nobel Peace Prize award to benefit a memorial fund created to support education for children of UN staff members who lost their lives in the service of peace.

Stressing that the United Nations will continue to do its part in the ongoing global fight against crime, Secretary-General Kofi Annan today highlighted a range of UN initiatives in a message to a meeting in Seoul on anti-corruption measures.

Despite a sluggish economic growth rate in 2002, Africa has seen a number of positive developments in recent months, including the implementation of a new initiative that stresses peace and stability, good governance, democracy and respect for human rights, a senior United Nations official said today.

In the midst of the calm that has settled over the north-eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), the United Nations is pressing ahead with diplomatic and humanitarian efforts in and around the town of Bunia – trying to revive peace talks between rival ethnic factions and delivering basic services to desperate people forced from their homes by the fighting.

The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP), together with the Iraqi Ministry of Trade and the United States-run Office of Reconstruction and Humanitarian Assistance, is finalizing the reactivation of the public distribution system that provides services to 27 million Iraqis, the agency said today.

The United Nations-backed Special Court for Sierra Leone has netted three more suspected war criminals, including former rebel leader Brima “Bazzy” Kamara, who has been indicted for alleged atrocities committed during the country's decade-long civil war.

The head of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) said today he hoped the leaders of the eight most industrialized countries meeting next week in Evian, France, would be discussing not whether to address the anti-poverty goals of the 2000 Millennium Summit and development, but how they could resolve them.

United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan has called for renewed commitment to the plan for “South-South” cooperation, saying that the strategy remains highly relevant in addressing gross disparities in access to resources, income and other challenges facing developing countries.