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As the world’s developing countries mark the 40th anniversary of the Group of 77 (G-77) – now grown to a coalition of 135 – United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan has called for fairer access to development, warning that the world has become a much more unequal place than it was four decades ago.

With SARS, bird flu and other diseases linked to animals threatening human epidemics, the United Nations health agency is hosting a three-day meeting of international experts at its Geneva headquarters next week to improve surveillance, avert the occurrence and minimize the impact of such illnesses.

The United Nations Department of Public Information (DPI) today shined the spotlight on the plight of child soldiers in Uganda, the crisis of children orphaned by AIDS in sub-Saharan Africa, and overfishing as a threat to marine biodiversity as it sought to raise awareness of some of the important international issues and developments that often do not get sufficient media attention.

United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan is "deeply disturbed" by images appearing in the media of Iraqi prisoners being mistreated and humiliated by United States prison guards, his spokesman said today.

The United Nations refugee agency today awarded its top prize to a Russian organization advocating on behalf of refugees and people uprooted from their homes seeking safe haven in the Russian Federation.

Kicking off his third visit to West Africa, the United Nations’ top refugee official, Ruud Lubbers, is in Sierra Leone today to review arrangements for completing the return of the remaining Sierra Leonean refugees in the region and preparing for the repatriation of Liberians to their country.

The United Nations human rights chief today called on authorities in Thailand to quickly investigate the killings of more than 112 people in the south of the country during confrontations between law enforcement officers and assailants.

The United Nations presence in Tajikistan is continuing to make an important contribution to that country’s post-conflict transition as it encourages the continuation of national dialogue and reconciliation and helps to bolster democratic institutions, the Secretary-General says as he seeks to extend the work of the UN Tajikistan Office of Peace-building (UNTOP) for another year, until 1 June 2005.

The United Nations Security Council today threatened unspecified actions against individuals whose activities might block the full implementation of the 2003 peace accord between the Government of Côte d’Ivoire and its opposition.

United Nations Deputy Secretary-General Louise Fréchette is set to make official visits next week to Switzerland and Italy, where she will attend the official launch in Rome of the Global Compact, an initiative of Secretary-General Kofi Annan to encourage business and labour to support universal principles on human rights, work norms and environmental protection.