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United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan today put forward a 3-year Action Plan to incorporate sport into countries’ development programmes as a way of reducing conflict, slashing poverty, promoting gender equality and reducing a host of other social ills. The General Assembly is set to consider the Plan later today.

A Jordanian who has championed intercultural dialogue and a Bulgarian who has contributed to a better understanding of today’s Arab thought and culture, will both be awarded the Sharjah Prize for Arab Culture this year, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) said today.

Humanitarian agencies and the United Nations are speedily trying to prepare tented camps for winter in the rugged mountains of northern Pakistan, where more than 2 million survivors are still living after the deadly 2005 earthquake that killed 80,000 and left 2.5 million homeless, the United Nations humanitarian affairs coordination office said today.

United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan today highlighted the need to deal with “entrenched inequality,” noting in particular the problems in Latin America where over 200 million people live in poverty, as he called for balanced development and fair distribution of gains from international trade.

Sudan’s Government should immediately investigate the recent militia attacks in the strife-torn West Darfur region that latest reports show killed around 50 civilians and affected up to 7,000 others, many of whom fled across the border to Chad, the United Nations human rights office said today.

The United Nations health agency and its partners will this month officially launch the first ever international taskforce to combat counterfeit medical products, a market that brings in tens of billions of dollars annually as it promotes drug resistant strains of disease, can worsen medical conditions and may kill its patients.

Declaring that he is “not afraid to name and shame the worst offenders – Spain, England and Italy,” the United Nations top narcotics fighter warned Europe today that it is heading for a cocaine crisis, with too many governments in denial, focussing on the supply end in South America instead of consumption in their own backyards.

United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan today urged participants at an international nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation seminar to find bold responses to recent setbacks in the field, including concerns over the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea’s (DPRK) nuclear test and Iran’s nuclear programme.

Secretary-General Kofi Annan has waived the immunity of a United Nations procurement officer who has been the subject of an internal fact-finding investigation into allegations of misconduct conducted by the Organization’s Office of Internal Oversight Services (OIOS).

With over 2 million people facing the effects of drought in Afghanistan, the United Nations has teamed up with the Government to run a two-day workshop to tackle water scarcity, a vital factor in a country where agriculture accounts for 52 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP) and employs 66 per cent of the work force.