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UN releases latest edition of its annual Yearbook

Photo: UN/M. Garten
UN/M. Garten
Photo: UN/M. Garten

UN releases latest edition of its annual Yearbook

The United Nations today released the latest version of its annual Yearbook, showcasing the world body’s activities in 2008.

The 1,757-page publication promotes “an informed understanding of the work and purposes of the United Nations among the peoples of the world [and] contributes to building support for peace, development, human rights and the rule of law for all,” according to a foreword by Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.

The volume, which indexes all votes by all major UN bodies, including the Security Council, is divided into 33 chapters and covers the main global political, economic, social and legal developments during the year.

During 2008, the UN marked the 60th anniversary of its peacekeeping operations, and the publication highlights a wide range of conflicts where UN peacekeepers have operated, from the Democratic Republic of the Congo to Sudan.

The Yearbook also recounts how in 2008 the Human Rights Council took its first step in examining the human rights record of all Member States every four years, and how, in a year when the global financial crisis threatened to bring the world economy to the brink of recession, the General Assembly held a high-level event to help ensure that efforts to achieve the anti-poverty targets known as the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) remained on track.

Responses to challenges such as the food security crisis, climate change, natural disasters, piracy and terrorism are also recounted in the publication.