COVID-19

© UNICEF/Raphael Pouget

COVID-19: Wealthy nations urged to delay youth vaccines, donate to solidarity scheme

14 May 2021
Health

The head of the World Health Organization (WHO) on Friday appealed for wealthier countries to delay vaccinating younger people against COVID-19 and instead donate doses to the COVAX global vaccine solidarity initiative. 

© UNHCR/Vincent Tremeau

News in Brief 14 May 2021

14 May 2021
News in Brief
  • Rohingya refugees must not become ‘a forgotten crisis’ 
  • Preventing future animal-to-human pandemics 
  • Colombia: UN experts condemn peaceful protestor crackdown, urge impartial investigation  
Audio -
3'46"
UNICEF/Helene Sandbu Ryeng

News in Brief 13 May 2021

13 May 2021
News in Brief
  • South Sudan: UN humanitarian offical condemns killing of aid worker
  • UN labour agency ILO and partners tackle child labour in Iraq
  • Expert meeting to examine science and technology for COVID-19 response
Audio -
2'43"
UN News

UN Catch-Up Dateline Geneva – Back to Mogadishu: one Somali doctor’s good news story

12 May 2021
UN Catch-Up Dateline Geneva

In this week’s UN Catch-Up: would you return to your war-shattered country to help rebuild it? That’s exactly what one Somali doctor did - she tells us her inspiring story. We’ll have news on the serious escalation in Middle East and the Myanmar crisis – it’s passed the 100-day mark – a call for International Criminal Court proceedings for genocide against Iraq’s Yazidis, and former Liberia President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf’s appeal for bold WHO reforms, to prevent another devastating pandemic from happening again. With comment from regular guest Solange Behoteguy Cortes from UN Geneva.

Audio -
15'28"
© UNICEF/Ariette Bashizi

News in Brief 12 May 2021

12 May 2021
News in Brief
  • Independent COVID probe urges overhaul of pandemic prevention
  • UN call for Middle East calm to avoid 'full scale war'
  • Businesses should stand up against Myanmar junta, experts urge
Audio -
3'4"
© UNICEF/Preena Shrestha

Top COVID probe urges bold overhaul of pandemic prevention measures 

12 May 2021
Health

A prestigious World Health Organization (WHO) appointed panel on Wednesday urged bold action to end the COVID-19 crisis, while also calling for the UN agency to be given greater authority to respond more quickly to future threats. 

© UNICEF/Ruel Pableo

Islamic social financing initiative aims to help economic recovery, pandemic response

11 May 2021
SDGs

As the world continues to grapple with the health and economic crisis sparked by the COVID-19 pandemic, the UN and Islamic Development Bank teamed up on Tuesday to help the most vulnerable. 

UNDP

Vaccine inequity posing ‘significant risk’ to global economic recovery: UN report

11 May 2021
Economic Development

Although the outlook for global growth has improved, the ongoing impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as inadequate progress on vaccination in poorer countries, are putting recovery at risk, according to the latest UN economic forecast, published on Tuesday. 

WHO/Blink Media/Uma Bista

COVID’s grip keeps world in ‘perilous situation’

10 May 2021
Health

Amidst an “unacceptably high plateau” in COVID-19 cases and deaths globally, the UN health agency chief on Monday shone a light on last week’s death toll that totalled almost 90 thousand people and 5.4 million reported cases. 

© UNICEF/Amarjeet Singh

What can the UN do to support India through its deadly COVID-19 surge?

8 May 2021
Health

The UN is at the forefront of efforts to help India extricate itself from the almost unimaginable scale of suffering its citizens are undergoing, as a result of a devastating wave of COVID-19 infections. Earlier this week, UN News spoke to the country chiefs based in India, for the World Health Organization (WHO) and the UN Children’s Fund, to get their take on the crisis. Here are some key excerpts from the interviews.