200,000 children at risk of starvation in Mali, warn UN agencies

200,000 children at risk of starvation in Mali, warn UN agencies

This warning comes at a time when almost a quarter of Mali’s population is experiencing moderate or acute food insecurity, with over 2,500 individuals on the brink of famine in the crisis-affected Menaka region, including many vulnerable children. Senior humanitarian officials from UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and World Food Programme (WFP) visited the country this…

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Iran: Draft hijab law tantamount to ‘gender apartheid’ say rights experts

Iran: Draft hijab law tantamount to ‘gender apartheid’ say rights experts

“The draft law could be described as a form of gender apartheid, as authorities appear to be governing through systemic discrimination with the intention of suppressing women and girls into total submission,” the independent experts said. They stressed that the proposed parliamentary Bill to Support the Family by Promoting the Culture of Chastity and Hijab…

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Refusal to waive IP rights for COVID-19 vaccines violates human rights: Experts

Refusal to waive IP rights for COVID-19 vaccines violates human rights: Experts

The UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) adopted a decision under its “early warning and urgent action” procedures, stating that developed countries’ “persistent refusal” to waive COVID-19 vaccine IP rights – such as patents and trademarks – violated non-discrimination guarantees under international human rights law.  CERD is one of the UN’s human rights…

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Better data on corruption can reduce its impact, support sustainable development

Better data on corruption can reduce its impact, support sustainable development

Ghada Waly, Executive Director of the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), was speaking at the opening of the first global conference on the topic.  Corruption costs the world roughly $2.6 trillion annually, according to the UN Development Programme (UNDP) – money that could go towards fighting hunger, providing healthcare, and ensuring all children have access to quality education.  “Developing a…

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UN chief ‘firmly condemns’ Gabon coup, notes reports of election abuses

UN chief ‘firmly condemns’ Gabon coup, notes reports of election abuses

Spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric said that UN chief António Guterres was following the evolving situation in the capital Libreville “very closely”. While condemning military action as “a means to resolve the post electoral crisis”, the Secretary-General said he had noted the announcement by the Central African nation’s electoral body of a win for incumbent president Ali…

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