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Tag: UN

  • UN to African leaders: make malaria, others centre of health policy

    UN to African leaders: make malaria, others centre of health policy

    About 1,000 days to the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) deadline, the United Nations (UN) Secretary General, Ban Ki-Moon has urged African leaders to place AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria at the centre of public health policy.

    Ban Ki-Moon, who was represented at the Abuja+12 African Union special summit on AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria (ATM) by Prof. Babatunde Osotimehin, the UN Under-Secretary-General and Executive Director of United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), said the goals were in sight but what was required was effort and strong leadership.

    He said: “Less than 1,000 days remain until the MDGs deadline. The goals are in sight but much still needs to be done. Let us heed the warning of history: failure to maintain a momentum can halt and can even reverse progress. My call at Abuja+12 is for renewed leadership and increased domestic and international funding – new investment in improved tests and drugs, stronger health services to deliver them.

    “This summit can provide a tipping point in Africa’s progression health. Let us place AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria at the centre of public health policy, including in humanitarian aid, peace-building, conflict resolution and development. Let us finish the job begun at the beginning of the century so we bring greater security, opportunity and prosperity to all the people of Africa.

     

     

     

     

  • HOS seeks civil service jobs for disabled persons

    he Head of Civil Service of the Federation (HOS), Alhaji Bukar Goni Aji, has directed the Federal Civil Service Commission (FCSC), to allocate certain percentage of jobs annually  for Persons With Disabilities  during recruitment across the country.

    Goni Aji gave the directive in Abuja when the Minister of Women Affairs and Social Development, Hajiya Zainab Maina led an advocacy visit to his office.

    He said he has already written a letter to the Head of the Civil service Commission so that the two of them can meet and work out modalities for its full take off.

    Aji assured that from next month PWD’s will have easy  access to building places, adding that there will be designated parking spaces and ramp while able person’s will be dislodged from such parking places.

    “I feel bad each time person’s with disability write me about their plight and attach their photographs, I know they cannot compete with us when it comes to strength, but we cannot beat them when it comes to brain work,” he said.

    Earlier, the Minister said their visit was to promote better understanding of the plight of PWD’s through the removal of all barriers against them.

    She stressed that making public buildings accessible is a right that must be accorded PWD’s in Nigeria.

    She said further that “Nigeria fully participated in the UN declaration for a decade of action for PWD’s in 1983-1992 and should adhere to that.’

    The Minister noted that when barriers to inclusion of PWD’s are removed the society will benefit hugely from their contributions.

  • ‘One child, one teacher….can change the world’ – Malala Yousafzai at UN

    ‘One child, one teacher….can change the world’ – Malala Yousafzai at UN

    Malala Yousazai, 16-year old Pakistani teen activist who was shot on the head on October 9, 2012, by Taliban gave an inspiring speech few days ago to the UN General Assembly. Her speech harps on forgiveness, girl child education, rights among others.

    Below is the full text of her speech

     

    Honourable UN Secretary General Mr Ban  Ki-moon, respected president of the General Assembly  Vuk Jeremic,  honourable UN envoy for global education  Mr. Gordon Brown, respected elders and my dear brothers and sisters: Assalamu alaikum.

    Today is it an honour for me to be speaking again after a long time. Being here with such honourable people is a great moment in my life and it is an honour for me that today I am wearing a shawl of the late Benazir Bhutto. I don’t know where to begin my speech. I don’t know what people would be expecting me to say, but first of all thank you to God for whom we all are equal and thank you to every person who has prayed for my fast recovery and new life. I cannot believe how much love people have shown me. I have received thousands of good-wish cards and gifts from all over the world.

    Thank you to all of them. Thank you to the children whose innocent words encouraged me. Thank you to my elders whose prayers strengthened me. I would like to thank my nurses, doctors and the staff of the hospitals in Pakistan and the UK and the UAE government who have helped me to get better and recover my strength.

    I fully support UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon in his Global Education First Initiative and the work of UN Special Envoy for Global Education Gordon Brown and the respectful president of the UN General Assembly Vuk Jeremic. I thank them for the leadership they continue to give. They continue to inspire all of us to action. Dear brothers and sisters, do remember one thing: Malala Day is not my day. Today is the day of every woman, every boy and every girl who have raised their voice for their rights.

    There are hundreds of human rights activists and social workers who are not only speaking for their rights, but who are struggling to achieve their goal of peace, education and equality. Thousands of people have been killed by the terrorists and millions have been injured. I am just one of them. So here I stand, one girl among many. I speak not for myself, but so those without a voice can be heard.

    Those who have fought for their rights. Their right to live in peace. Their right to be treated with dignity. Their right to equality of opportunity. Their right to be educated.

    Dear friends, on 9 October 2012, the Taliban shot me on the left side of my forehead. They shot my friends, too. They thought that the bullets would silence us, but they failed. And out of that silence came thousands of voices. The terrorists thought they would change my aims and stop my ambitions. But nothing changed in my life except this: weakness, fear and hopelessness died. Strength, power and courage was born. I am the same Malala. My ambitions are the same. My hopes are the same. And my dreams are the same. Dear sisters and brothers, I am not against anyone. Neither am I here to speak in terms of personal revenge against the Taliban or any other terrorist group. I am here to speak for the right of education for every child. I want education for the sons and daughters of the Taliban and all the terrorists and extremists. I do not even hate the Talib who shot me.

    Even if there was a gun in my hand and he was standing in front of me, I would not shoot him. This is the compassion I have learned from Mohamed, the prophet of mercy, Jesus Christ and Lord Buddha. This the legacy of change I have inherited from Martin Luther King, Nelson Mandela and Mohammed Ali Jinnah.

    This is the philosophy of nonviolence that I have learned from Gandhi, Bacha Khan and Mother Teresa. And this is the forgiveness that I have learned from my father and from my mother. This is what my soul is telling me: be peaceful and love everyone.

    Dear sisters and brothers, we realise the importance of light when we see darkness. We realise the importance of our voice when we are silenced. In the same way, when we were in Swat, the north of Pakistan, we realised the importance of pens and books when we saw the guns. The wise saying, “The pen is mightier than the sword.” It is true.

    The extremists are afraid of books and pens. The power of education frightens them. They are afraid of women. The power of the voice of women frightens them. This is why they killed 14 innocent students in the recent attack in Quetta. And that is why they kill female teachers. That is why they are blasting schools every day because they were and they are afraid of change and equality that we will bring to our society. And I remember that there was a boy in our school who was asked by a journalist: “Why are the Taliban against education?”He answered very simply by pointing to his book, he said: “A Talib doesn’t know what is written inside this book.”

    They think that God is a tiny, little conservative being who would point guns at people’s heads just for going to school. These terrorists are misusing the name of Islam for their own personal benefit. Pakistan is a peace-loving, democratic country. Pashtuns want education for their daughters and sons. Islam is a religion of peace, humanity and brotherhood. It is the duty and responsibility to get education for each child, that is what it says. Peace is a necessity for education. In many parts of the world, especially Pakistan and Afghanistan, terrorism, war and conflicts stop children from going to schools. We are really tired of these wars. Women and children are suffering in many ways in many parts of the world.

    In India, innocent and poor children are victims of child labour. Many schools have been destroyed in Nigeria. People in Afghanistan have been affected by extremism. Young girls have to do domestic child labour and are forced to get married at an early age. Poverty, ignorance, injustice, racism and the deprivation of basic rights are the main problems, faced by both men and women.

    Today, I am focusing on women’s rights and girls’ education because they are suffering the most. There was a time when women activists asked men to stand up for their rights. But this time we will do it by ourselves. I am not telling men to step away from speaking for women’s rights, but I am focusing on women to be independent and fight for themselves. So dear sisters and brothers, now it’s time to speak up. So today, we call upon the world leaders to change their strategic policies in favour of peace and prosperity. We call upon the world leaders that all of these deals must protect women and children’s rights. A deal that goes against the rights of women is unacceptable.

    We call upon all governments to ensure free, compulsory education all over the world for every child. We call upon all the governments to fight against terrorism and violence. To protect children from brutality and harm. We call upon the developed nations to support the expansion of education opportunities for girls in the developing world. We call upon all communities to be tolerant, to reject prejudice based on caste, creed, sect, colour, religion or agenda to ensure freedom and equality for women so they can flourish. We cannot all succeed when half of us are held back. We call upon our sisters around the world to be brave, to embrace the strength within themselves and realise their full potential.

    Dear brothers and sisters, we want schools and education for every child’s bright future. We will continue our journey to our destination of peace and education. No one can stop us. We will speak up for our rights and we will bring change to our voice. We believe in the power and the strength of our words. Our words can change the whole world because we are all together, united for the cause of education. And if we want to achieve our goal, then let us empower ourselves with the weapon of knowledge and let us shield ourselves with unity and togetherness.

    Dear brothers and sisters, we must not forget that millions of people are suffering from poverty and injustice and ignorance. We must not forget that millions of children are out of their schools. We must not forget that our sisters and brothers are waiting for a bright, peaceful future.

    So let us wage a glorious struggle against illiteracy, poverty and terrorism, let us pick up our books and our pens, they are the most powerful weapons. One child, one teacher, one book and one pen can change the world. Education is the only solution. Education first.

    Thank you.

  • Nigeria ready to defend Edo executions – Minister

    Nigeria ready to defend Edo executions – Minister

    The Federal Government is ready to defend the recent execution of four convicts in Edo State, which ended a seven-year moratorium on death penalty in the country, an official has said.

    The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Olugbenga Ashiru, gave the indication in Abuja on Friday at a Consultative Forum on the forthcoming review of human rights in Nigeria under the United Nations Universal Period Review (UPR).

    Ashiru acknowledged that executions in Edo would likely come up when the country appears before the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva this October for a periodic review of its human rights.

    The News Agency of Nigeria recalls that the June 24 executions in Edo State had been criticised by the United Kingdom Government, UN and the European Union High Representative, Catherine Ashton.

    According to the top EU diplomat, the execution negates recent commitment repeatedly made by Nigerian officials, most recently in May, to maintain the de facto moratorium on executions.

    Ashiru told reporters that the executions would not act as an impediment to “’tremendous improvements” by government on human rights issues in the country.

    He reminded countries accusing Nigeria of human rights violations to remember that the criminal code was inherited from the ‘colonial powers.

    He noted that in Nigeria, state governments are autonomous and for the executions in Edo, Governor Adams Oshiomhole acted within the confines of the law.

     

  • World Refugee Day: Displaced Syrians live on a knife edge

    World Refugee Day: Displaced Syrians live on a knife edge

    To mark World Refugee Day, Antoinette Powell, Communications officer for Christian Aid, reports back from her recent trip visiting Syrian refugees in Iraq

    Standing by her makeshift tent in the unofficial camp of Baynjan , northern Iraq, Nasrin showed me treasured photos of her life in Syria; her family immaculately dressed in beautiful clothes relaxing inside their home. They never expected to be refugees, until their house in Aleppo was bombed. When I met them they had barely eaten in days. She told me, ‘I would rather go back and die there. If they bombed me, I would die immediately. Here it is a slow death.’

    Baynjan, an unofficial camp in northern Iraq, is home to more than 700 Syrian refugees. There are more than 158,000 Syrian refugees scattered across Iraq but as the spotlight remains on those in Jordan and Lebanon, their fate is often overlooked. Areas such as Baynjan in Sulaimaniya province, once inhabited by Kurds escaping Saddam’s chemical attacks, are now crammed full of makeshift tents and houses hastily constructed from breeze blocks.

    Antonio Guterres, the UN high commissioner for refugees has said that the conflict in Syria is “more brutal and destructive than the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, and has turned into the worst humanitarian disaster since the end of the Cold War”.

    The UN state the number of refugees pouring across the Iraq border has doubled since the start of the year. More than 800 Syrian refugees arrive in northern Iraq every day with fresh tales of destruction. The UN provides shelter, water, education and medical services in the only official camp of Domiz, but now that is so overcrowded new refugees have to make do with anywhere they can find.

    Christian Aid is one of the few international aid organisations working in Iraq through local organisation REACH to support these forgotten refugees, who cannot find space in the official UN camp. REACH is providing support to 1,500 refugee families around Sulaimaniya and the nearby city of Erbil in the form of food, jerry cans so that the refugees can collect water and hygiene kits containing first aid equipment, water purifiers, sanitary products and other essential items.

    Nasrin arrived in Baynjan with her husband, 12-year-old triplets and younger son just three days before I met them, having spent days sheltering in the hallway of their home from falling bombs. Nasrin and her family will receive help from UNHCR, but the large numbers of refugees’ means registration for this support can be very slow. Some families have waited more than a week for this vital process – too long when they have arrived with little or nothing.

    In Baynjan there are no toilet or water facilities for the newly arrived refugees. The situation is so dire that men, who are registered with the UN and can legally seek day work, knock on people’s doors on their way home to beg for water. Nasrin and her family sometimes have to resort to asking to use the toilet facilities of an army post nearby.

    The lack of water is particularly worrying as temperatures and cases of dehydration rise and risk of disease could add to the hardships these refugees already face. With temperatures set to rise to more than 40 degrees in the next few months, people in winterised tents will have to endure horrendous temperatures.

    However, local communities have been a life line to the new arrivals, despite having not much themselves. When I was there, bundles of used clothes collected locally had just been delivered to the refugees, people eagerly took anything that might supplement the few clothes they have brought from Syria.

    Refugees who have been there for some time help the new arrivals. Farhad was able to find work as a tiler when he arrived from Syria 14 months ago. His employer kindly lent him money for bricks so he was able to build a small home of breeze blocks. Farhad works hard to make a home that his four children can feel safe in, even if it is only temporary.

    Farhad now helps new arrivals to find shelter and supplies to see them through until they can access official help. His wife, Khadija, gave birth to tiny Medyar just 10 days before we visited. It was a difficult and exhausting birth but she quickly resumed her role providing food and a place to wash for the new arrivals swelling the camp’s numbers.

    But for all their hard work and the support they give to each other, Farhad and Khadija and many other refugees like them continue to live on a knife edge. Desperate to return to Syria, they do not know when or if it will be safe to do so. Nor do they have a guarantee of how long international support for refugees will last. ‘The problem is we have no guarantees,’ says Farhad. ‘We have no money for immediate problems. Everything we do is based on debts. But you have to carry on with life. I think about the kids and how to make a better life for them. Until I draw my last breath, everything I do will be for them.’

    Christian Aid’s Syria and Middle East crisis appeal will help those most in need, working through partners such as REACH to provide food, medical assistance and other essential services.

    Culled from http://blogs.independent.co.uk

  • FG secures $500m to combat erosion

    •UN selects Nigeria to set up REDD+ University

    The Federal Government has secured a $500 million facility to address some of the erosion projects in the country, the Minister of Environment, HajiaHadizaMailafia, has disclosed.

    The minister also informed of plans by the United Nations (UN) to set up REDD+ University in the country.

    The decision, according to the minister, followed the nation’s ability to preserve its forest reserve.

    Mailafia spoke at the 2013 Mid Term Presidential Media briefing at the weekend in Abuja.

    She said: “The major challenge we have now is multinational. To this effect, the World Bank has come up with a $500 million facility that will be used over a period of three years to address the enormous challenge of erosion.

    “Over the years, the South Eastern part of this country has been constantly bedevilled with major erosion occurrences.

    “We have issues of erosion in Akwa Ibom for over three years; it’s still there so Mr. President has decided to address this beginning with the big one.

    “I want to congratulate and tell Nigerians that the United Nations has approved for a REDD+ university to be built in Nigeria because of our efforts in preserving Nigeria’s forest reserves.”

    She expressed fears that the Agricultural Transformation Agenda (ATA) of the Federal Government might be unsuccessful if issues of flooding and environmental degradation are not considered.

    She identified the Kizito Erosion Control project, Imo, Nekede as well as the erosion control project in Abeokuta, Ogun State as few of the completed projects, which are awaiting commissioning.

    On oil spillage, Mailafia said the Federal Government has supervised the clean-up of over four hundred and ninety-seven oil spill sites in the country.

    She said the ministry also remediated 430 lead poisoned homes and four hectares of lead poisoned industrial sites in Bagega village in Zamfara State.

    She blamed the large number of erosion sites in the nation on past administrations for not doing enough on erosion control.

    She said President Goodluck Jonathan has approved the upgrading of National Parks Service to paramilitary organisation with effect from January 2014.

    The Federal Government, the minister added, is set to privatise all the national parks in the nation.

    Mailifia said it was imperative for the Federal Government to tackle hazardous waste problems in the country especially those that involve the illegal importation and dumping of electrical and electronic waste (e-waste).

  • UN to grant Kogi technical support on flood

    THE United Nations (UN) has assured of technical expertise that will help manage future flood disaster in Kogi State. The United Nations Under Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, Ms. Valerie Amos, stated this while on a working visit to flood affected states in Nigeria. The UN Under Secretary General, who described last year’s flood that devastated nine local government areas in the state as unfortunate, said her visit is to seek ways of granting technical assistance to the state to help it rebuild lives and damaged infrastructures. Ms Amos described water as life, but said the 2012 flood was a threat, occasioned by the impact of climate change. The flood disaster, the UN envoy noted calls for better ways for the UN to improve early warning preparation and response to future flood disasters. The UN Secretary General assured of partnership with the federal and state governments to bring changes to the lives of the people whose livelihood were badly affected by the flood. The technical expertise to be provided by the UN, she disclosed will include building and managing displaced persons camp for future floods. Speaking earlier, Kogi State governor, Capt Idris Wada, who was represented by his Deputy, Yomi Awoniyi, described the flood as devastating. The governor disclosed that several intervention measures have been made to mitigate the effect of the flood on the lives of the people and in the rebuilding of infrastructures, and appealed for support from the UN.

  • Nigeria’s population to hit 440m by 2050, UN predicts

    UNITED NATIONS — The United Nations (UN) forecast Thursday that Nigeria’s population could rise to 440 million by 2050, 40 million more than the projection for the United States of America (USA).

    The 2005 census put the country’s population at 140 million.

    Nigeria is also projected to start rivalling China as the second most populous country in the world by the end of the century with 914 million citizens.

    According to the projections, the world’s population will increase from 7.2 billion today to 8.1 billion in 2025, with most growth in developing countries and more than half in Africa. By 2050, it will reach 9.6 billion.

    India’s population is expected to surpass China’s around 2028 when both countries will have populations of around 1.45 billion, according to the report on “World Population Prospects.” While India’s population is forecast to grow to around 1.6 billion and then slowly decline to 1.5 billion in 2100, China’s is expected to start decreasing after 2030, possibly falling to 1.1 billion in 2100, it said.

    The report found global fertility rates are falling rapidly, though not nearly fast enough to avoid a significant population jump over the next decades.

    In fact, the U.N. revised its population projection upward since its last report two years ago, mostly due to higher fertility projections in the countries with the most children per women. The previous projection had the global population reaching 9.3 billion people in 2050.

    John Wilmoth, director of the Population Division in the U.N.’s Department of Economic and Social Affairs, said the projected population increase will pose challenges but is not necessarily cause for alarm. Rather, he said, the worry is for countries on opposite sides of two extremes: Countries, mostly poor ones, whose populations are growing too quickly, and wealthier ones where the populations is aging and decreasing.

    “The world has had a great experience of dealing with rapid population growth,” Wilmoth said at a news conference. “World population doubled between 1960 and 2000, roughly. World food supply more than doubled over that time period.”

    “The problem is more one of extremes,” he added. “The main story is to avoid the extreme of either rapid growth due to high fertility or rapid population aging and potential decline due to very low fertility.”

    The report found that most countries with very high levels of fertility — more than 5 children per women — are on the U.N. list of least developed countries. Most are in Africa, but they also include Afghanistan and East Timor.

    But the average number of children per woman has swiftly declined in several large countries, including China, India, Indonesia, Iran, Brazil and South Africa, leading to a reduction in population growth rates in much of the developing world.

    In contrast, many European and eastern Asia countries have very low fertility levels.

    “As a result, these populations are aging rapidly and face challenges in providing care and support to their growing ranks of older persons,” Wilmoth said.

    Wilmoth cautioned that “there is a great deal of uncertainty about population trends.” He said projections could change based on the trajectories of three major components — fertility, mortality and migration.

    Still, population growth until 2050 is all but inevitable.

    The U.N. uses the “medium-variant” projection, which assumes a substantial reduction in the fertility levels of intermediate- and high-fertility countries in the coming years. In the “high-variant” — if women on average had an extra half of a child — the world population would reach 10.9 billion in 2050. In the “low-variant” — if women on average had half a child fewer — the population would be 8.3 billion in 2050.

  • Flood: UN to work with FG, Kogi on infrastructure

    Flood: UN to work with FG, Kogi on infrastructure

    The United Nations has pledged to partner with the Federal and Kogi State governments to provide resources for the replacement of infrastructure damaged during the 2012 flood disaster.

    The UN Under-Secretary General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordination, Baroness Valerie Amos, made the pledge on Friday in Lokoja during an assessment visits to flood impacted sites.

    She said that there was urgent need to replace damaged infrastructure so as to achieve full recovery.

    Amos said that flooding had become a worldwide phenomenon, blaming the development on climate change which she said was beyond the control of anybody.

    She said the UN would provide technical support for the state, saying that experts will be deployed in the areas of early warning signals, planning and preparedness for emergency situations.

    The UN official, who stated that she was visiting the state under a difficult circumstance, lamented the magnitude of losses suffered by the people during the disaster.

    She said that there was urgent need to evacuate people from flood plains in Lokoja and other parts of the state.

    She said that the UN will join hands with the state to establish camps where people can relocate to temporarily.

    Baroness Amos commended the Federal and Kogi State government for rising to the occasion when the flood struck in 2012.

    She said that government and disaster management agencies should learn from the experience so that the country can recover effectively after each incident.

    The News Agency of Nigeria reports that Baroness Amos also visited the newly constructed water plant in Lokoja.

    She commended the state government for protecting the facility and ensuring supply of water to the people without much difficulty.

    The Deputy Governor, Mr. Yomi Awoniyi , who received the visitor said over 400,000 hectares of farmlands, several lives and infrastructural facilities worth billions of naira were washed away.

     

  • 6,000 flee Boko Haram to Niger Republic, says UN

    6,000 flee Boko Haram to Niger Republic, says UN

    Anti-insurgent operations in Borno, Yobe and Adamawa States, have uprooted thousands in northeast Nigeria.

    No fewer than 6,000 people have fled to neighbouring Niger Republic for safety, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) said yesterday

    According to the UN agency, those fleeing said they were leaving for fear of being caught in the military crackdown on insurgents linked to the Boko Haram sect, particularly in the Baga area of Borno State, UNHCR spokesperson Adrian Edwards said in Geneva.

    “Refugees report that air strikes by government forces are continuing from time to time, and that planes are regularly flying over the states of Borno, Yobe and Adamawa where the state of emergency has been in force since May 14,” he stated.

    “People arriving in Niger also mention the increasing presence of roving armed bandits in several states in Nigeria. Rising commodity prices coupled with pre-existing food insecurity is also becoming a major concern for the populations of the affected States.”

    Niger Republic has so far received 6,240 people, comprising Nigerian nationals, returning Niger nationals and people of other nationalities, according to UNHCR. There have also been arrivals in Cameroon and Chad in the past weeks.

    “New arrivals are either renting houses or staying with host families, who are themselves living in very precarious conditions,” noted Mr. Edwards. UNHCR staff who have visited many border villages hosting new arrivals also met some Nigerian families living out in the open, under trees.

    The presence of the newcomers is also putting a strain on meagre local food and water resources, the agency said, noting that Niger, a country in the Sahel, itself struggles with food insecurity due to years of drought.

    “UNHCR plans to deliver some relief to the new arrivals as well as to the host community. We are also helping the local authorities to register new arrivals,” Mr. Edwards said.

    The UNHCR said the security situation in Nigeria remains “extremely difficult.” It added that information about the humanitarian situation and displaced people in the northeast is limited since it is not present in the areas that are under a state of emergency, due to the prevailing insecurity