Noon briefing by Stéphane Dujarric, Spokesperson for the Secretary-General.
- Secretary General/Cabo Verde
- Afghanistan
- Iraq
- Middle East
- UN Peacekeeping 75th anniversary
- Niger
- South Sudan
- Horn of Africa
- Noon guest tomorrow
- Honour Roll
SECRETARY-GENERAL/CABO VERDE
The Secretary-General left Cabo Verde after a three-day visit at the invitation of the Prime Minister, José Ulisses Correia e Silva. This morning, he attended the opening of the Ocean Summit, which took place in Mindelo, on the island of São Vicente, during a stopover of the Ocean Race.
In his remarks, the Secretary-General noted that in the face of climate change and plastic pollution, humanity has its own race to win - the race to protect our ocean for the future. He pointed out that the ocean supports the air we breathe, the food we consume, the cultures and identities that define us, the jobs and prosperity that sustain us. The ocean is life, he stressed. The Secretary-General emphasized that ending the ocean emergency is a race we must win, and by working as one, it’s a race we can win, he said.
He called on all to rescue the Sustainable Development Goals, including SDG 14, and become champions the ocean needs.
Before leaving Cabo Verde, the Secretary-General had a meeting with President José Maria Pereira Neves. On Saturday, his first day in Cabo Verde, he met with the Prime Minister.
In a press encounter, after his meeting with the Prime Minister, the Secretary-General noted that Cabo Verde is on the frontlines of the existential crisis generated by climate change, and over the past five years, has faced a severe drought. He said that he is deeply frustrated that global leaders are not giving this life-or-death emergency the action and investment it requires.
AFGHANISTAN
Following the visit last week by Deputy Secretary-General, Amina Mohammed, and delegation of senior UN and NGO leaders to Afghanistan, UN Humanitarian Chief, Martin Griffiths, is leading a delegation that also includes the President and Chief Executive Officer of Save the Children US, Janti Soeripto; the Secretary General of Care International, Sofía Sprechmann Sineiro; and the Deputy Executive Director of the Children’s Fund (UNICEF), Omar Abdi.
The visit comes one month since the de facto authorities banned Afghan women from working in national and international NGOs, putting some programmes on hold and sowing fears that the already dire humanitarian situation in Afghanistan will get even worse.
Some 28 million people in need in Afghanistan, a 350 per cent hike in just five years, that’s according to the latest Humanitarian Needs Overview for Afghanistan released just today.
Members of the delegation will be briefing you upon their return in New York next week.
IRAQ
Under-Secretary-General for Political and Peacebuilding Affairs, Rosemary DiCarlo, arrived in Baghdad yesterday on an official visit that will last through tomorrow. The visit will also take her to the Kurdistan Region of Iraq.
Yesterday she held talks with Iraqi President, Abdullatif Rashid; Prime Minister Mohammad Al-Sudani; and the Foreign Minister Fuad Mohammad Hussein, as well as Speaker of Parliament, Mohammed al-Halbousi. She pledged the UN’s continued support for Iraq’s reform efforts, commended its constructive regional engagement, and stressed the vital importance of further advancing the role of women and youth in building a prosperous and stable Iraq.
Today, Ms. DiCarlo has been meeting with representatives of Iraqi civil society, including women leaders and youth groups. She will then travel to Erbil.
Highlights: [ Ссылка ]
