UN deputy chief underscores women's role in peace, security in Africa Achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) will not be possible without investing more in women. That's the view of UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed, who led a high-level group of women leaders to two African countries this month. Joining Ms Mohammed in Nigeria and [...]

Hepatitis is one of the world's biggest killers and although many countries have taken action to eradicate the threat it poses, others need to do more, the UN said on Thursday. Latest data indicates that well over one million people died from the liver disease in 2015, putting it on a par with TB, according [...]

North-east Nigeria's problems principally due to "development failures" North-east Nigeria's problems are principally due to long-term "development failures", compounded by a Boko Haram terrorist insurgency that's provoked a "crisis of global magnitude." That's the view of UN Development Programme (UNDP) Resident Representative for Nigeria, Edward Kallon, who is also UN Humanitarian Coordinator there. Nearly two [...]

Listen to a bulletin of news and features from the United Nations, with Matt Wells and Jocelyne Sambira. In today's programme: up to 50,000 civilians are being used in Raqqa as human shields by Daesh terrorists, with no way out of the city, says the UN; and the Food and Agriculture Organization tells us not [...]

DRC needs to do more to end violence against women, says UN deputy chief More needs to be done in the Democratic Republic of the Congo or DRC to end gender-based violence in the country, the UN deputy chief said as she wrapped up a visit there on Thursday. Amina Mohammed spoke to reporters at [...]

  UN Envoy calls for dialogue between Burundi government and opposition It is imperative that the Government of Burundi agree to an inclusive dialogue with the opposition. That's the message UN Special Envoy Michel Kafando told the Security Council on Wednesday, briefing ambassadors on his recent visit to the country and neighbouring Tanzania. Landlocked Burundi [...]

In 1959, Hollywood stars Gregory Peck and Doris Day were at the height of their careers. But thanks to the former First Lady of the United States, Eleanor Roosevelt, – a delegate to the first ever UN General Assembly session in 1946 – that was the year they took part in what was arguably the [...]

UN appeals for funding to assist vulnerable people in north-east Nigeria The UN Refugee Agency, UNHCR, has launched an appeal for funding to scale up its activities in north-east Nigeria. The agency says it will need an additional US$9.5 million because of an unexpected surge in the return of Nigerian refugees since the beginning of [...]

Three international rights experts have been appointed by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights to examine grave abuses in the Kasais region of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), it's been announced. The development follows the adoption of a resolution by the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva in June. At the time, [...]

Achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) will not be possible without investing more in women. That's the view of UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed, who led a high-level group of women leaders to two African countries this month. Joining Ms Mohammed in Nigeria and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) were the Executive Director [...]