Time wasted collecting water a "double whammy" for women and girls Time wasted collecting water is a "double whammy" for women and girls around the world. That's according to Sanjay Wijesekera, Chief of Water, Sanitation and Hygiene programmes at the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF). He said that apart from losing time that could be spent [...]

Very significant shock" of lower oil prices in Africa Eight oil-producing countries in Africa are facing a "very significant" economic shock following the collapse in oil prices over the past two years.  A barrel currently costs around US$50 on global markets, down from a high of US$125. The countries mostly badly hit are Angola, Cameroon, [...]

Listen to a bulletin of news and features from United Nations Radio, with Matthew Wells and Daniel Dickinson. In today's programme: A survivor of ISIL's sexual enslavement of Yazidi women and girls calls for faster international action, saying words aren't enough… And, human rights need to be a bigger priority when it comes to protecting [...]

Eight countries holding the world "hostage" over nuclear testing ban Eight countries which have so far failed to ratify a Comprehensive Nuclear Test-Ban Treaty are holding the international community "hostage". That's according to Lassina Zerbo, Executive Secretary of the Preparatory Commission for the Comprehensive Nuclear Test-Ban Treaty Organization (CTBTO). Speaking in a UN interview, he [...]

  18 million children out of school in ten countries Eighteen million primary-age children are not attending classes in the ten countries across the world with the highest out-of-school rates; that's according to the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF). Liberia in West Africa has the highest proportion of out-of-school children with nearly two-thirds not receiving an [...]

A "firm commitment" to "much needed" peace. That's the significance of the UN Security Council's visit to South Sudan which begins on Friday, according to the head of the UN mission in the country (UNMISS). Ellen Løj, was speaking against a backdrop of a renewed political and humanitarian crisis that has wracked the world's youngest [...]

An emergency aid operation is being implemented by the World Food Programme (WFP) in Uganda to assist refugees from South Sudan. Over 80,000 people fled to Uganda in July, to escape renewed conflict in Africa's newest nation. Fierce fighting between government and opposition forces in and around the capital city, Juba has led to widespread [...]

Everyone involved in efforts to conserve the environment must make the human rights of indigenous people a "priority." That's the message that a UN independent expert is taking to the World Conservation Congress which opens in Hawaii on Thursday. Communities around the world are increasingly losing access to lands they have inhabited for centuries. Victoria [...]

Somalia truck bomb attack condemned A deadly truck bombing on a hotel in Somalia's capital, Mogadishu, on Tuesday has been condemned by the senior UN official in the country. Michael Keating said the incident marked the third time the SYL Hotel has been attacked since early 2015. The extremist group Al-Shabaab claimed responsibility for the attack [...]

Listen to a bulletin of news and features from United Nations Radio, with Matthew Wells and Dianne Penn. In today's programme: a "children's emergency" is sending 1,000 refugees a day over the border from South Sudan into Uganda, amid "horrific stories" of sexual violence and forced recruitment; and, the Syrian military has been carrying out [...]