Ukraine, South Sudan, Horn of Africa & other topics…

The United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) today said it is concerned about the safety and security of thousands of civilians who are caught up in recent clashes between rival armed groups in Upper Nile State.  

The UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) today said that children in the Horn of Africa and in the Sahel could die in devastating numbers unless urgent support is provided, as severe malnutrition and the risk of water-borne disease collide. 

In north-east Nigeria, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) today said that the number of severe acute malnutrition cases being admitted to treatment facilities has risen by over 30 per cent compared to the same period - January to July - last year.  

In Eswatini, the UN team there, led by Resident Coordinator George Wachira, continues to strengthen Eswatini’s responses to the impacts of multiple crises, including COVID-19, as well as Cyclone Eloise, civil unrest in June 2021, and most recently, the war in Ukraine.   

Today, the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) noted that this week marks five years since more than 700,000 Rohingya women, men and children fled Myanmar for Bangladesh, joining hundreds of thousands of other Rohingya who had sought and found refuge in the country in previous years. 

Today is the International Day for the Remembrance of the Slave Trade and Its Abolition. 

Honduras has now paid its regular budget dues.

The guest at the Noon Briefing was Yasmine Sherif, the Director of Education Cannot Wait, the UN’s global fund for education in emergencies and protracted crises.  She spoke with reporters about the launch of ECW’s new Annual Report, which highlights results achieved for crisis-affected girls and boys.