What's New

With global transport at a crossroads, government leaders, industry experts, and civil society groups are meeting in Beijing, China, for a UN conference to chart the way forward to a more sustainable future for the sector, and greater climate action overall. 

The three-day UN Sustainable Transport Conference, which opened on Thursday, will examine how transportation can contribute to climate response, economic growth and sustainable development. 

Up to five million premature deaths a year could be prevented if the global population was more active, but many people live in areas with little or no access to spaces where they can safely walk, run, cycle or engage in other physical activities. 

Where opportunities do exist, older adults or people with disabilities may simply not have access to them.  

Deaths from tuberculosis – one of the top infectious killers in the world - have increased for the first time in a decade, as a direct result of the COVID-19 pandemic, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Thursday. 

New data from the UN health agency highlighted how years of global progress in tackling the preventable disease had been “reversed” since the pandemic overwhelmed health care systems in 2020, preventing vulnerable people from seeking help. 

The UN Special Coordinator for Lebanon Ms. Joanna Wronecka expressed her deep concern over the outbreaks of violence that took place in parts of Beirut today and resulted in several deaths and injuries. Condemning the use of armed violence outside of state authority, she underscored the need for restraint, for maintaining calm and stability and ensuring the protection of civilians.

Although COVID-19 deaths continue to decline, vaccine inequity persists, the head of the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Wednesday, again calling for greater support for developing countries.

Agency chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus reported that the death toll from the disease is now at its lowest level in almost a year. 

Many developed countries have announced plans to ensure that fossil-fuel powered cars will be taken off the roads in the coming decades, but Jean Todt, the UN Special Envoy for Road Safety, stresses that, in developing countries, much more immediate concerns, such as access to public transport and reducing accidents, need to be addressed as a priority.

The COP26 climate change conference must be “a turning point” if countries are to limit global temperature rise in line with the Paris Agreement, UN Secretary-General António Guterres said on Tuesday. 

Addressing members of the Coalition of Finance Ministers for Climate Action, he highlighted their critical role as the conference date fast approaches.  

Inclusion is fundamental to rebuild societies in the wake of war and achieve durable peace, UN Secretary-General told world leaders, ambassadors and prominent global citizens meeting in the Security Council on Tuesday. 

The UN chief addressed an open debate on diversity, statebuilding and the search for peace, organized by Kenya, which holds the rotating Council presidency this month. 

From electric cars and buses to zero-carbon producing energy sources, new and emerging technologies along with innovative policy changes, are critical for combating climate change. But to be effective, they must ensure that transport strategies benefit everyone, including the poorest, according to a new UN multi-agency report launched on Tuesday.

Discussing gender equality in Jordan can lead to difficult conversations, as Balqees Shahin, a volunteer for the UN Women gender equality campaign HeforShe, has discovered. Marking International Day of The Girl Child on Monday, Ms. Shahin told UN News that online games can help young people to address gender issues.