What's New

The global Formula E electric race series, a partner with the UN Environment Programme (UNEP),  has grown in popularity since it launched some seven years ago, attracting the attention of major car manufacturers, changing people’s perceptions of electric vehicles, and bringing the world one step closer to a sustainable transport future.

A senior official with the World Health Organization (WHO) has highlighted the need for a global treaty on pandemic preparedness and response, urging countries to “seize the moment” and support its development. 

People being plunged into poverty during the COVID-19 pandemic has led to an increase in the killing of people with albinism, the outgoing UN appointed independent expert said on Thursday.  

A sustainable and prosperous planet can only be achieved through working together and in solidarity, the UN Deputy Secretary-General said on Wednesday at the end of a major global food security meeting.

Amina Mohammed was speaking during her closing press conference at the Food Systems Pre-Summit in Rome, Italy. 

It has never been more urgent to recommit to the spirit and fundamental principles of the 1951 Refugee Convention, the UN refugee agency said on Wednesday as it marked the 70th anniversary of the key international treaty. 

“The Convention continues to protect the rights of refugees across the world,” said Filippo Grandi, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees. “Thanks to the Convention, millions of lives have been saved.” 

The UN health agency pointed out on Wednesday, World Hepatitis Day, that every 30 seconds a person dies from a hepatitis-related illness and called for all countries to work together to eliminate this preventable disease as a public health threat by 2030.  

COVID-19 infections rose eight per cent last week to more than 3.8 million, the UN health agency reported on Wednesday.  

Latest data from the World Health Organization (WHO) showed a “substantial” uptick in the Americas and the Western Pacific, which jumped 30 per cent and 25 per cent, respectively. 

Several overlapping crises have left many families in Lebanon struggling to survive, with more than half the population now living below the poverty line. Some say the massive economic crisis, the COVID-19 pandemic, the August 2020 Beirut explosions and instability have all combined to create conditions worse even than they were during the 1975-1990 civil war.

“We don’t even have enough money to cover the basics, and medicines are now out of our reach” - Hamad, father of five children.

A culture of “safety, friends and food” at school has been replaced by “anxiety, violence, and teenage pregnancy”, with remote learning out of reach for millions, the UN Children’s Fund, UNICEF, said on Tuesday.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, “more than 600 million children in countries not on academic break are still affected by school closures”, James Elder, UNICEF spokesperson at a press conference at UN Geneva.

While many countries are making progress in the fight against tobacco use, a new World Health Organization (WHO) report shows some are failing to address the problem of emerging nicotine and tobacco products.

Compared with 2007, more than four times as many people -- some 5.3 billion -- are now covered by at least one WHO-recommended tobacco control measure.

These six MPOWER measures are: