Conflicts, climate emergencies and collapsing economies are wreaking havoc in communities around the world. Nearly 181 million people in 72 countries are targeted to receive humanitarian aid and protection next year; 128 million people received life-saving assistance in 2023, but a growing funding gap meant that support was cut back and millions of people were not reached; response plans for 2024 are ultraprioritized on the most urgent needs, and budgets […]

Climate-induced catastrophic events have led to severe humanitarian crises in Africa. Between 2000 and 2022, a total of 407.5 million people in Africa were affected by natural disasters. During this time, 4.2 million people became homeless, 53,610 people died and 52,205 were injured. This is according to the Economic Report on Africa 2023 (ERA2023) which will be launched on December 18, 2023, in Abuja, Nigeria. Titled: “Building Africa’s Resilience to Global Economic Shocks”, […]

The Special Representative of the United Nations Secretary-General for West Africa and the Sahel (UNOWAS), Leonardo Santos Simão, concluded yesterday a one-week working visit to Nigeria's capital, Abuja. During his visit,  Simão had a series of meetings with Nigerian authorities and regional partners. He also participated in the 91st ordinary session of the ECOWAS Council of Ministers on 7 December and in the 64th Ordinary Session of the ECOWAS Authority of Heads of […]

Climate change is a major stress factor for the world’s water resources, heightening risks of conflict in shared basins, threatening health and undermining sustainable development.   During high-level discussions held at COP28 on the thematic days on Peace, Security, and Health and on Agriculture, Food and Water, UNECE and its partners stressed the critical need for joint water management across borders at the centre of climate change mitigation and adaptation. Key […]

The African Development Bank Group’s (www.AfDB.org/en) initiatives towards building a climate-resilient Africa drew significant support at the 2023 UN Climate Change Conference (COP28), garnering donor commitments and global partnerships. The Bank has launched several flagship initiatives to help African countries implement the Paris Agreement on Climate Change and achieve the Sustainable Development Goals. The programmes will also ensure that the continent's growth builds prosperity along a decarbonized, climate-friendly, environmentally sustainable, […]

On December 11, 2023, commencing at 11:05 a.m. for approximately 20 minutes, Ms. KAMIKAWA Yoko, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Japan, received a courtesy call from Ambassadors of 8 nations to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) who are visiting Japan. The overview of the courtesy call is as follows. At the outset, Minister Kamikawa welcomed Ambassadors of the United States, Poland, the Czech Republic, Romania, the United Kingdom, the […]

Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) is concerned about the intensification of violence in central and northern Mali. Rivalry between various parties of the conflict is restricting people’s access to healthcare.  During the week of 27 November 2023, we had to evacuate our teams from Nampala to the town of Niono, in the Ségou region, as we were no longer able to ensure their safety.  The Malian army, with support from its Russian […]

In 2024, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) is seeking a total of $1.8 million within the Humanitarian Response Plans to assist 43 million people to produce their own food, as acute hunger continues to escalate worldwide. The announcement by FAO was made as part of the United Nations’ large-scale humanitarian appeal, which was launched today on behalf of more than 1,900 humanitarian partners and covers […]

West Africa is home to a diverse landscape of energy players, from mature petroleum producers to emerging gas frontiers. For established markets, the energy transition requires decarbonizing and optimizing existing operations, while bringing renewable energy and carbon capture technologies to the forefront. Meanwhile, frontier markets are seeking to build sustainable energy mixes from the ground up, relying on integrated gas developments to fuel their transition. As a result, an array […]