Global Partnerships

Photo credit: PAHO/WHO/Fernando Revilla. Source: WHO

Experts Concerned About the State of Children

By Jaya Ramachadran

GENEVA (IDN) —A landmark report focuses on the health and future of children and adolescents worldwide who are under immediate threat from ecological degradation, climate change and exploitative marketing practices that push heavily processed fast food, sugary drinks, alcohol and tobacco at children.

The report by a Commission of over 40 child and adolescent health experts from around the world finds that "children stand on the precipice of a climate crisis" and "no single country is adequately protecting children's health, their environment and their futures".

: Jaya Ramachandran; SUSTAINABILITY; Poverty; 24 February 2020

Photo: Kazakh Ambassador Kairat Umarov, Chair of the LLDCs Group, speaking at at the Ambassadorial level First 2020 Meeting of the Group of Landlocked Developing Countries on 22 Januray. Credit: Kazakhstan Permanent Mission to the UN in New York.

Kazakh Roadmap for LLDCs as 2020-2021 Chair

By Ambassador Kairat Umarov

Kazakhstan assumed the chairmanship of the Group of Landlocked Developing Countries (LLDCs) on 8 January for the period 2020-2021. The following are extensive excerpts from the statement of LLDC Chair Ambassador Kairat Umarov, Permanent Representative of Kazakhstan to the United Nations in New York, at the First 2020 Meeting of the LLDCs at the Ambassadorial level,

: UN Bureau; OPINION; 12 February 2020

Photo (left to right): Collage of pictures (from public domains) of U.S. Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs Alice Wells, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi visiting Sri Lanka in January 2020. Credit: IDN-INPS

World Powers Come to Woo Sri Lanka

By Kalinga Seneviratne

COLOMBO (IDN) – Two months after President Gotabaya Rajapaksa assumed office on November 18, 2019, the Indian ocean island republic of Sri Lanka has had the unique distinction of hosting top diplomats of three world powers – the United States, China and Russia. One of the president’s first significant announcements was that Sri Lanka would follow a staunchly non-aligned independent foreign policy.

January 14 was a busy day for President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, his brother Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa and Foreign Minister Dinesh Gunawardena when they had a series of meetings with three foreign dignitaries: the U.S. Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs Alice Wells, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi.

: Kalinga Seneviratne; THE WORLD; Asia-Pacific; 23 January 2020

Photo: The number of people living in extreme poverty has risen in several sub-Saharan African countries and in parts of Latin America and Western Asia. Credit: UN/Logan Abass

Broad-based Deterioration of World Economy Threatening Sustainable Development

By Devinder Kumar

NEW DELHI | BANGKOK (IDN) – Prolonged trade disputes and wide-ranging policy uncertainties have catapulted the world economy into a significant and broad-based deterioration in 2019. This threatens to hamper efforts to reduce poverty, create decent jobs, broaden access to affordable and clean energy, and achieve many other Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

According to the United Nations World Economic Situation and Prospects (WESP) 2020 report, gross product growth slipped to 2.3 per cent in 2019—the lowest rate since the global financial crisis of 2008-2009.

: Devinder Kumar; UN INSIDER; 22 January 2020

Photo: Ola Henrikson, IOM’s Regional Director for the EU, has asked Croatia – which assumed the six-month rotating Presidency of the Council of the European Union (EU) – on 1 January 2020, to encourage any discussion on migration policy as a positive contribution of migrants for inclusive growth and sustainable development, including within the EU. Credit: European Union

New Research Pleads for Recognizing Contribution of African Migrants To Sustainable Development

By Reinhard Jacobsen

BRUSSELS (IDN) – A new set of European Commissioners has taken office in Brussels. The main migration focus of the previous cabinet of Commissioners was halting migration – which led to deals with third countries on stopping and returning refugees and migrants. People evacuated from Libya, for example, are brought to Niger and Rwanda, where they are processed before those successfully registered as refugees are taken to Europe – often after long processes filled with uncertainty.

: Reinhard Jacobsen; THE WORLD; EU & Europe; 18 January 2020

Photo: U.S. President Donald Trump withe Chinese Vice Premier Liu He. Source: The While House.

US-China Trade Deal – The Show Isn't Over Yet

Viewpoint by Manish Uprety F.R.A.S. and Dr. Yiyong Liang*

NEW DELHI | BEIJING (IDN) – Trade wars are fascinating where not only the outcomes but also the tactics and strategy matter. Sun Tzu said: “All men can see these tactics whereby I conquer, but what none can see is the strategy out of which victory is evolved.”

The world was waiting with a baited breath for easing out of tensions between the U.S. and China during the meeting of President Donald Trump with Vice Premier Liu He. The ongoing China-U.S. trade war resulted in profound consequences including contributing to conditions pushing the entire global economy to the edge of a possible recession in 2020. The accompanying contortions including contradictory reports and veiled criticisms alongside high rhetoric from both sides was not of much help either.

: Opinion Editor; OPINION; 17 January 2020

Photo: UN General Assembly President Tijjani Muhammad-Bande meets cadets participating in a military and peacekeeping training programme at Khawla bint Al Azwar Military Academy for Women in Abu Dhabi. Credit: UN

SDGs Lead UN General Assembly President’s 2020 Priorities

By Santo D. Banerjee

NEW YORK (IDN) – “International peace and security is key to achieving the SDGs, as no development can happen in the absence of peace”, said the President of the 74th session of the UN General Assembly, Tijjani Muhammad-Bande from Nigeria, setting out on January 13 his 2020 priorities, which aim to make the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) a reality by the start of the next decade. These encompass peace and security, quality education, zero hunger, climate action, poverty eradication, and inclusion, he emphasised.

: Santo D. Banerjee; UN INSIDER; 13 January 2020

An Ambitious Global Effort to Deliver The 2030 Promise

By J Nastranis

Note: We are a member of the SDG Media Compact. This article is based on UN SDG Media Compact Editorial – 2020 Special Edition.

NEW YORK (IDN) – With just ten years to go, an ambitious global effort is being kicked off to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030, which constitute the world’s blueprint for fair globalization by mobilizing all governments, civil society and businesses to help achieve the Global Goals.

: J Nastranis; UN INSIDER; 13 January 2020

Photo: A 6.4 magnitude earthquake struck Albania the morning of 26 November 2019, killing 51 people. Credit: UNDP

Rebuilding Albania After The 6.4 Magnitude Earthquake

By UN Development Programme

TIRANA (IDN-INPS) – A mother of three was found under the rubble hugging her three children. A 24-year-old student’s dream of becoming a dermatologist was cut short.

A family of eight was found under their collapsed four-storey concrete home. The youngest was two. There was only one survivor from that family — a 17- year-old boy, frozen with shock and unable to utter a word.

A 33-year-old had promised her husband, who passed away two years ago, that their daughter would follow his footsteps and become a painter; they both died.

: UN Bureau; THE WORLD; EU & Europe; 08 January 2020

Photo: People living along the Kenya-Uganda border are amongst the poorest in the region. Credit: WFP.

Kenya and Uganda Partner With the UN to Achieve SDGs

By Siddharth Chatterjee and Rosa Malango

UN Resident Coordinators in Kenya and Uganda, Siddharth Chatterjee and Rosa Malango respectively report in a blog how the two East African neighbours have kick-started a Decade of Action to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals by partnering with the UN to address challenges that transcend country borders. The UN Resident Coordinator (RC) is the highest-ranking representative of the UN development system at the country level. In this first of occasional series, UN News is inviting RCs to blog on issues important to the United Nations and the country where they serve. UN News carried this blog on 1 January 2020.