United Nations | DD News

September 12, 2024 6:11 PM

What is the UNGA and what will world leaders talk about?

Every September world leaders travel to New York to address the start of the annual United Nations General Assembly session. The six days of speeches to mark the beginning of the 79th session will start on Sept. 24. WHO SPEAKS WHEN? When the United Nations was formed in 1945 following World War Two, there were originally 51 members. That has since grown to 193 members. Leaders of two non-member observer states - known at the U.N. as the Holy See and the State of Palestine - and an observer me...

August 27, 2024 11:27 AM

UN chief issues ‘SOS’ for Pacific Islands worst hit by warming ocean

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said on Tuesday ocean temperatures are rising in the Pacific Islands at three times the rate worldwide, and its population was "uniquely exposed" to the impact of rising sea levels. Speaking to reporters in Tonga where the Pacific Islands Forum is being held, Guterres highlighted the findings of a report that showed the South West Pacific was worst hit by sea level rises, in some places by more than double the global average in the past 30 yea...

September 16, 2024 5:54 PM

India at UN calls for immediate ceasefire in Gaza strip, urges for unconditional release of hostages

India at the United Nations has reiterated its call for an immediate and complete ceasefire in the Gaza Strip and called for the release of the hostages without any conditions. Delivering his remarks at the United Nations Security Council's (UNSC) Open Debate on the Middle East on Wednesday, India's Deputy Representative to the UN, R Ravindra, also underlined that India's developmental assistance to Palestine, in various forms over the years, amounts close to USD 120 million. "India was among t...

September 16, 2024 5:55 PM

India on track to achieve SDG goals ahead of 2030, says NITI Aayog Vice Chairperson at UN

India is poised to achieve its Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) ahead of the 2030 deadline, Suman K Bery, Vice Chairperson of NITI Aayog, announced at the United Nations High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development on Monday. Bery highlighted India's significant progress across multiple SDGs, particularly Goal 1.2, which aims to halve the percentage of people living in poverty. He said that India is set to achieve this target well before 2030. "Around 135 million Indians escaped m...

July 5, 2024 4:54 PM

World food prices hold firm in June, UN’s FAO reports

The United Nations world food price index held steady in June data showed on Friday, with increases in vegetable oil, sugar and dairy products offset by a fall in the price of cereals. The U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization's price index, which tracks the most globally traded food commodities, averaged 120.6 points in June, unchanged from May. The May figure was revised from an initial reading of 120.4. The FAO index hit a three-year low in February as food prices receded from a record pea...

July 4, 2024 5:14 PM

More than 136,000 displaced by spread of war in southeast Sudan, UN says

More than 136,000 people have fled Sudan's southeastern Sennar state since the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces began a series of attacks on towns, the United Nations said on Wednesday, the latest wave of displacement caused by Sudan's almost 15-month long war. They join nearly 10 million people driven from their homes since war broke out between the RSF and the regular army. The war has sparked accusations of "ethnic cleansing" and warnings of famine, mainly in RSF-controlled areas across the...

September 16, 2024 6:14 PM

Protecting 1.2% of Earth would prevent most extinctions, study says

Setting aside an additional 1.2% of the world's land as nature preserves would prevent the majority of predicted plant and animal extinctions and cost about $263 billion, according to a study published on Tuesday. The world is racing to meet a goal to protect 30% of the world by 2030 to protect wildlife that is being decimated by climate change, pollution and habitat destruction. Global policymakers will meet at a United Nations summit in Colombia in October to discuss plans for reaching that ...

June 19, 2024 4:46 PM

Dutchman Mark Rutte, longtime Putin critic, set to lead NATO alliance

Mark Rutte, who looks set to be NATO's next secretary-general, is a staunch ally of Ukraine and a fierce critic of Russian President Vladimir Putin, who honed his skills as a political dealmaker during nearly 14 years as Dutch prime minister. Rutte, 57, has been one of the driving forces behind Europe's military support for Ukraine since Russia's 2022 invasion, and says defeat on the battlefield for Moscow is vital to secure peace in Europe. His view is heavily influenced by the downing of an ...

June 7, 2024 4:56 PM

World food prices rise for third straight month in May, UN says

The United Nations World Food Price Index rose for a third consecutive month in May, as higher cereals and dairy product prices outweighed drops in prices for sugar and vegetable oils. The U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization's price index, which tracks the most globally traded food commodities, averaged 120.4 points in May, up 0.9% from its revised April level, the FAO said on Friday. The May reading was nonetheless 3.4% below the level seen a year earlier. The FAO index hit a three-year l...

June 6, 2024 12:54 PM

World hits streak of record temperatures as UN warns of ‘climate hell’

Each of the past 12 months ranked as the warmest on record in year-on-year comparisons, the EU's climate change monitoring service said on Wednesday, as U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres called for urgent action to avert "climate hell". The average global temperature for the 12-month period to the end of May was 1.63 degrees Celsius (2.9 degrees Fahrenheit) above the pre-industrial average - making it the warmest such period since record-keeping began in 1940, the Copernicus Climate Chan...