UN DESA United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs [to 30 May 2015]
http://www.un.org/en/development/desa/news.html

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Former US President Clinton urges partnerships to boost health
28 May 2015, New York
As the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) met to discuss the role of partnerships in achieving the Post-2015 development agenda, the focus fell on the recent response to the Ebola crisis in West Africa and the need to work together to boost capacity in healthcare systems.

Forum adopts roadmap for future forests
28 May 2015, New York
On 15 May, the eleventh session of the UN Forum on Forests successfully concluded with the approval of a wide-ranging omnibus resolution that extends the International Arrangement on Forests (IAF) until 2030. Demonstrating a high level of political interest in forests, delegates from over 125 Member States participated, including 30 forest Ministers and Vice Ministers.

FAO Food & Agriculture Organization [to 30 May 2015]
http://www.fao.org/news/archive/news-by-date/2015/en/

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Latin America and the Caribbean: World’s first region to reach both international hunger goals
Latin America and the Caribbean has taken a huge step towards the total eradication of hunger by reducing both the percentage and total number of undernourished people to less than half.
28-05-2015

Asia-Pacific region achieves Millennium Development Goal to reduce hunger by half by 2015
The Asia-Pacific region has achieved the Millennium Development Goal (MDG-1c) by reducing the proportion of people suffering from hunger by half by 2015.
28-05-2015

As South Sudan conflict escalates, 4.6 million people at risk of severe food insecurity
The IPC estimates for April, indicate that most of the people affected – 3 million at Crisis level and 800 000 at the Emergency level – are located in the three states of the country’s northeastern Greater Upper Nile region hardest hit by the fighting. Many others are from the western part of the Greater Bahr el Ghazal region where conditions have deteriorated as a result of a spillover from the conflict.
28-05-2015

Boosting food security in cities through better markets, reduced food waste
Recognizing the growing challenge of feeding the world’s cities and the importance of efficient urban markets, FAO and the World Union of Wholesale Markets (WUWM) is entering into a partnership to promote sustainability and inclusiveness in the wholesale sector, including developing “best practices” for reducing food waste.
28-05-2015

World hunger falls to under 800 million, eradication is next goal
The number of hungry people in the world has dropped to 795 million – 216 million fewer than in 1990-92 – or around one person out of every nine, according to the latest edition of the annual UN hunger report, The State of Food Insecurity in the World 2015.
27-05-2015

UNIDO United Nations Industrial Development Organization [to 30 May 2015]
http://www.unido.org/en/news-centre/news.html

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Forum in Viet Nam raises awareness about transparency, corporate social responsibility
Thursday, 28 May 2015
HO CHI MINH CITY, 28 May 2015 – A forum, held today in Ho Chi Minh City, brought together experts and businessmen to discuss the concept of transparency and its benefits among enterprises.

Sustainable development will require synergies between industrialization, innovation and trade
NEW YORK, 26 May 2015 – Challenges and opportunities of achieving coherence among industrial, trade and innovation policies at all levels, particularly in the context of the post-2015 development agenda, were discussed at an event that took place today at United Nations Headquarters in New York.
It was held on the side-lines of the ongoing UN Financing for Development negotiations, and organized by the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), the Permanent Missions of Brazil and Italy, United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) and World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO)…

UNWTO World Tourism Organization [to 30 May 2015]
http://media.unwto.org/news

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World Committee on Tourism Ethics proposes International Convention on Tourism Ethics
28 May 2015
The transformation of the Global Code of Ethics for Tourism into an international convention was the main focus of the 15th meeting of the World Committee on Tourism Ethics (Rovinj, Croatia, 26-27 May 2015).

USAID [to 30 May 2015]
http://www.usaid.gov/news-information/press-releases

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USAID Provides Additional Emergency Food Assistance to Millions of Sudanese People
May 27, 2015
In an effort to continue essential support for millions of the world’s most food insecure people, the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) delivered another 47,500 metric tons of sorghum to Sudan. This food, supplied through USAID’s Office of Food for Peace, will support the UN World Food Program’s (WFP) efforts to feed millions of Sudanese children and displaced persons suffering from hunger and malnutrition.

IPU Inter-Parliamentary Union [to 30 May 2015]
http://www.ipu.org/english/news.htm

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Press Releases
Young MPs call for radical responses to counter youth alienation and disengagement
28 May 2015
A major international conference of the world’s young MPs in Tokyo has called for radical policies to end the alienation and radicalization of young people, including new education policies and employment quotas.

About 190 young MPs, 76 of them women attending the IPU Global Conference of Young MPs jointly organized by IPU and the Japanese Parliament, the National Diet, made a series of recommendations on addressing some of the biggest challenges facing the world’s 3.5 billion youth populations. These include unemployment, discrimination and conflict.

During the two-day conference on 27-28 may, the young MPs affirmed their belief that despite disillusionment, apathy, political disengagement and unrest, the world’s youth aspired to democratic, peaceful and prosperous societies and their inclusion into decision-making was critical.

The Conference underlined the need for a comprehensive rights-based framework of action against radicalization, such as guaranteed free education, including anti-violence and conflict-management programmes, laws to criminalize hate speech, and involving young people in all decisions relating to counter-terrorism.

It also called for policies to curb the alienation of young people, including the creation of targeted opportunities to contribute to campaigns, programmes and projects at the community level.

On another key area of concern – youth unemployment – the Conference recommended wide-ranging new action, including quotas to advance equality of opportunities in the job market. It called for education to be better adapted to the needs of the job market, youth empowerment initiatives in business, better access to loans for young entrepreneurs and action to ensure the rights of young migrant workers and first-time workers are respected…

The African Development Bank Group [to 30 May 2015]
http://www.afdb.org/en/news-and-events/press-releases/

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Structural change needed to spur innovation in Africa: AfDB 2015 Annual Development Effectiveness Review
29/05/2015 – To make economic growth self-sustaining, African countries must urgently make deep structural changes to propel innovation, notably boosting public investment and strengthening social services. Innovation is needed to create jobs and offer livelihood opportunities to lift the majority of Africans out of poverty, according to the African Development Bank’s 5th Annual Development Effectiveness Review (ADER) released Wednesday in Abidjan.

 
Akinwumi Adesina of Nigeria elected 8th President of the AfDB
28/05/2015 – “Today, I have been given a great responsibility,” Akinwumi A. Adesina said Thursday upon his election as the 8th President of the African Development Bank Group. The President-Elect said he was “humbled by this remarkable vote of confidence in me” on the part of the Bank’s Board of Governors, who met during the Bank Group’s 50th Annual Meetings in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire.

 
AfDB scaled up project funding by 15% to US$ 7.6 billion in 2014
27/05/2015 – The African Development Bank Group (AfDB) realised a 15.3-percent increase in its operations turnover in 2014 compared to 2013 despite the challenging global and regional economic environment, according to AfDB 2014 Annual Report.

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AfDB: A focus on Africa’s economic transformation to inclusive sustainable growth
27/05/2015 – For a continent which has consistently posted robust economic growth in the past decade, recent reports that the continent is the bastion of inequality recording 42.6 on the Gini Coefficient Index (a standard measure of income equality) is quite disturbing.

European Union [to 30 May 2015]
http://europa.eu/newsroom/index_en.htm
[We generally limit coverage to regional and global level initiatives, recognizing that a number of country-level announcements are added each week]

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Eurobarometer: Nine out of 10 Europeans want EU to keep giving humanitarian aid
29/05/2015 12:00 | European Commission

Syrian refugee crisis: EU Trust Fund launches first response programmes for €40 million, helping up to 400,000 people in Lebanon, Turkey, Jordan and Iraq
External relations and foreign affairs | 29/05/2015 11:37 | European Commission

Migration: European Solidarity Stress Test
Employment and social rights | 29/05/2015 09:05 | European Economic and Social Committee

First measures under the European Agenda on Migration: Questions and Answers
Justice and citizens rights | 28/05/2015 15:58 | European Commission

Press release – Tunisia’s Prime Minister Habib Essid on security and migration challenges -…
External relations and foreign affairs | 28/05/2015 11:51 | European Parliament

Press statement by Commissioner Avramopoulos on the first measures under the European Agenda on Migration
Justice and citizens rights | 27/05/2015 14:36 | European Commission

European Commission makes progress on Agenda on Migration
Justice and citizens rights | 27/05/2015 12:30 | European Commission

OECD [to 30 May 2015]
http://www.oecd.org/newsroom/publicationsdocuments/bydate/
[We generally limit coverage to regional and global level initiatives, recognizing that a number of country-level announcements are added each week]

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Governments must step up efforts to tackle youth unemployment
27-May-2015
More than 35 million young people, aged 16-29, across OECD countries are neither employed nor in education or training (NEET). Overall, young people are twice as likely as prime-age workers to be unemployed. Governments need to do more to give young people a good start to their working lives and help them find work, according to a new OECD report.

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Members renew Angel Gurría’s mandate at the helm of the OECD
26-May-2015
The 34 Member countries of the OECD decided today to renew Secretary-General Angel Gurría’s mandate at the helm of the Organisation for the period 2016-2021. This unanimous decision was an acknowledgment of Secretary-General Gurría’s work to shape a more relevant, inclusive and open organisation.

Africa: making growth more inclusive hinges on unlocking potential of local economies, says the African Economic Outlook 2015
25-May-2015

With Africa’s population set to double by 2050, modernising local economies will be vital to make the continent more competitive and to increase people’s living standards, according to the African Economic Outlook 2015, released at the African Development Bank Group’s 50th Annual Meetings.

Organization of American States (OAS) [to 30 May 2015]
http://www.oas.org/en/media_center/press_releases.asp

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Former Uruguayan Foreign Minister Luis Almagro Took Office as OAS Secretary General
May 26, 2015
The former Foreign Minister of Uruguay Luis Almagro Lemes today took office as Secretary General of the Organization of American States (OAS) during a meeting of the Permanent Council at the headquarters of the Organization in Washington, DC.

The inaugural speech of Secretary General Almagro is available here. His biography is available here.

The Uruguayan diplomat was elected Secretary General on March 18 with 33 votes in favor, one abstention and no votes against from member states. The Chair of the Permanent Council and Permanent Representative of Trinidad and Tobago to the OAS, Neil Parsan, was in charge of welcoming the new OAS Secretary General during the inauguration.

Secretary General Almagro was elected for a period of five years from May 2015 to May 2020. He is the second Uruguayan to lead the OAS…

Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) [to 30 May 2015]
http://www.oic-oci.org/oicv2/news/

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The Islamic Solidarity Fund of the OIC dispatches urgent assistance to Rohingya Refugees
The Islamic Solidarity Fund (ISF) of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) announced the provision of urgent humanitarian assistance to the Rohingya refugees fleeing persecution in their Myanmar homeland on crowded unseaworthy boats with many having perished on the perilous journey and thousands remain trapped on turbulent seas…
30/05/2015

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OIC CONTACT GROUP PRAISES ROHINGYA MUSLIMS SPECIAL ENVOY’S EFFORTS, URGES INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY TO FULFILL ITS HUMANITARIAN COMMITMENTS AND RESTORE ROHINGYA RIGHTS
The OIC Ministerial Contact Group on the Rohingya Muslim minority in Myanmar held a meeting today Wednesday 27 May 2015 on the sideline of the 42nd Session of the OIC Council of Foreign Ministers taking place in Kuwait…
28/05/2015

CARE International [to 30 May 2015]
http://www.care-international.org/news/press-releases.aspx

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CARE International Believes High Ambition Needed in Bonn
GLOBAL
29 May 2015
Governments in Bonn need to get down to the nuts and bolts of preparing a fair and ambitious global climate deal if the world is to truly get a successful result just six months from now at the UN COP21 climate talks in Paris this December.

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Malnutrition Rates Reach Critical Levels as South Sudan Faces Further Food Crisis
SOUTH SUDAN
27 May 2015
Across South Sudan, more than 3.8 million people were unable to meet their food needs in April. The figure is expected to rise to 4.6 million by July, according to the latest results of the Integrated Phase Classification (IPC).

Handicap International [to 30 May 2015]
http://www.handicap-international.us/press_releases

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KOBANI: “BEYOND OUR WORST NIGHTMARES”
Posted on May 27, 2015 12:01 AM
Takoma Park, MD—Handicap International mine action experts have assessed the beleaguered city of Kobani, Syria, in April, and discovered an alarming level of unexploded ordnance contamination. Four months of combat, including ground fighting and coalition air strikes, left an average of 10 munitions per square meter in the city center, and destroyed nearly 80% of buildings, according to a Handicap International brief released today.

“What we saw in Kobani was beyond our worst nightmares: a significant part of the city is vastly destroyed and unexploded weapons contamination of all kinds have reached a density and diversity that has hardly ever been witnessed before,” said Frédéric Maio, Handicap International’s Mine Action Program Development Manager. “The unexploded devices and booby traps pose a daily threat to the people who fled Kobani and are now trying to return home. This explosive pollution will make it impossible for people to reconstruct their lives, and blocks access to several areas. It also prevents humanitarian organizations from operating safely and providing the necessary support to this vulnerable population.”…

HelpAge International [to 30 May 2015]
http://www.helpage.org/newsroom/press-room/press-releases/

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Launch of new nutritional project to support hard-hit older people in South Sudan
On Wednesday, 27 May 2015 HelpAge International and its partner Islamic Relief launch a three year programme in Juba, South Sudan to support badly malnourished older people in Warrap State.
Posted: 27 May 2015

International Rescue Committee [to 30 May 2015]
http://www.rescue.org/press-release-index

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27 May 2015
IRC President David Miliband’s Harvard Kennedy School commencement address, May 27, 2015

ICRC [to 30 May 2015]
https://www.icrc.org/en

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South Africa: ICRC and SADC sign memorandum of understanding
News release
29 May 2015
Pretoria (ICRC) – The ICRC and the Southern African Development Community (SADC) have recently concluded a memorandum of understanding that will strengthen relations between them and improve coordination of their activities.

Lebanon: Meeting the need for water
News release
29 May 2015
Beirut (ICRC) – The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) will inaugurate three water projects in the Bekaa valley, in eastern Lebanon, today. The projects were carried out in cooperation with the Bekaa Water Establishment (BWE).

Yemen: Local ceasefires are a rare chance to save lives
News release
28 May 2015

ICRC president calls on EU to up humanitarian efforts for world’s most pressing crises
News release
27 May 2015
Brussels (ICRC) – The president of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) Peter Maurer has called on the EU to up its humanitarian efforts to help stabilize swathes of the Middle East and Africa gripped by crisis. He also called upon governments to embrace the urgent humanitarian imperative in their response to the Mediterranean migration crisis, itself fuelled by conflict and instability in countries of origin.

Philippines: Promoting international standards among senior police officers
27-05-2015 | News release
To enrich their understanding of international policing standards and international humanitarian law, around 20 senior officers of the …

Georgia: Regional conference on “ambiguous loss” theory gathers experts in Tbilisi
A conference exploring ambiguous loss – a phenomenon that affects the relatives of people who go missing, often in conflict …
26-05-2015 | News release

Red Cross Red Crescent Mediterranean Platform on Migration calls to stop labelling people on the move as ‘illegal’
San Marino/Geneva, 26 May 2015: National Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies from …
26-05-2015 | News release

Niger: Thousands displaced from Lake Chad islands
Niamey/Geneva (ICRC) – The situation is deteriorating in Diffa in Niger, just across the border from north-eastern Nigeria. The International Committee of the …
26-05-2015 | News release

South Sudan: Desperate humanitarian situation in Leer
Residents slowly returning to the South Sudanese town of Leer, in the aftermath of fighting in and around the town last week, say they have little or no …
25-05-2015 | News release

IRCT [to 30 May 2015]
http://www.irct.org/

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Statements & declarations
IRCT calls on Russia to investigate expulsion of member centre’s staff
27 May 2015
The IRCT, representing the global movement of 144 torture rehabilitation centres worldwide, is deeply concerned by reports that staff from IRCT member Danish Institute Against Torture (DIGNITY) have been fined and expelled from Russia, during a visit to another IRCT member, Russian human rights organisation, Committee Against Torture (NGO CAT).
Last week, the three DIGNITY representatives were in Russia to provide technical assistance on trauma rehabilitation and prevention of torture to NGO CAT when the Federal Migration Service detained them on the grounds that they were in violation of Russian visa regulations…

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News
A Decade of Trauma Treatment and Human Rights Work in Iraq
On the occasion of its 10th anniversary, the Jiyan Foundation for Human Rights urges the Iraqi government to enhance rehabilitation services for survivors of human rights abuses.
After ten years of successful non-profit work, the Jiyan Foundation for Human Rights thanks its national and international supporters and calls on the Iraqi government to strengthen local NGOs, to invest in improved mental health services and to adequately assist survivors of violence…

MSF/Médecins Sans Frontières [to 30 May 2015]
http://www.doctorswithoutborders.org/news-stories/press/press-releases

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Press Releases
Kenya: Medical Care Suspended in Refugee Camp Amid Escalating Insecurity
May 28, 2015
NAIROBI/NEW YORK—Increasing violence in northeastern Kenya has forced the international medical humanitarian organization Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) to evacuate several of its employees from the Dadaab refugee camp and to suspend some medical activities there, depriving Somali refugees living there of much-needed care, MSF announced today.

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Governments Take Decisive Step Towards More Affordable Vaccines
May 26, 2015
GENEVA—Governments meeting in Geneva for the annual World Health Assembly raised the alarm today on the exorbitant rise in the price to vaccinate a child, and took a decisive step towards addressing the problem by passing a resolution that called for more affordable vaccines and greater transparency of vaccine prices.

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Field news
New Wave of Refugees Fleeing Violence in South Sudan Arrives in Ethiopia
May 27, 2015
Intense, ongoing fighting between warring parties in South Sudan has forced hundreds of thousands of civilians to flee from a conflict that has already displaced more than two million people. Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) and other international aid organizations have been forced to suspend relief operations in some war-affected areas of South Sudan, leaving civilians without lifesaving aid.

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Field news
Cholera Outbreak Among Burundi Refugees in Tanzania
May 25, 2015
A cholera outbreak has struck overcrowded camps where thousands of Burundian refugees are gathering in Tanzania. According to the World Health Organization, 31 people have died of the disease and more than 3,000 acute diarrhea cases have been reported among the refugees. In collaboration with local authorities, Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) is opening rehydration points and cholera treatment centers in Kagunga and Kigoma camps.

OXFAM [to 30 May 2015]
http://www.oxfam.org/en/pressroom/pressreleases

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Oxfam reaching Nepal’s most isolated in a race against the monsoon
25 May 2015
One month on since the first earthquake hit Nepal, Oxfam is working with mountain guides and porters to deliver lifesaving aid to the most remote communities before the imminent monsoon hits the country. Mountain guides and porters are assisting Oxfam with its relief delivery in the Gorkha district, one of the worst hit by the earthquake.

Plan International [to 30 May 2015]
http://plan-international.org/about-plan/resources/media-centre

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Nepal: Getting children back in the classroom a priority
29/05/2015
As schools resume on 31 May, education needs still remain for thousands of children in earthquake-affected areas

29 May 2015: As schools in Nepal are set to officially reopen on 31 May, Plan International is prioritising education and urging the rapid construction of temporary learning centres in order to get all children in Nepal, including those most marginalised, back to school as soon as possible.

With more than 25,000 classrooms destroyed and an additional 10,000 classrooms needing repair, Plan International has built temporary learning centres in some of the worst-affected areas, along with providing more than 1,200 education kits (which include a school bag and classroom supplies) and training teachers, to ensure that children can resume their education…

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Stigmas surrounding menstruation detrimental to girls’ futures
28/05/2015
Menstrual Health Day, 28 May 2015: Stigmas surrounding menstruation are having a detrimental impact on girls’ futures, says child rights organisation Plan International, as the world marks Menstrual Hygiene Day today.

For 2 billion women and girls worldwide, menstruation is a monthly reality. Yet in many low-income countries, women and girls still face serious challenges when it comes to managing their periods.

According to a study from the UN, one out of three girls in South Asia knew nothing about menstruation prior to getting it, while 48% of girls in Iran and 10% of girls in India believe menstruation is a disease…