Yearly Archives: 2015

Ebola/EVD: Additional Coverage [to 7 February 2015]

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UNMEER [UN Mission for Ebola Emergency Response] @UNMEER #EbolaResponse

Editor’s Note: UNMEER’s website is aggregating and presenting content from various sources including its own External Situation Reports, press releases, statements and other formats.
We present a composite below from the week ending 7 February 2015. We also note that 1) a regular information category in these reports – human rights – has apparently eliminated as it no longer appears in any of the continuing updates, and 2) the content level of these reports continues, in our view, to trend less informative and less coherent. We will review continuing coverage of this material over the next few weeks.

UNMEER External Situation Reports
UNMEER External Situation Reports are issued daily (excepting Saturday) with content organized under these headings:
– Highlights
– Key Political and Economic Developments
– Human Rights
– Response Efforts and Health
– Logistics
– Outreach and Education
– Resource Mobilisation
– Essential Services
– Upcoming Events
The “Week in Review” will present highly-selected elements of interest from these reports. The full daily report is available as a pdf using the link provided by the report date.

:: 07 Feb 2015 UNMEER External Situation Reports
No report posted.

:: 05 Feb 2015 UNMEER External Situation Report
KEY POINTS
:: Case incidence increased in all three countries for the first time this year
:: Community resistance remains a concern in pockets of affected countries
:: Logistics Cluster continues to coordinate delivery of critical relief items
Response Efforts and Health
4. Continued community resistance, increasing geographical spread in Guinea and widespread transmission in Sierra Leone, and a rise in incidence show that the EVD response still faces significant challenges. A total of 10 of 34 prefectures in Guinea reported at least one security incident or other form of refusal to cooperate in the week to 1 February. No counties in Liberia and 3 districts in Sierra Leone reported at least one similar incident during the week to 27 January. As the wet season approaches, there is an urgent need to end the outbreak in as wide an area as possible, especially in remote areas that will become more difficult to access.
8. In Sierra Leone, UNDP and UNMEER continue to provide support to the efforts of the National Ebola Response Centre (NERC), to implement the revised Hazard Policy payment aimed at re-classifying Ebola Response Workers (ERWs) based on real risks and further ensuring fiduciary sustainability and compliance. Biometric verification of ERWs commenced last week in Western Area. As of 1 February about 10,000 ERWs were verified, with several fraudulent ERWs in the Western Area discovered and reported to the Anti-Corruption Commission.
Essential Services
16. The Periodic Intensified Routine Immunization (PIRI) campaign teams reported community resistance in some parts of the districts at the IMS meeting in Grand Gedeh County. The misconception about Ebola vaccines trials, ongoing in Monrovia, persists in various districts (Cavalla, Gbao and Putu districts) where some of the town chiefs rejected the vaccination exercise in their communities.

:: 04 Feb 2015 UNMEER External Situation Report
Logistics
8. WFP, in coordination with the Government of Liberia, UNMEER and UNICEF, is providing logistics support for the transportation of WASH supplies for the safe re-opening of schools in Liberia. Dispatches are planned to commence on 4 February in Nimba County and are planned to be completed in all 15 counties by 15 February ahead of the school start date on 2 March. Dispatches will be conducted by road, air and sea transport. In total over 7,000 kits (some 2,700m3) will be delivered to over 4,000 schools serving one million students.
9. The WFP-led Emergency Telecommunications Cluster is providing Internet access for 1,112 humanitarian staff in 59 locations across Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone.
Essential Services
15. UNICEF Guinea distributed more than 31,720 household hygiene kits to 222,040 people in Ebola-affected areas. This brings the total number of household kits distributed since the beginning of the outbreak to 81,252 and the number of beneficiaries to 568,764. In support of government efforts as students returned to schools and universities, UNICEF distributed 25,800 school hygiene kits benefitting 1,467,252 students.
17. UNMEER facilitated a rapid assessment of three border crossing points along the Liberia/Bong country – Guinea border, namely Jowah, Gboata and Garmu. The joint team composed of the CDC and UNMEER was led by the Director of Operations in the Bureau of Immigration and Naturalization (BIN), Liberia. The joint team interacted with border officials who reported the crossing were officially closed in July 2014, but illegal crossings continue due to extensive family, cultural and economic ties on both sides. The border officials reported that each border post is manned by 10-15 personnel, which is insufficient for ensuring the necessary patrolling of the border area. The CDC experts also held extensive discussions with the medical personnel at Joseph Clinic in Jowah, a regional medical facility that provides medical care for the population across 5 areas, including to patients from Guinea (especially before the outbreak). Medical personnel at Jowah Clinic emphasized the need for a joint health team and Infection Prevention and Control (IPC) resources before officially re-opening the borders.

:: 03 Feb 2015 UNMEER External Situation Report
Key Political and Economic Developments
1. WHO reports that 3 phase III trial collaborations are planned: a ring vaccination trial in Guinea, organized through a large international collaboration including WHO and MSF; a randomized-controlled trial in Liberia, under a Liberian government–US-NIH collaboration, due to begin week of 2 February; and a stepped-wedge trial in Sierra Leone under a Sierra Leonean-US-CDC collaboration. Strong emphasis is being given to effective communication and engagement with communities to build trust, address concerns about clinical trials and vaccination campaigns and ensure that volunteers can make informed choices. WHO will continue its facilitator role as trials move forward, in particular by ensuring that national regulatory oversight and patient safety remain top priorities. WHO’s efforts in R&D for Ebola have had one overriding objective: to help end the epidemic and provide insurance against future epidemics.
3. The Ministry of Education in Liberia has postponed the reopening of schools to allow for continued preparation for the safe re-opening of schools. Schools were initially planned to re-open on 2 February.

:: 02 Feb 2015 UNMEER External Situation Report
Response Efforts and Health
5. In the previous week, WFP supplied food commodities to quarantined households and six quarantined communities in Port Loko District, Sierra Leone. In addition, WFP provided one month rations in Kenema Township where 29 new households were recently quarantined and to hotspots in Kono District. With CIDO, WFP completed food distributions for over 5,800 beneficiaries in Rotifunk community in Moyamba.

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The Sentinel

Human Rights Action :: Humanitarian Response :: Health ::
Holistic Development :: Sustainable Resilience
__________________________________________________
Week ending 31 January 2015

This weekly digest is intended to aggregate and distill key content from a broad spectrum of practice domains and organization types including key agencies/IGOs, NGOs, governments, academic and research institutions, consortiums and collaborations, foundations, and commercial organizations. We also monitor a spectrum of peer-reviewed journals and general media channels. The Sentinel’s geographic scope is global/regional but selected country-level content is included. We recognize that this spectrum/scope yields an indicative and not an exhaustive product. Comments and suggestions should be directed to:

David R. Curry
Editor &
Founding Managing Director
GE2P2 – Center for Governance, Evidence, Ethics, Policy, Practice
david.r.curry@ge2p2center.net

pdf verion: The Sentinel_ week ending 31 January 2015

blog edition: comprised of the 35+ entries to be posted below on 1 February 2015

WHO EXECUTIVE BOARD – Special session on the Ebola emergency/Resolution

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Editor’s Note:
The WHO’s Executive Board – which continues its meetings in Geneva through mid-week –met last Sunday in a special session on ebola. The resolution adopted at that meeting – EBSS3.R1 – has been posted and is excerpted below.

This resolution represents, to our understanding , a milestone in affirming WHO’s special and specific charter and role in preparing for and responding to disease outbreaks and “humanitarian emergencies with health consequences.” This role has been a focus of debate and concern as the ebola/EVD crisis has unfolded.

Given the implications of this resolution, we recommend that readers engage the full special session documentation at http://apps.who.int/gb/e/e_ebss3.html and the full resolution at http://apps.who.int/gb/ebwha/pdf_files/EBSS3/EBSS3_R1-en.pdf.
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WHO: EXECUTIVE BOARD: Special session on the Ebola emergency

EBSS3.R1 [Resolution adopted Sunday, 25 January 2015 at Special Session]
Agenda item 3 :: 25 January 2015
Ebola: ending the current outbreak, strengthening global preparedness and ensuring WHO’s capacity to prepare for and respond to future large-scale outbreaks and emergencies with health consequences
[Editor’s excerpts]
… Recalling resolution WHA64.10 on strengthening national health emergency and disaster management capacities and the resilience of health systems, which reaffirms, inter alia, that countries should ensure the protection of health, safety and welfare of their people and should ensure the resilience and self-reliance of the health system, which is critical for minimizing health hazards and vulnerabilities;

…Committed to an effective and coordinated response both for the current Ebola crisis and to make the corrective changes needed to prevent, detect and contain future outbreaks, and reaffirming the central and specialized role played by WHO in emergency preparedness and response, including in health emergency situations as described in Health Assembly resolutions WHA54.14, WHA58.1, WHA59.22, WHA64.10, WHA65.20 and WHA65.23;

Recalling resolution WHA65.20, which affirms WHO’s role as the health cluster lead in responding to the growing demands of health in humanitarian emergencies, and recognizes the specific requirements for effective health-related emergency operations;..

…Emphasizing also the fundamentally civilian character of humanitarian assistance, and reaffirming, in situations in which military capacity and assets are used as a last resort to support the implementation of humanitarian assistance, the need for the use to be undertaken with the consent of affected States and in conformity with relevant provisions of international law, [See United Nations General Assembly resolutions 60/124 and 69/135.]…

Current context and challenges; stopping the epidemic; and global preparedness
1. EXPRESSES its unwavering commitment to contain the Ebola outbreak and to remain engaged in promoting urgent actions to accelerate prevention, detection, control and treatment until we reach zero cases of Ebola virus disease; to contribute to building resilient health systems in the affected countries and other highly at-risk countries; and to provide support for people who have survived Ebola, and their families, and for children orphaned by the disease, including psychosocial support;

Leadership and coordination
2. RECALLS and REAFFIRMS the constitutional mandate given to WHO to act, inter alia, as the directing and coordinating authority on international health work, and to furnish, in emergencies,2 necessary aid upon the request or acceptance of governments, and recognizes the need to accelerate ongoing reform of the Organization;

3. FURTHER REAFFIRMS WHO’s role as the lead agency of the global health cluster, including its role to ensure the timely declaration of appropriate response levels to humanitarian emergencies with health consequences, and calls on Member States3 and relevant actors in humanitarian situations with health consequences to support WHO in fulfilling its role as lead agency of the Global Health Cluster within its mandate;

4. FURTHER REAFFIRMS that, in connection with the declaration on 8 August 2014, by the WHO Director-General that the 2014 outbreak of Ebola virus disease in some West African countries is a public health emergency of international concern, all WHO authorities with respect to the administration, deployment and other human resource matters concerning preparedness, surveillance and response rest with the Director-General, and shall be exercised in a manner consistent with the principles and objectives of WHO’s Emergency Response Framework, while minimizing the negative impact on regular and routine work of WHO…

UNICEF – 2015 Appeal; Thousands of children to be gradually released from armed group in South Sudan

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UNICEF launches US$3.1 billion appeal to reach more children in emergencies
GENEVA, 29 January 2015 – UNICEF is launching a US$3.1 billion appeal – its largest ever – to reach 62 million children at risk in humanitarian crises worldwide – a US$1 billion jump in funding needs since last year’s appeal.

“From deadly natural disasters to brutal conflicts and fast-spreading epidemics, children across the world are facing a new generation of humanitarian crises,” said Afshan Khan, UNICEF’s Director of Emergency Programmes. “Whether in the headlines or hidden from view, emergencies sparked by social fracture, climate change and disease are stalking children in ways we have never seen before.”…

UNICEF’s Humanitarian Action for Children 2015 appeal targets a total of 98 million people, around two thirds of whom are children, in 71 countries:
:: The biggest portion of the appeal is for Syria and the sub-region. UNICEF is calling for US$903 million for the regional response to protect children at risk and deliver life-saving assistance like immunisations, safe water and sanitation, and education.
:: UNICEF is also appealing for US$500 million to accelerate its work in the heart of Ebola-affected communities. The money will be used to scale up efforts to rapidly isolate and treat every case, prevent further outbreaks, and continue to promote healthy behaviours to prevent the spread of the disease. The goal for 2015 is to get to zero cases and support the revitalisation of basic social services.
:: In Nigeria, where attacks by armed groups have escalated in the past year causing more than 1 million people in the northeast to flee their homes, UNICEF is asking for $US26.5 million.
:: A year into the conflict in Ukraine, UNICEF is appealing for US$32.45 million as the country faces a humanitarian crisis with 5.2 million people living in conflict zones, over 600,000 people internally displaced and some 1.7 million children affected.

The appeal also includes hugely under-funded and forgotten crises where children are in desperate need – including Afghanistan (35 per cent funded in 2014), the State of Palestine (23 per cent funded in 2014) and Niger (35 per cent funded in 2014)…
– The full Humanitarian Action for Children 2015 appeal and related country information can be found here: http://www.unicef.org/appeals
– Video and photos are available here: http://uni.cf/1zwEJ4M

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UNICEF: Thousands of children to be gradually released from armed group in South Sudan
Some 280 children handed over to UNICEF today
[Press release excerpt]

JUBA/NAIROBI/GENEVA/NEW YORK, 27 January, 2015 – UNICEF and partners have secured the release of approximately 3,000 children from an armed group in South Sudan – one of the largest ever demobilizations of children. The first group of 280 children were released today, at the village of Gumuruk in Jonglei State, eastern South Sudan. Further phased releases of the other children will occur over the coming month.

Recruited by the South Sudan Democratic Army (SSDA) Cobra Faction led by David Yau Yau, the children range in age from eleven to 17 years old. Some have been fighting for up to four years and many have never attended school. In the last year, 12,000 children, mostly boys, have been recruited and used as soldiers by armed forces and groups in South Sudan as a whole.

The children surrendered their weapons and uniforms in a ceremony overseen by the South Sudan National Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration Commission, and the Cobra Faction and supported by UNICEF.

“These children have been forced to do and see things no child should ever experience,” said UNICEF South Sudan Representative Jonathan Veitch. “The release of thousands of children requires a massive response to provide the support and protection these children need to begin rebuilding their lives.”

The children released from the Cobra Faction are being supported with basic health care and protection services and necessities such as food, water and clothing to help them get ready to return to their families. Counselling and other psychological support programmes are urgently being established. The children will soon have access to education and skills training programmes.

UNICEF is working to trace and reunify the children with their families, a daunting task in a country where more than 1 million children have either been displaced internally or have fled to neighbouring countries since fighting broke out in December 2013.

Support will extend to local communities to prevent and reduce discrimination against the returning children and also to prevent possible recruitment.

“The successful reintegration of these children back into their communities depends on a timely, coordinated response to meet their immediate and long-term needs. These programmes require significant resources,” said Veitch.

UNICEF estimates the costs for the release and reintegration of each child is approximately $2,330 for 24 months. So far UNICEF has received EUR 1.6 million from the IKEA Foundation – a first and critical contribution to funding for the release and reintegration programme – and is appealing for an additional $10 million in support. Other donors include the EU and the German and United Kingdom National Committees for UNICEF.

THE RIGHT TO NATIONALITY IN AFRICA [Report]

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THE RIGHT TO NATIONALITY IN AFRICA
African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights
29 January 2015 :: 86 pages
The report, published by the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights notes that reforms of nationality laws and documentation procedures are necessary to ensure that everyone enjoys the right to a nationality in Africa. The study concludes that despite the existence of a range of human rights provisions relating to non-discrimination and the right to nationality in Africa, there is often a legal void at the national level that stops people from exercising their right to a nationality. It urges AU member States to support the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights to draft a protocol on the Right to a Nationality in Africa, which will provide the framework for countries’ nationality laws to ensure that each and every person can enjoy the right to a nationality.
Study undertaken by the Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Refugees, Asylum Seekers and Internally Displaced Persons, pursuant to Resolution 234 of April 2013 and approved by the Commission at its 55th Ordinary Session, May 2014

Press Release
African Union and UNHCR push for the right to nationality in Africa
Press Releases, 29 January 2015
‘A protocol on the right to nationality will strengthen democracy, regional integration, and reduce conflict in Africa’, a new report states

Addis Ababa, 29 January 2015- According to a new report launched by President Alassane Ouattara from Côte d’Ivoire and UN High Commissioner for Refugees António Guterres, gaps in the citizenship laws of many African States mean that they do not guarantee the right to a nationality for everyone. Gaps in nationality laws and discriminatory legal provisions in some countries are often further compounded by a range of issues, such as changing of State borders and the practice of pastoralism and other population migrations on the continent. As a result, hundreds of thousands, perhaps millions, of Africans whose legal existence is jeopardised by the fact that they are not recognised as nationals of at least one country or are simply stateless.

…”It is disturbing to note that in the 21st century Africa, hundreds of thousands of people are denied even the right to exist, not because they are not Africans, but because some people in power say they do not deserve to be; and the fact that their primary right to exist, is discriminately applied, means that the willful act of impoverishment is systematically being perpetrated, and we need to put a stop to this,” said Mrs. Maya Fadel-Sahli, Commissioner for ACHPR and Special Rapporteur on Refugees, Asylum Seekers, Migrants and Internally Displaced Persons in Africa.

The denial of citizenship rights has been a major cause of conflict and remains an obstacle to Africa becoming a peaceful and prosperous continent. It is often a direct consequence of discrimination based on ethnicity, religion or gender. The laws of at least half a dozen countries include provisions that restrict nationality from birth to members of certain ethnic groups. In at least 10 African countries, women cannot pass their nationality on to their children on an equal basis as men, which can perpetuate the problem into the next generation.

“For many people who are unable to prove their nationality, it is as if they were invisible, as if they do not exist”, High Commissioner Guterres said. “But denying people a nationality is a missed opportunity for countries on the way to development and prosperity, as it excludes the energy and talents of hundreds of thousands of people. By tackling these issues, Africa can help lead the way in efforts to end statelessness”.

The study concludes that despite the existence of a range of human rights provisions relating to non-discrimination and the right to nationality in Africa, there is often a legal void at the national level that stops people from exercising their right to a nationality. It urges AU member States to support the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights to draft a protocol on the Right to a Nationality in Africa, which will provide the framework for countries’ nationality laws to ensure that each and every person can enjoy the right to a nationality.

World Bank Group President: World is ‘Dangerously Unprepared’ for Future Pandemics

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World Bank [to 31 January 2015]

World Bank Group President: World is ‘Dangerously Unprepared’ for Future Pandemics
January 27, 2015
Kim outlines vision for private, public sectors to work together to lessen risk
WASHINGTON, January 27, 2015— Saying the world was “dangerously unprepared” for future pandemics, World Bank Group President Jim Yong Kim today laid out a vision in which insurance companies, governments, multi-lateral organizations, corporations and international donors worked together to build a system that would help all countries prepare for potentially catastrophic health disasters.

“The Ebola outbreak has been devastating in terms of lives lost and the loss of economic growth in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone,” Kim told an audience at Georgetown University. “We need to make sure that we get to zero cases in this Ebola outbreak. At the same time, we need to prepare for future pandemics that could become far more deadly and infectious than what we have seen so far with Ebola. We must learn the lessons from the Ebola outbreak because there is no doubt we will be faced with other pandemics in the years to come.”

Kim said that the World Bank Group has been working for several months with the World Health Organization, other United Nations agencies, academics, re-insurance company officials and others to work on a concept of developing a pandemic facility; discussions also were held in informal sessions at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, last week.

He said he expects that a proposal will be presented in the coming months to leaders of developed and developing countries. While a proposal would likely involve a combination of bonds and insurance instruments, he said that in some ways, a future pandemic response facility was similar to a homeowner’s insurance policy.

“This could work like insurance policies that people understand, like fire insurance,” he said. “The more that you are prepared for a fire, such as having several smoke detectors in your house, the lower the premium you pay.”

Kim continued: “The more that countries, multi-lateral institutions, corporations and donors work together to prepare for future pandemics – by building stronger health systems, improved surveillance and chains of supply and transportation, and fast-acting medical response teams — the lower the premium as well. That would benefit donors and others who would pay the premium, but the greatest benefit would be that market mechanisms would help us to push improvements in our preparedness for epidemics.”

The World Bank Group president said that one possible outcome from the development of a pandemic facility would be a strengthened World Health Organization, as well as building capacity in developing countries for stronger regional disease-control agencies.

Kim delivered his talk during the inaugural Global Futures Lecture at Georgetown. The lecture, titled ‘Lessons from Ebola: Toward a post-2015 strategy for pandemic response,” will kick off a semester-long conversation about the “Global Future of Development” at Georgetown as part of the university’s new Global Futures Initiative.

World Economic Forum (WEF) Research [to 31 January 2015]

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World Economic Forum (WEF) Research [to 31 January 2015]

Editor’s Note:
The World Economic Forum (WEF) meeting in Davos ran from 21 – 24 January 2015. We will provide an overview of key results n our next edition. WEF publishes reports throughout the year – including its Global Competitiveness Report, Global Risks Report and Global Gender Gap Report – but releases a number of additional studies just before the annual Davos meeting, We present a quick inventory of reports released over the last two weeks.

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The Global Risks report 2015
15 Jan 2015 :: 69 pages
[pdf: http://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_Global_Risks_2015_Report.pdf ]
The 2015 edition of the Global Risks report completes a decade of highlighting the most significant long-term risks worldwide, drawing on the perspectives of experts and global decision-makers.

Over that time, analysis has moved from risk identification to thinking through risk interconnections and the potentially cascading effects that result.
Taking this effort one step further, this year’s report underscores potential causes as well as solutions to global risks.

Not only do we set out a view on 28 global risks in the report’s traditional categories (economic, environmental, societal, geopolitical and technological) but also we consider the drivers of those risks in the form of 13 trends.

In addition, we have selected initiatives for addressing significant challenges, which we hope will inspire collaboration among business, government and civil society communities.
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Beyond Supply Chains Empowering Responsible Value Chains
24 Jan 2015
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Bridging the Skills and Innovation Gap to Boost Productivity in Latin America The Competitiveness Lab
23 Jan 2015
The Competitiveness Lab seeks to achieve this by designing competitiveness strategies, defining policies in specific areas …
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Project MainStream – a global collaboration to accelerate the transition towards the circular economy
23 Jan 2015
Project MainStream is an initiative of the World Economic Forum, in collaboration with the Ellen MacArthur Foundation with McKinsey …
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Data-Driven Development Pathways for Progress
23 Jan 2015
Written by the World Economic Forum Global Agenda Council on Data-Driven Development, this report serves to clarify how big data can …
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Enabling Trade: Increasing the Potential of Trade Reforms
23 Jan 2015
Efforts to eliminate trade barriers are high and we can observe a 39% level of implementation of trade facilitation measures. The news …
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Health Systems Leapfrogging in Emerging Economies: From Concept to Scale-up and System Transformation
22 Jan 2015
Developed by the World Economic Forum in collaboration with the Boston Consulting Group, Health Systems Leapfrogging in …
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Building Foundations Against Corruption Recommendations on Anti-Corruption in the Infrastructure & Urban Development Industries
19 Jan 2015
Bribery and corruption exist across all industries, but the engineering, construction and real estate sectors are particularly at …
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Benchmarking Inclusive Growth and Development: Discussion Paper
19 Jan 2015
Rising income inequality is often the cause of social and political unrest and is damaging to our future economic well-being. …

United Nations – Secretary General, Security Council, General Assembly [to 31 January 2015]

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United Nations – Secretary General, Security Council, General Assembly  [to 31 January 2015]
http://www.un.org/en/unpress/

30 January 2015
SC/11760
In Security Council Debate on Civilian Protection, Speakers Voice Deep Concern over Alarming Reports of Violence against Women, Mass Displacement
Chilling accounts of stonings, enslavement, rape and forced suicide bombings were among the current horrific targeted affects armed conflict had on women and girls, the Security Council was told, hearing from almost 70 speakers during its biannual day-long debate on civilian protection.

30 January 2015
ECOSOC/6661
Calling 2015 ‘Historic’ Opportunity to Advance Sustainable Development Goals, Economic and Social Council Holds Dialogue, Sharing Diverse Strategies
Stressing that 2015 provided a “historic” opportunity to advance the sustainable development agenda, United Nations and Government officials shed light today on strategies to make the Organization’s development system more nimble and effective in supporting priorities in countries worldwide over the next 15 years.

29 January 2015
SC/11759
In Security Council Wrap-Up Meeting, Members Voice Concern over Developing Crises, Persistent Challenges, Emphasizing Necessity of Unity for Body’s Effectiveness
The range of crises on the agenda of the Security Council at the start of 2015, as well as progress in Haiti seen on a recent visiting mission, showed the importance of addressing the root causes of conflict, the Permanent Representative of Chile, President of the body for January, said in a monthly wrap-up meeting this morning.

30 January 2015
SG/SM/16499-AFR/3065
Secretary-General Tells Ebola Round-Table Meeting Outbreak Demonstrates Importance of Robust Health Systems for Interconnected World’s Stability, Safety
Following are UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s remarks, as prepared for delivery, at the round table on the Ebola outbreak, in Addis Ababa today.

26 January 2015
SG/SM/16491-ECO/247-ENV/DEV/1486
Secretary-General Tells World Economic Forum ‘Resources, Technology and Capacity’ Key to Success of New Global Development Agenda
Following are UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s remarks at the “Making 2015 a Historic Year” dinner, in Davos, Switzerland, on 23 January.

26 January 2015
SG/SM/16488
Secretary-General, in Video Message to Pledge Conference, Says Funding GAVI’s Work Will Save 6 Million Lives, Generate Billions of Dollars in Economic Benefits
Following is the text of UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s video message for the GAVI Replenishment Conference, in Berlin, to be held from 26 to 27 January.

25 January 2015
SG/SM/16486
Secretary-General Tells World Health Organization Executive Board Strategy to End Ebola Outbreak Is Working, Urging Enhanced Preparations for Future Pandemics
Following is UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s message to the World Health Organization Executive Board Meeting on Ebola, in Geneva, Switzerland, today.

UN OHCHR Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights [to 31 January 2015]

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UN OHCHR Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights [to 31 January 2015]
http://www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/media.aspx?IsMediaPage=true

Malawi flooding: urgent assistance needed to confront massive and complex challenges, say UN experts
GENEVA (30 January 2015) – A group of United Nations human rights experts today urged the international community to rapidly provide all necessary funding and assistance to the Government of Malawi and humanitarian actors in response to some of the worst flooding in the country in living memory. Flooding has also affected Madagascar and Mozambique where international assistance is crucial to scale up responses.

“The flooding has displaced large numbers of people and presents massive and complex challenges for Governments and their humanitarian allies in the short, medium and longer-term,” said UN Special Rapporteur on the human rights of internally displaced persons Chaloka Beyani.

“Evacuation of affected populations should be undertaken where necessary to save lives, and an effective humanitarian response is essential to address the needs of internally displaced people and others affected. Helping people to return and reconstruct devastated homes – when circumstances allow – will be just one challenge among many to rebuild lives and livelihoods and should be part of a broader recovery plan,” he said.

An estimated 638,000 people have been affected in 15 districts of Malawi since early January with 79 dead and hundreds more injured or missing. At least 174,000 people have been internally displaced in the three worst hit districts, with the total number likely to be far higher. In Madagascar and Mozambique, more than 240,000 people have been affected by flooding. Rainstorms and floods have ruined vast areas of crops.

A Preliminary Response Plan to the emergency developed by the Government in partnership with aid agencies, estimates that USD 81 million is urgently required to respond to essential shelter, food, healthcare, water and sanitation and other urgent needs. Only around a quarter of this amount has been received to date…

SRSG/CAAC Office of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict [to 31 January 2015]

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SRSG/CAAC Office of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict [to 31 January 2015]
https://childrenandarmedconflict.un.org/virtual-library/press-release-archive/

27 Jan 2015
UN Special Representative for Children and Armed Conflict Welcomes Release of Children in South Sudan
NEW YORK – The Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict, Leila Zerrougui, welcomes the release of children associated for far too long with David Yau Yau’s South Sudan Democratic Army (SSDA/M) Cobra Faction.

Earlier today, 249 children recruited by the SSDA/M Cobra Faction were released in Gumuruk, Jonglei State. It is expected that all the children associated with David Yau Yau’s armed group will be freed in the coming weeks.

“I personally met David Yau Yau last June in Gumuruk and saw child soldiers associated with his armed group. He recognized he had children in his ranks and expressed his willingness to work with the United Nations to release them. I am pleased to see that months of tireless advocacy by the UN in South Sudan is finally yielding results,” said Leila Zerrougui…

SRSG/SVC Office of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Sexual Violence in Conflict [to 31 January 2015]

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SRSG/SVC Office of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Sexual Violence in Conflict [to 31 January 2015]
http://www.un.org/sexualviolenceinconflict/media/press-releases/

29 Jan 2015
Allegations of Ethnically Motivated Rape and Killing in Myanmar of Grave Concern
Statement by United Nations Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Sexual Violence in Conflict Zainab Hawa Bangura
I am gravely concerned by the killing and the allegations of the rape of two young female teachers from the Kachin Baptist Convention in a village in Northern Shan State in Myanmar on January 20th. I call on the Government of Myanmar to ensure that an impartial and effective investigation into this killing and alleged rape is conducted in order to ensure justice, reparations for the families and accountability for the perpetrators.

I am also concerned by the recent declaration made by an influential monk during the official visit to Myanmar of the human rights special rapporteur Ms. Yanghee Lee. I share the concern of the High Commissioner for Human Rights and find it unacceptable that a religious leader, who should be a natural ally in promoting and ensuring the respect of human dignity as well as in supporting victims and survivors of conflict, whatever their dominations, has used such a form of incitement to violence and hatred.

I call on the Government of Myanmar as well as religious and political leaders to condemn such positions and messages, and to make collective efforts in order to build a society respectful of religious freedom and non-discrimination. We also continue to receive allegations of ethnically-motivated rapes. I therefore urge the Government to put a final end to the impunity for conflict-related sexual violence that is particularly targeting ethnic minority areas.

UNOCHA [to 31 January 2015]

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UNOCHA [to 31 January 2015]
http://www.unocha.org/

30 Jan 2015
World: Statement by Kyung-Wha Kang, Assistant Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Deputy Emergency Relief Coordinator – Security Council Open Debate on the Protection of Civilians in Armed Conflict, 30 January 2015

29 Jan 2015
Somalia: Statement by the Humanitarian Coordinator for Somalia, Philippe Lazzarini

29 Jan 2015
Sudan: The United Kingdom’s Department for International Development contributes GBP £7 million (US $10.9 million) to the Sudan Common Humanitarian Fund for 2015

28 Jan 2015
Syrian Arab Republic: Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, Valerie Amos, Security Council Briefing on Syria – New York, 28 January 2015

26 Jan 2015
Central African Republic: Launch of the 2015 Inter-Agency Regional Refugee Response Plan for CAR Refugees: Remarks by Max Hadorn, Senior Humanitarian Advisor

UNISDR UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction [to 31 January 2015]

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UNISDR UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction [to 31 January 2015]
http://www.unisdr.org/archive

Disaster risk reduction and science should be core of sustainable development, experts say
30 Jan 2015
With fewer than 50 days to go before the Third UN World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction top scientists have called on governments to put evidence-based disaster risk reduction at the heart of their strategies for sustainable development.

Floods and poverty collide in Malawi
28 Jan 2015
Lashed by torrential rains, Malawi and neighbouring countries are in the grip of a major flood crisis, with scores of lives lost, and over 600,000 displaced in Malawi alone.

Potenza becomes role model for resilience
POTENZA, 26 January 2015 – The Italian Province of Potenza was recognized at the weekend as a role model for inclusive resilience by the UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction for its unique network of 100 cities which are all enrolled in the Making Cities Resilient Campaign.

UNICEF [to 31 January 2015]

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UNICEF [to 31 January 2015]
http://www.unicef.org/media/media_71508.html

Media Releases [selected]
UNICEF emergency supplies flown in as crisis worsens in Darfur
KHARTOUM, 28 January 2015 – UNICEF flew in today emergency supplies in response to the growing influx of displaced persons into Um Baru locality, north east of the State capital, El Fasher, in North Darfur. Over the last two weeks some 4,000 additional people have arrived to the locality, most of them are women and children. Their number continues to increase daily.

Devastating Middle East polio outbreak on verge of being stopped, say experts
BEIRUT, 27 January 2015 – A 12-month emergency immunization response across the Middle East appears to have halted an outbreak of polio that began in Syria and Iraq, according to health experts meeting in Beirut.

Over 1,000 children in bomb shelters in Ukraine urgently need help: UNICEF
GENEVA/KYIV/NEW YORK, 27 January 2015 – Over 1,000 children are forced to seek refuge in underground bomb shelters in Donetsk city due to ongoing violence in eastern Ukraine, UNICEF said.

 

Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues [to 31 January 2015]

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Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues [to 31 January 2015]
http://undesadspd.org/IndigenousPeoples.aspx

Meeting
Expert Group Meeting: “Dialogue on an optional protocol to the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples”, 28 – 29 January 2015
UN Headquarters, New York
28 – 29 January 2015
The Expert Group Meeting on the theme “Dialogue on an optional protocol to the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples”, to be based on the study prepared on that topic (E/C.19/2014/7) and having a focus on land, territories and resource rights, together with all of the rights contained in the UN Declaration, in particular the right to self-determination, self-government and autonomy, as well as issues raised at the thirteenth session of the Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues is being organized following a decision by the Economic and Social Council, authorizing a three day international expert group meeting. The results of the meeting will be reported to the Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues at its fourteenth session in April and May 2015.

WHO & Regionals [to 31 January 2015]

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WHO & Regionals [to 31 January 2015]
:: 136th WHO Executive Board session
26 January–3 February 2015
Geneva, Switzerland

Documentation
– Provisional agenda
– Main documents

Resolutions to 31 January 2015
– EB136.R1 – Global technical strategy and targets for malaria 2016–2030
– EB136.R2 – Appointment of the Regional Director for Africa
– EB136.R3 – Expression of appreciation to Dr Luis Gomes Sambo
– EB136.R4 – Appointment of the Regional Director for Europe
– EB136.R5 – Yellow fever risk mapping and recommended vaccination for travellers
– EB136.R6 – The recommendations of the review committee on second extensions for establishing national public health capacities and on IHR implementation
– EB136.R7 – Strengthening emergency and essential surgical care and anaesthesia as a component of universal health coverage

.

:: Global Alert and Response (GAR): Disease Outbreak News (DONs)
– Human infection with avian influenza A(H7N9) virus – China 27 January 2015

:: The Weekly Epidemiological Record (WER) 30 January 2015, vol. 90, 5 (pp. 25–32) includes:
– Schistosomiasis: number of people treated worldwide in 2013

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WHO Regional Offices

WHO African Region AFRO
Press Releases
:: WHO Executive Board appoints Dr Matshidiso Moeti as new Regional Director for Africa
GENEVA, 27 January 2015 — The WHO Executive Board, currently holding its 136th session, has appointed Dr Matshidiso Rebecca Moeti as the new Regional Director for WHO’s Africa Region. Dr Moeti was nominated Regional Director by the health ministers of the 47 Member States of the WHO African Region at the annual Regional Committee for Africa in Cotonou, Benin, in November 2014. Dr Moeti will take up her appointment for a five-year term on 1 February 2015, succeeding Dr Luis Gomes Sambo who has served as Regional Director for the past 10 years…
:: “Intensify surveillance” to beat Ebola says Dr Moeti – 27 January 2015
:: Learn from the past to build better for the future – 26 January 2015

WHO Region of the Americas PAHO
:: Canada reports the Americas’ first case of avian influenza A (H7N9) in humans (01/28/2015)

WHO South-East Asia Region SEARO
No new digest content identified.

WHO European Region EURO
:: Zsuzsanna Jakab appointed WHO Regional Director for Europe for second term 27-01-2015

WHO Eastern Mediterranean Region EMRO
:: Devastating Middle East polio outbreak on verge of being stopped, say experts 27 January 2015

WHO Western Pacific Region
No new digest content identified.

UNFPA United Nations Population Fund [to 31 January 2015]

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UNFPA United Nations Population Fund [to 31 January 2015]
http://www.unfpa.org/public/

29 January 2015
News
Floods hit hundreds of thousands in Southern Africa; women and girls most vulnerable
JOHANNESBURG/NEW YORK – Widespread flooding has affected hundreds of thousands of people across Southern Africa. Torrential rainfall and the overflowing Zambezi River have destroyed crops, infrastructure and thousands…

28 January 2015
News
Flash mobs converge on Viet Nam, call for access to sexual and reproductive health
HA NOI, Viet Nam – Nearly 3,000 students from 30 universities took part in flash mobs across Viet Nam to raise awareness of sexual and reproductive health issues. The activists converged on the grounds of a popular…

26 January 2015
News
Conflict-affected youth become new generation of leaders in Colombia
VILLAVICENCIO, Colombia – “I was 14 years old when my family fled,” said Viviana, now 26. “We arrived in a new town where we thought we would be able to live in peace, but there were armed groups there, too.” Viviana…

UNDP United Nations Development Programme [to 31 January 2015]

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UNDP United Nations Development Programme [to 31 January 2015]
http://www.undp.org/content/undp/en/home/presscenter.html

30 Jan 2015
Once in a generation opportunity to set a transformational global agenda for sustainable development
The UN contribution to Ebola recovery, tackling crises, building resilience, climate change and poverty reduction dominated discussions during UNDP/UNFPA/UNOPS Executive Board meetings in New York this week, against the backdrop of the tremendous opportunity presented by events in 2015 for sustainable development.

29 Jan 2015
Helen Clark: Statement at Opening of UNDP briefing on Ebola Recovery
New York, New York

29 Jan 2015
UNDP’s new structure improves efficiency
UNDP’s core goal is to help countries eradicate poverty while reducing inequalities and exclusion. It aims to do so by working with partner organizations and governments across the world to develop sustainable development pathways, promote inclusive governance and build resilience to crisis.

DESA United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs [to 31 January 2015]

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DESA United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs [to 31 January 2015]
http://www.un.org/en/development/desa/news.html

Giving young people a voice in development
30 January 2015, New York
Youth will take centre stage at the United Nations on 2 and 3 February during the annual Economic and Social Council’s (ECOSOC) Youth Forum, exploring the role of young people in the transition from the Millennium Development Goals to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The event will give the world’s youth a powerful platform to engage in dialogue with decision-makers on development issues most important to them