UN Weekly Update

As all you delegates know, the most important part of being an ambassador to a country is actually knowing what is going on in the world. With so many different countries involved in the UN, the list of issues changes every day, and when certain situations are resolved, new ones are being brought up. So for this week, we wanted to give you a quick recap on the current state of affairs of the most pressing issues the UN is dealing with today. While we wish ALL of you look at the United Nations News Centre website all day, every day in preparation, we know your busy schedules only allow for brief updates on foreign affairs. So we took the pleasure of compiling a list highlighting the main topics. So let’s get started!

• Attacks in Nigeria

• Twenty people were reported dead in a double suicide attack Wednesday in Maiduguri in Nigeria. United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has condemned the attacks, which are suspected to be carried out by Boko Haram. According to the UN News Centre, “The Secretary-General also reiterates the UN’s support to the Nigerian Government in its fight against terrorism, which should be grounded in international humanitarian, human rights and refugee law,” the statement concluded.

• UNWFP feeds thousands in Chad and Cameroon

• More than 5,000 displaced people in Chad and Cameroon received food and nutrition support from The United Nations Word Food Programme in the past week. The WFP said plans to assist up to 35,000 displaced people this month.

• Sexual Expoltation by Peacekeepers

• Last week, The United Nations Security Council endorsed special measures recommended by Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to prevent and oppose sexual exploitation and abuse by UN peacekeepers. “The United Nations is sending a very strong signal that the days of silence and compromising with behavior related to sexual exploitation and abuse by its troops are over, according to the UN envoy in the Central African Republic (CAR).”

• Food Vouchers in Yemen

• The United Nations food relief agency has begun distributing vouchers to assist nearly 120,000 people living in Yemen’s capital, Sana’a, with plans to reach one million people across the country by the end of 2016.

• Syrians Peace talks continue

• The United Nations envoy mediating peace talks among the Syrian parties gave a progress report Wednesday, saying that the issue of detainees, as well as humanitarian aid to Daraya and other sites of heavy fighting have been raised by opposition representatives, mediated by Mr. de Mistura. Both issues, the envoy said, could be taken up by the humanitarian taskforce, which has been created by the International Syrian Support Group (ISSG) to oversee aid delivery since a cessation of hostilities took hold on 27 February.

• Zika Virus

• Improving water and sanitation services may be the best answer to addressing the outbreak of the Zika virus, according to United Nations human rights experts. Also, according to UCAR, the Aedes aegypti mosquito population will increase in the summer months across the Southern and Eastern areas of the United States, increasing the chance for spread of the Virus to the United States

• Water Contamination ongoing in Flint, Michigan

• The United Nations is continuing to urge the United States to solve the water contamination crisis and reduce levels of lead in the water in Flint, Michigan, claiming “no parent should have to endure the mental torment that will haunt parents in Flint, and no child should be denied the right to enjoy the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health.”