March 27, 2020 No comments
Critical work of UN ‘largely uninterrupted’, despite unprecedented challenge of COVID-19
INTERNATIONAL, 27 March 2020, UN Affairs - Although the COVID-19 pandemic has forced the United Nations to operate in new ways, its vital work worldwide continues largely uninterrupted, heads of UN principal organs assured Member States, during a joint briefing on Friday held online. In his welcoming remarks, the UN General Assembly President underscored the value of safety and solidarity in the face of a crisis that has affected practically every corner of the globe. “Although we are not sitting together, be rest assured that we are in this together”, said Tijjani Muhammad Bande. “We must lead by example. We must stay at home, abide by social distancing recommendations, wash our hands, and look out for one another”. Mr. Bande reported that thanks to technology,...
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March 27, 2020 No comments
Peacekeeping radio stations provide COVID-19 information to vulnerable communities in conflict-affected countries
INTERNATIONAL, 27 March 2020, Health - UN Peacekeeping radio stations have in recent decades helped build support for peace process in a dozen countries around the world including Cambodia, Croatia, Namibia and Timor-Leste. Today, these stations are playing another vital role – getting the word out to vulnerable communities in conflict-affected states about the coronavirus pandemic and how people can protect themselves and others from getting the disease. "#coronavirus is real. Keep safe," says #SouthSudan-ese musician Check B Magic.#COVID2019 #SSOT UN Peacekeeping currently has large, popular and trusted radio stations in four African countries: The Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Central African Republic, which have already recorded cases of COVID-19; and Mali and South Sudan which have not. The stations ability to reach both big urban centers and isolated...
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March 27, 2020 No comments
UNFPA advocates for women, girls suffering unseen impacts of COVID-19 pandemic
INTERNATIONAL, 27 March 2020, Women - The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) is pledging support for those suffering from invisible impacts of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, including women and girls whose access to life-saving sexual and reproductive health care may be disrupted. In a statement on Friday, Executive Director of the UN sexual and reproductive health agency, Natalia Kanem, said the Fund’s work is ramping up even as the novel coronavirus continues to test health care systems around the world. As we continue responding to the #coronavirus outbreak, @UNFPA is calling for renewed action to provide life-saving sexual and reproductive health for the world's most vulnerable. See @Atayeshe's statement: http://unf.pa/gfd#COVID19 She warned that women, girls and health workers must not be overlooked as the world responds to the greatest health...
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March 27, 2020 No comments
Protect ‘healthcare heroes’ from COVID-19, urges UN rights expert
INTERNATIONAL, 27 March 2020, Health - States and business leaders must step up efforts to ensure that the selfless doctors, nurses, first-responders and other medical professionals working on the frontlines of the COVID-19 pandemic receive adequate protective equipment, a UN rights expert said on Friday. “Their tireless work and self-sacrifice show the best of humanity”, said Baskut Tuncak Special Rapporteur on the implications for human rights of the environmentally sound management and disposal of hazardous substances and wastes. Hailing the healthcare workers as “heroes” who “must be protected”, he stressed that unacceptable shortages in critical protective equipment that can stop them from being infected, continue to plague nearly all nations battling the new coronavirus. Moreover, low-income countries have even fewer resources, including the necessary protection for their...
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March 27, 2020 No comments
Migrants in Hawaii care for the elderly, the aloha way
INTERNATIONAL, 27 March 2020, Health - Migrants are playing an increasingly important role in the provision of health care around the world. The number of doctors, nurses and other medical professionals who move from developing countries to take up posts in developed countries is expected to rise as the global population of older persons and children continues to grow. It’s three o’clock in the afternoon at the Lunalilo Home, a residential and day care centre for elderly people nestling at the foot of a dormant volcano on the outskirts of Honolulu, the capital of the US state of Hawaii. Novena Sanchez, originally from the Philippines, busies herself looking after the kupuna, the Hawaiian term for older people, who have gathered in the home’s communal room...
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