News headlines in October 2021, page 3

At least 200 million boys and girls, live in 31 countries which do not have the resources to deal with remote learning during any future emergency school closures, the UN Children’s Fund, UNICEF, said in a study released on Thursday. 

Vulnerable countries are stepping up and taking climate action, amid a slow response from some of the biggest emitters of carbon dioxide, said the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) on Thursday. 

An independent UN expert on Thursday, strongly criticized countries which continue to boycott the 20-year-old Durban Declaration against racism, and called on them to recommit to combatting discrimination and intolerance, in line with the landmark conference which took place in the South African city, in 2001.

A new strategy announced on Thursday by the World Health Organization (WHO) calls for $23.4 billion to combat inequities in accessing COVID-19 vaccines, tests and treatments, as cases of the disease mount globally for the first time in two months. 

Ahead of the UN Climate Conference COP26, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights said on Thursday it was time now to act, and put “empty speeches, broken promises, and unfulfilled pledges behind us”. 

The deputy UN chief on Thursday emphasized the “vital importance” of peace and security in Africa, thanking ambassadors in the Security Council for helping the UN shine a spotlight on the issue, and how all Member States can work with the African Union and other regional and sub-regional groups, to make lives more secure across the continent.

MADRID, Oct 28 (IPS) - Can yet another dispendious world gathering find a way to halt the ongoing suicidal war on Nature, which is leading to the destruction of all sources of life?

Forests in at least 10 World Heritage sites have become net sources of carbon, due to pressure from human activity and climate change, according to a new report released on Thursday, by the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). 

Green industrial policies will be critical for developing countries to adapt to climate change, UN trade and development body UNCTAD said in a report published on Thursday. 

The delivery of reproductive health services, including safe childbirth, has been seriously impacted in Afghanistan, due to the turmoil surrounding the Taliban takeover of the country.  Najaba, 36, has experienced firsthand how the dangers of pregnancy, collided with rising insecurity, according to the UN reproductive and maternal health agency, UNFPA, which continues to provide lifesaving services on the ground.