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Calls made for ‘hydro-diplomacy’ as world faces growing water shortages

INTERNATIONAL – The international community must gear up for a new era of “hydro-diplomacy” as the threat of water scarcity risks plunging the world into a period of geopolitical tension and stunted development, United Nations Deputy Secretary-General Jan Eliasson told delegates gathered at the General Assembly today, March 30.

“Water is one of the highest priorities for development and lives in dignity, as well as a serious factor in maintaining peace and security,” the Deputy Secretary-General said inremarksto open theHigh-Level Interactive Dialogue on the International Decade for Action ‘Water for Life,’ 2005-2015.

“The lack of water causes individual tragedies,” he continued. “And it also, growingly, constitutes a threat to international peace and security. There is a need for ‘hydro-diplomacy’ – making scarce water a reason for cooperation, rather than a reason for conflict.”

Mr. Eliasson warned that in a period of “intensifying disasters, both man-made and natural,” social and economic stresses related to water supply would increasingly flare up, spawning tensions between communities and nations.

The dire straits facing the world’s water situation was recently amplified in the UN’s 2015 World Water Development report, released by the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and in time for last week’sWorld Water Day.

According to the report, the planet will face a 40 per cent shortfall in water supply in 2030 unless the international community “dramatically” improves water supply management. Demand for water is slated to skyrocket 55 per cent by 2050 while 20 per cent of global groundwater is already overexploited.

As such, the Deputy Secretary-General called for greater international cooperation based on the growing communal urgency and need for water around the world.

“Shared water sources have historically brought countries closer together. Instead of seeing water-sharing as a problem, we have to treat it as a potential solution, with the help of innovative and dynamic hydro-diplomacy,” he added.

Mr. Eliasson’s remarks come as Member States prepare to roll out a post-2015 development agenda that will focus on sustainability and which may also touch upon issues of issues of water governance and quality to wastewater management and the prevention of natural disasters.

Water consumption, the UN has noted, also directly affects quality of life for millions of people around the world in developing and least developed countries.

On average, nearly 1,000 children die every day from diarrhoeal disease linked to unsafe drinking water, poor sanitation, or poor hygiene. In three countries in particular – the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Mozambique and Papua New Guinea – more than half the population does not have improved drinking water.

“The impact of water on human health as well as economic well-being is better understood than a decade ago, including water’s critical importance for households, industries, agriculture, cities, energy production and transportation,” President of the General Assembly, Sam Kutesa, stated in a message to the meeting delivered by the Permanent Representative of Iceland to the United Nations, Einar Gunnarsson.

He observed that despite the considerable accomplishments made under the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), some 800 million people continue to live without access to an improved water source while many more remain without a safe and sustainable water supply.

Nevertheless, as the international community hurtles through a year of critical international meetings culminating in the post-2015 development agenda negotiations in New York in September and the climate change summit in Paris in December, the chance to reverse course and build a better future remains within reach.

“This year represents a pivotal opportunity for the international community,” he concluded. “We are in the midst of an historic opportunity to change our world by improving livelihoods everywhere and protecting our planet.”

At the same time, the UN Special Rapporteur on the human right to water and sanitation, Léo Heller, sought to frame the issue of water within a human rights viewpoint, emphasizing that everyone is “equally entitled to have access to safe, affordable and accessible water and sanitation.”

“What is needed is a better application of resources – by identifying and targeting those who still do not have access; by practicing effective mechanisms for affordability; by integrating the principle of equality and non-discrimination in policies and programmes and by putting in place the necessary physical and regulatory frameworks to monitor who are benefitting from interventions and who are being left behind,” he affirmed.

“No one should be left without access to water and sanitation under the new post-2015 development framework.”

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Earth Hour 2015: UN dims lights to focus attention on climate action, sustainability

INTERNATIONAL – The United Nations will go dark later this evening as the Organization shuts off the lights at its iconic Headquarters complex in New York and other facilities around the world in observance of 'Earth Hour,' an annual global event raising awareness about the need to take action on climate change and promoting sustainable energy consumption.

In avideo message, UNSecretary-GeneralBan Ki-moon, said: “Climate change is a people problem. People cause climate change and people suffer from climate change. People can also solve climate change. Earth Hour shows what is possible when we unite in support of our environment.”

Organized by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), Earth Hour encourages individuals, companies, organizations and Governments to switch off their lights for one hour at 8:30 p.m., local time worldwide, to focus attention on people-driven solutions to protecting the planet and building a bright, sustainable future.

The Secretary-General notes that this coming December in Paris, the United Nations will bring countries together to agree a new, universal and meaningful climate accord, culminating a “year of action” on sustainable development.

“By turning out the lights, we highlight that more than 1 billion people lack access to electricity. Their future well-being requires access to clean, affordable energy,” said Mr. Ban, stressing that with the world's lights being switched off, Earth Hour shows what is possible when the international community unites in support of a cause.

First launched in 2007, Earth Hour has become an annual event, mobilizing hundreds of millions of individuals to participate and growing to become the world's largest grassroots movement for the environment.

According to the WWF, the UN family will join the thousands of homes, offices, skylines and monuments that will go dark as the world unites to inspire collective action to change climate change. Over 1,200 landmarks such as the Eiffel Tower in Paris and the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco will turn off their lights. Close to 40 UNESCO World Heritage Sites including the Acropolis in Athens and Edinburgh Castle in Scotland are also scheduled to go dark in support of Earth Hour.

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UN rights office welcomes Malawi leader’s condemnation of attacks on people with albinism

INTERNATIONAL – The United Nations Human Rights office today welcomed Malawi President Peter Mutharika's strong statement condemning the recent spate of attacks on people with albinism in his country and urged that the measures he outlined to arrest those responsible for such attacks and better protect albinos be launched “without delay.”

“We hope that this series of measures will result in a significant improvement in the security and well-being of people with albinism in Malawi,” the southern African country where at least six incidents have been reported this year,saidRupert Colville, spokesperson for the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR).

Mr. Colville welcomed President Mutharika’s statement last week in which he called on security agencies in Malawi to be placed on high alert, to arrest people responsible for such attacks and provide maximum protection to people with albinism.

And this week Malawi’s Minister of Gender, Children, Disability and Social Welfare, Patricia Kaliati, unveiled a five-point plan of action, which included the development of an education and awareness programme, strengthening of community policing structure, research to understand the root causes of the problem and what is done with the body parts of people with albinism.

We “urge the authorities to ensure that the Government’s action plan is fully implemented without delay,” Colville told reporters at the bi-weekly press briefing today in Geneva, Switzerland.

Noting the Minister’s reference to the Government considering appealing against some lenient sentences, the spokesperson said: “We would welcome this as well, and note that earlier this week a man received a sentence of just two years after being convicted of attempting to kidnap his 11-year-old niece Mina Jeffrey.” Her uncle later reportedly said he had been promised $6,500 for her body.

Attacks against albinism had traditionally been recorded in Tanzania, Burundi and Malawi, Mr. Colville said, noting that it was a recent phenomenon in Malawi, while attacks have recently been reported in Mozambique.

The UN has expressed revulsion at a recent spike in gruesome attacks against people with albinism in several African countries where in the past six months, at least 15 albinos were abducted, wounded, or killed, including three such incidents last week.

In Tanzania, in early March, President Jakaya Kikwete promised to put an end to the current wave of killings in that country, saying he will not allow them to escalate as they have done in previous years.

“We have been informed that the Tanzanian authorities, in particular the Attorney General’s Chambers, have started to develop a plan of action to raise public awareness and fight against impunity,” according to spokesman Colville. “However it appears that most of the witchdoctors/arrested over the past few weeks have now been released.”

“We once again call upon the Tanzanian authorities to take prompt and firm action to ensure accountability for the crimes committed against people with albinism and to take effective measures to protect this particularly vulnerable group,” he said.

Mr. Colville also welcomed the establishment of the post by the UN Human Rights Council of an Independent Expert on the enjoyment of human rights of persons with albinism.

“This important new mandate will help give a voice to people with albinism and contribute to their protection, through a dialogue with concerned States, enhanced awareness raising and reporting, and the provision of advisory services and technical assistance,” according to the human rights spokesman.

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INTERPOL deploys team to support investigation into Germanwings plane crash

LYON, France – At the request of French authorities, INTERPOL is deploying an Incident Response Team (IRT) to support the investigation into the Germanwings plane crash in the French Alps which killed 150 people.

Based at the French investigation crisis cell in Paris the team, initially comprising four experts, will provide Disaster Victim Identification (DVI) and linguistic support in addition to assisting the coordination of ante-mortem or AM data collection to help with the identification process.

“INTERPOL is committed to providing whatever support is required by any of the affected countries following this tragic incident,” said Secretary General Jürgen Stock.

“With victims from around the world, international cooperation is essential in ensuring their accurate, dignified and swift recovery and identification. Our thoughts and prayers are with the family, friends and all those affected,” concluded Mr Stock.

Supported by INTERPOL’s 24-hour Command and Coordination Centre (CCC) at the General Secretariat headquarters in Lyon, the IRT will also assess requirements for any additional DVI and other specialist deployment.

INTERPOL’s internationally recognized DVI guidelines are the global standard in identifying victims and have previously been the basis for successful victim identification following major disasters including the 2004 Asian tsunami, the 2009 Air France AF 447 tragedy and the Malaysia Airlines MH 17 crash in Ukraine last year.

The INTERPOL DVI process ensures a structured collection and comparison of identifiers such as fingerprints, dental records or DNA samples with ones recovered from the victims’ homes or provided by family members. (INTERPOL)

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New UN report shows wars in Syria and Iraq drive highest asylum numbers in 22 years

INTERNATIONAL – The wars in Syria and Iraq, as well as armed conflicts, human rights violations and deteriorating security and humanitarian conditions elsewhere, has pushed the number of people seeking asylum in industrialized countries to the highest level since 1992 at the beginning of the conflict in Bosnia and Herzegovina, according to a United Nations report released today.

“Our response has to be just as generous now as it was then – providing access to asylum, resettlement opportunities and other forms of protection for the people fleeing these terrible conflicts,” said UN High Commissioner for Refugees António Guterres, putting the figures in historical context.

Asylum Trends 2014,” released today at the UN refugee agency's headquarters in Geneva, puts the estimated number of new asylum applications lodged in industrialized countries throughout the year at 866,000 – a 45 per cent increase from 2013, when 596,600 claims were registered.

Accordingto the High Commissioner's office (UNHCR), which emerged in the wake of the Second World War to help Europeans displaced by that conflict, the number of people applying for refugee status in industrialized countries is just one element in the global picture of forced displacement from conflict and persecution.

Worldwide, by the end of 2013, 51.2 million individuals were forcibly displaced as a result of persecution, conflict, generalized violence or human rights violations. Of these, some 16.7 million people were refugees and 33.3 million others were displaced in their own country.

UNHCR's Global Trends 2014 report, due in June 2015, will provide a complete picture of global displacement last year.

Today's report – based on data received from 44 governments in Europe, North America and parts of the Asia-Pacific – showed the 2014 asylum figure is the highest since 1992, at the beginning of the conflict in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

“In the 1990s, the Balkan wars created hundreds of thousands of refugees and asylum-seekers,” Mr. Guterres said. “Many of them found refuge in industrialized countries in Europe, North America and elsewhere.”

“Today, the surge in armed conflicts around the world presents us with similar challenges, in particular the dramatic situation in Syria,” he said.

Syrians were by far the largest group among those seeking asylum in 2014, with almost 150,000 applications – one in every five asylum claims in the industrialized world.

Iraqis accounted for 68,700 applications, almost double the number in 2013, the report showed.

“Afghans were the third largest group, with almost 60,000 applications, followed by citizens of Serbia (and Kosovo) and Eritreans,” UNHCR noted.

The industrialized country receiving the largest number of asylum-seekers in 2014 was Germany, with over 173,000 applications, according to the report. Syrians made up a quarter of all asylum applications in Germany.

The United States received an estimated 121,200 asylum claims, mostly from Mexico and countries in Central America.

Turkey, which by the end of 2014 hosted over 1.5 million Syrian refugees, received 87,800 new asylum applications in 2014, mainly from Iraqis.

Sweden ranked fourth among the 44 industrialized countries, with 75,100 applications, mainly from Syrians and Eritreans, and Italy registered 63,700 new applications in 2014, the highest on record. Asylum-seekers in Italy came mainly from Mali, Nigeria and Gambia.

The top five receiving countries (Germany, US, Turkey, Sweden, and Italy) accounted for 60 per cent of all new asylum claims.

UNHCR noted that Russia, which was not included in this report for methodological reasons, received some 265,400 applications for temporary asylum and 5,800 applications for refugee status from Ukrainians during 2014.

It also noted that the number of Ukrainians seeking asylum in the 44 countries included in the report went up from 1,400 in 2013 to 15,700 in 2014.

The report reveals other disparities, UNHCR said, as when a country's population size is taken into account, for example. Relative to the size of its population, Sweden is the country with the largest number of asylum-seekers (24.4 asylum-seekers per 1,000 inhabitants on average, during the last five years), followed by Malta, Luxembourg, Switzerland, and Montenegro.

While most industrialized countries saw increases in the number of asylum applicants during last year, some countries registered a decrease. Australia's numbers went down 24 per cent from 11,700 in 2013 to less than 9,000 in 2014.

UNHCR today deals with 42.9 million so-called “people of concern.” They include 23.9 million internally displaced people, 11.7 million refugees, 1.8 million returnees, 3.5 million stateless people, more than 1.2 asylum-seekers, and 836,000 other persons of concern.

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2014 ‘devastating’ year for Palestinians, says UN humanitarian report

INTERNATIONAL – Amid a surge in hostilities and an ongoing blockade, 2014 was a traumatic year for millions of people living in the occupied Palestinian territory, a senior United Nations humanitarian official said today, as the Organization released its latest report on the situation on the ground.

“Continued occupation undermines the ability of Palestinians to live normal lives,” UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator for the territory, James Rawley,saidin conjunction with the release of the 2014 Annual Humanitarian Overview by the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).

“Were these factors removed and related policies changed, international humanitarian assistance would not be necessary here,” he added, while acknowledging that last year had been a “devastating” one for Palestinians in both Gaza and the West Bank.

The OCHA report, entitledFragmented Lives, recalls that 1.8 million people in Gaza experienced an escalation in hostilities during the 2014 conflict between Gaza-based Palestinian militants and Israeli forces, resulting in over 1,500 Palestinian civilian fatalities, including more than 550 children, and leaving some 100,000 residents without a home. In addition, five Israeli civilians, including a child, as well as a security guard were killed.

Moreover, it adds, reconstruction efforts in Gaza following the 51-day conflict have been slow, hampered by the continued blockade and the lack of funding, although the temporary Gaza Reconstruction Mechanism has enabled the import of construction material.

The ongoing crisis in the occupied Palestinian territory has been overwhelming relief efforts in recent months. Just last month, Mr. Rawley presented OCHA’s 2015 Strategic Response Plan in an effort to raise $705 million required to help the millions of Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank with their sharply increasing humanitarian needs.

But, he warned, there were also many lingering difficulties. A lack of donor support for the Plan would result in the continued displacement of over 22,000 families while up to 1.6 million people across the occupied Palestinian territory would be deprived of adequate water and sanitation services, and food assistance. Access to basic healthcare and education would also be compromised.

In today’s press release, Mr. Rawley added that the problems for the occupied Palestinian territory were not only isolated to Gaza, where the ongoing blockade had placed a stranglehold on the enclave’s economy and restricted movement for its residents, but also spilled over into the West Bank, including East Jerusalem.

“A record number of 1,215 Palestinians were displaced due to home demolitions by Israeli authorities, while settlement and settler activity continued, in contravention of international law, and contributed to humanitarian vulnerability of affected Palestinian communities,” he noted.

In 2014, according to OCHA figures, the Israeli authorities destroyed 590 Palestinian-owned structures in Area C [over 60 per cent of the West Bank where Israel retains control over security, planning and building] and East Jerusalem causing the highest level of displacement in the West Bank since the Office began systematically monitoring the issue in 2008.

The UN has also noted that planning policies applied by Israel in Area C and East Jerusalem continue to discriminate against Palestinians, making it extremely difficult for them to obtain building permits.

Nevertheless, despite describing a grim outlook for the occupied Palestinian territory, the OCHA report also suggests a range of actions that would help achieve progress on the ground, including Israel fulfilling its “primary obligations to protect the Palestinian civilian population” and the fulfilment by all parties to the conflict of their legal obligations to conduct hostilities in accordance with international law.

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Lowest weekly total of Ebola cases in 2015 reported, UN health agency says

INTERNATIONAL - The first case of Ebola in three weeks was found in Liberia, prompting heightened vigilance, while the United Nations health agency noted some improvements in Guinea, where the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the Guinean Scouts held campfire sensitization sessions as part of its efforts to overcome community resistance to health interventions.

“Investigations into the origin of the newly reported case in Liberia are ongoing,” the World Health Organization (WHO) said in itslatest update. “Heightened vigilance is being maintained throughout the country” along with efforts to reinforce surveillance networks and cross-border controls.

The one new confirmed case was reported from the greater Monrovia area of Montserrado county, where the patient went to a hospital on 19 March, and was laboratory confirmed as Ebola positive the next day, according to WHO.

The agency went on to say that the patient is not a contact associated with the country’s last confirmed case, who tested negative for a second time on 3 March.

In its latest report, WHO said 79 new confirmed cases of Ebola were reported in the week to 22 March: the lowest weekly total in 2015 from the epidemic in West Africa that has affected nearly 25,000 people with more than 10,000 deaths.

“With the exception of the case in Liberia, transmission has been restricted to districts in and around Conakry to the north and Freetown to the south,” WHO said, referring to the capitals of Guinea and Sierra Leone respectively.

And “response indicators for Guinea suggest some improvements compared with recent weeks,” the agency reported. “Case incidence declined compared with the previous week in every prefecture to have reported a case in the past 21 days.”

However, WHO cautioned, “the fact that fewer than half of cases arose from known contacts, and the number of reported unsafe burials has increased suggests that the outbreak in Guinea continues to be driven by unknown chains of transmission.”

UNICEF conducted several social mobilization and community engagement activities in its fight against Ebola in Guinea, where religious leaders at the Grand Mosque of Kourouss delivered Ebola sensitization messages following the reading of the Quran with 14 imams reaching more than 500 people, the UN Mission for Ebola Emergency Response (UNMEER) said in itsdaily report.

In partnership with the Guinean Scouts, UNICEF is working to overcome community resistance to Ebola-related humanitarian interventions in numerous locations. And as part of this effort, UNICEF and the Scouts held campfire Ebola sensitization sessions and screened sensitization films during evening gatherings, according to UNMEER.

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UNESCO Sint Maarten Launches Film Marking Slave Route Heritage as UN marks Day of Remembrance with calls to end modern slavery

SINT MAARTEN/INTERNATIONAL – On Wednesday March 25th the International Day of Remembrance of the Victims of Slavery and the Transatlantic Slave Trade, a short film (approx. 12 minutes) about the Slave Route Heritage on Sint Maarten, which was filmed by the students of SIMARC under the leadership of Jay Havisier, and the initiative of the St. Maarten National Commission for UNESCO, is available for to commemorate the twentieth anniversary of the Slave Route Project.

The film is made available to the public via the St. Maarten National Commission for UNESCO's Facebook page, located at Facebook.com/UNESCOStMaarten. 

The public is hereby encouraged to view and share the short film made by SIMARC students and also to like the UNESCO Sint Maarten FB page for more information and articles about the National Commission and its work in Sint Maarten.

As the international community gathers to commemorate the millions of victims exploited by slavery and the transatlantic slave trade, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today (March 25) warned that the insidious practice of forced bondage continued to reverberate around the world in various forms – from forced labour and trafficking to sexual exploitation and captivity in slavery-like conditions.

“Tragically, slavery has still not ended. Slavery stubbornly persists in many parts of the world,” Mr. Ban declared in his annual message marking the International Day of Remembrance of the Victims of Slavery and the Transatlantic Slave Trade

“These despicable practices could not exist without deep-seated racism. It is absolutely vital that the dangers inherent in racism are made crystal clear to all.”

On March 25 every year since 2007, the UN observes the International Day to honour the more than 15 million men, women, and children who suffered and died during the more than 400-year transatlantic slave trade, the largest forced migration in history.

This year's theme, “Women and Slavery,” pays tribute to and celebrates the strength of the many enslaved women who endured unbearable hardships, including sexual exploitation, as well as those who fought for freedom from slavery and advocated for its abolition.

According to the UN, it is estimated that one third of the approximately 15 million people who were deported from Africa through the Transatlantic Slave Trade were women.

In remembering their grim legacy, Mr. Ban acknowledged that women slaves had played “a key role” in maintaining the dignity of their communities, adding that “too often their leadership and brave resistance have been underestimated or forgotten.”

The Day will be marked by a number of commemorative ceremonies held at UN Headquarters in New York, including a special General Assembly meeting, a global video conference held with students, and the Secretary-General's unveiling of the Ark of Return – a permanent memorial honouring slavery's victims which, Mr. Ban said, would “bring home to people from around the world the terrible legacy of the slave trade.”

“The Transatlantic slave trade remains a monstrous crime and a stain on human history,” the Secretary-General continued. “On this important Day of Remembrance, I call for a renewal of our commitment to end modern slavery, so our children will live in a world free of racism and prejudice with equal opportunity and rights for all.”

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In wake of Category 5 Cyclone Pam, humanitarian appeal launched for battered Vanuatu

INTERNATIONAL – The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) has launched a flash appeal for urgent funding to help with ongoing relief efforts in Vanuatu following the devastation wrought by Cyclone Pam.

The Category 5 tropical cyclone descended upon Vanuatu, Tuvalu and a number of other Pacific islands 11 days ago battering them with 250kmph winds and 320kmph gusts which caused widespread damage to agriculture, infrastructure, and impacting services such as electricity and communications. Initial assessments of the storm's immediate aftermath in Vanuatu counted 17 people dead and some 65,000 people homeless as well as 166,000 people in urgent need of life-saving assistance.

“The people affected by Tropical Cyclone Pamface serious immediate risks to their health and wellbeing, as well as threats to their livelihoods and future resilience to disasters,” the UN's humanitarian coordinator for the archipelagic nation, Osnat Lubrani, said in a press release issued earlier today. “Today we stand with the Government of Vanuatu and urgently seek the support of the international community at a time of immense need.”

The appeal – launched by OCHA and the Government of Vanuatu – calls for $29.9 million to ensure that initial support provided by the Government, donors and humanitarian partners can be sustained to cover the needs of affected people until the end of June 2015. According to further estimates, around 75,000 people are in need of shelter and 110,000 people do not have access to safe drinking water.

“Although the people of Vanuatu have shown immense resilience and strength at this difficult time, more urgent assistance is required to ensure that Vanuatu can focus on recovering from this disaster – and that potentially life-threatening impacts from disease, food insecurity and a lack of shelter can be avoided,” added Ms. Lubrani.

An initial assessment by the UN's Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) has found “extensive damage” to crops, livestock and fisheries as a result of the storm. The banana crop was almost entirely destroyed by the storm, as have most coconuts and all of the inland cabbage plants and leafy vegetables. Root crops, which are an important local food source, have been uprooted and flooded in most areas, while the majority of fruit trees have been stripped and chickens and pigs have been killed.

As well as crops, most household food and seed stocks and garden production were also destroyed, leaving many families without food and income and increasing the need for imports. With the first harvest from replanted fast-growing food crops likely to be available only in mid-June, Vanuatu could be without locally produced food until then.

It will be some time before the full scale of damages and needs on Vanuatu's more than 80 islands will be known due to a lack of functional communications and limited access following the destruction, according to the UN. However, with 99 per cent of all households on the outer islands dependent on agriculture for consumption needs and income, and with 75 per cent of households in the capital, Port Vila consuming their own produce, the impact will be large.

Meanwhile, briefing reporters in Geneva, UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) spokesperson, Christophe Boulierac, said around 82,000 children, or two-thirds of Vanuatu's youth, were in need of humanitarian assistance.

As a result, the UN agency had announced a $4.8 million humanitarian appeal as part of the wider OCHA request in order to make sure that children and their families in Vanuatu and in affected communities in Tuvalu, Solomon Islands, and Kiribati had access to clean water, sanitation and hygiene and health services including immunisation.

Mr. Boulierac added that UNICEF was already on the ground providing treatment for diarrhoea, care of new-borns and nutrient supplements while also protecting children from violence, exploitation, and abuse.

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Governments urged to intensify efforts to end tuberculosis by 2035

INTERNATIONAL – With some 37 million lives saved between 2000 and 2013 through the diagnosis and treatment of tuberculosis, it is possible to end the epidemic by 2035,Secretary-GeneralBan Ki-moon said on World Tuberculosis Day, urging leaders to recommit to ending one of humanity's top killers.

“Victory is not guaranteed,” Mr. Ban said in hismessagefor the Day, observed each year on 24 March.

“I urge Governments, communities affected by tuberculosis and health workers around the world to intensify their efforts in line with the ambitious strategy established by the World Health Assembly in 2014 to end the global epidemic within two decades,” he stated.

Tuberculosis, or TB, is one of the world's top infectious killers. Approximately 9 million people fell ill from it in 2013, and 1.5 million died. TB's impact is felt acutely by the most vulnerable populations, including those struggling with poverty and poor health systems. For women aged 15 to 44, tuberculosis is one of the top five killers. For children, prisoners, migrants and those living with HIV, TB remains the most common form of illness and the leading cause of death.

Last May, governments agreed on a new 20-year (2016-2035) strategy to end the global tuberculosis epidemic. To that end, the UN World Health Organization (WHO) iscallingfor new action in the global fight against the scourge. Its 'End TB' strategy outlines clear actions and targets that provide a pathway to a world free of tuberculosis deaths and suffering. The plan also links to the wider poverty eradication, social protection and universal health coverage agenda.

“While achievement by 2015 of one of the key health-focused Millennium Development Goals, namely the reversal of the spread of tuberculosis, is significant, World Tuberculosis Day reminds governments and communities that this is no time for complacency. Efforts must begin now to ensure the effective global roll-out of the 'End TB' strategy and to stimulate the research that will underpin its success,” Mr. Ban said.

'End TB' sets targets and outlines actions for governments and partners to provide patient-centred care, pursue policies and systems that enable prevention and care, and drive research and innovations needed to end the epidemic and eliminate tuberculosis.

WHO is alsocallingon governments, affected communities, civil society organizations and health-care providers to join the drive to roll out this strategy and to reach, treat and cure all those who are ill today.

“With patient-centred care at the heart, this dynamic action plan will drive forward the critical advances in research and innovation that are needed to combat tuberculosis, including the worrying surge in its multi-drug-resistant and extensively drug-resistant forms,” Mr. Ban emphasized.

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