Posts tagged United Nations

After years of struggle, South Sudan finally gained independence from Sudan on 9 July 2011, and Africa’s longest-running civil war came to an end. But several years of conflict have resulted in a collapsing economy and undermined agriculture, leaving 1 million people on the verge of starvation. Will the world’s newest country ever get any better? asks Linus Unah.

Health delegates from 185 countries on this week gathered in Geneva and elected Ethiopian Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus as the first Director-General from Africa to head the United Nations specialised agency. In the election Ghebreyesus defeated Dr. David Nabarro of Britain and Dr. Sania Nishtar, a Pakistani cardiologist in a two round ballot.

African migrants are being sold in Libyan ‘slave markets’ after being held for ransom, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) has revealed. The migrants trying to reach Europe tell harrowing stories, experiences of forced and hard labour, malnutrition and sexual abuse. Some migrants have been captured and killed by smugglers and militia groups, who conduct the slave trade.

Fault Lines investigates the legacy and impact of sex abuse by UN peacekeepers in Haiti. In Haiti By Force: UN Sex Abuse, Fault Lines speaks to Haitian women who say they were raped by UN peacekeepers there. Some of them were under-age at the time; some of them are now single mothers as a result; most described anonymous, violent attacks.

The conflict between Western Sahara and Morocco has tempered down but the historic difficult relationship between the two parties can’t be erased. Attacks on the Saharawis by Moroccan forces led to death of many, and 25 Saharawis stand a retrial for the alleged killing of Moroccan security forces. Could the recent re-admittance of Morocco as the African Union’s 55 Member State be the first step on the long, and arduous road to resolving the conflict?

The east African region is facing a humanitarian crisis. Citizens from various countries face hunger and starvation due to the ongoing drought, and there are concerns that the situation could deteriorate if humanitarian assistance to avert the crisis delays. The United Nations estimates that close to 17 million people are facing hunger in nine countries. The countries include hard-hit by the crisis include Somalia, South Sudan, Ethiopia and Kenya. Urgent assistance is required to avert this crisis and various humanitarian organisations including World Vision are raising funds to provide desperately and urgent life-saving supplies to the most vulnerable children, including water, food and basic medical supplies.

Two Cameroonian activists who lead the Anglophone Civil Society Consortium (CACSC) face a precarious fate after they were arrested and charged with acts of terrorism, and group rebellion. The two activists, president of the CACSC, Barrister Nkongho Felix Agbor-Balla, and its Secretary General, Dr. Fontem Aforteka’a Neba, face the death penalty if found guilty. The arrest has been widely condemned by Cameroonians and various rights groups, who are calling on the authorities to release the two.

Africa’s future is urban. Quality of life for Africa’s city dwellers will, however, directly depend on the quality of urban governance. Urbanisation can spur development but under current conditions, it is more likely to compound Africa’s structural challenges. Making cities inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable as stipulated in the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals is no easy task.

Before 8 November, the international security community was naively preparing for a Hillary Clinton presidency in the United States. Despite the hawkish public rhetoric, we knew her relatively progressive team recognised the value of a development approach to security issues.

The United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) has increasingly come under criticism for failing to achieve its core mandate – namely to protect civilians – following the July 2016 crisis in the capital city, Juba.