PRESS BRIEFING BY THE UNITED NATIONS INFORMATION SERVICE
05 August 2022
Mr. LeBlanc announced that on Thursday, 11 August at 10 a.m., the International Labour Organization (ILO) would hold a virtual press conference to launch its Global Employment Trends for Youth 2022 report. Speaking at the press conference would be Martha Newton, Deputy Director-General; Niall O'Higgins, Senior Employment Research and Technical Specialist; and Kee Beom Kim, Macro-Economic and Employment Policies Specialist.
The Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination would open next Monday at 10 a.m. its 107th session, during which it would review the reports of Benin, Nicaragua, the United States, Azerbaijan, Slovakia, Zimbabwe and Suriname.
Next Thursday, 11 August at 10 a.m., the Conference on Disarmament would hold a thematic event dedicated to “The centrality of international cooperation and capacity-building in building a safe and secure cyberspace”. This event would be chaired by Mr. Christophe Lutundula Apala Pen'Apala, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The Conference was also currently striving to reach consensus on the reports of each of its subsidiary bodies.
Mr. LeBlanc said that the Secretary-General was in Japan to take part in the Peace Memorial Ceremony in Hiroshima tomorrow. During his visit, he would call on world leaders to urgently eliminate stockpiles of nuclear weapons and meet with surviving victims of atomic bombs (hibakusha) in Hiroshima and Nagasaki. After Japan, he would travel to Mongolia and the Republic of Korea.
Today at 1 p.m. New York time (7 p.m. Geneva time), Dr. Robert Floyd, Executive Secretary of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization, would hold a press briefing that would be webcast on UN Web TV.
Mr. LeBlanc reminded correspondents that World Humanitarian Day 2022 would be celebrated on Friday, 19 August at 3 p.m. outside the Human Rights Room at the Palais des Nations, where a wreath-laying and candle-lighting ceremony would be held to pay tribute to humanitarians worldwide. Speaking at the ceremony would be Tatiana Valovaya, United Nations Office at Geneva (UNOG) Director-General; Michelle Bachelet, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights; Bradford Smith, Executive Secretary of the UNOG Staff Union; Abdul-Karim Hashim Mostafa, Permanent Representative of the Republic of Iraq to the United Nations Office at Geneva; and Ramesh Rajasingham, Director of the Coordination Division and head of the Geneva arm of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.
In response to a question on the United Nations’ reaction to White House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s recent visit to Taiwan, Mr. LeBlanc said that the United Nations was guided by the General Assembly resolution 2758 from 1971 recognising “one China.”
Responding to a question on the impact of the recent drone attack in Kabul, Afghanistan, on operations, Margaret Harris for the World Health Organization (WHO) and Shabia Mantoo for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) said that the operations of United Nations organizations were continuing as normal in the country. More details, they said, would be provided from Afghanistan offices soon.
On monkeypox, Ms. Harris said that WHO would release a situation report next week and was continuing to update its dashboard on monkeypox.
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Press Conferences | WMO , OCHA , WHO , UNICEF , UN WOMEN , OHCHR , IOM , UNHCR
Update on Ebola from WHO and OCHA, update on the situation of children with the beginning of school in Ukraine from UNICEF, UN Women on the impact of the settlers and restrictions on women and girls in West Bank, OHCHR on the recovery of extensive human remains in Gaza, IOM and UNHCR on the new wave of displacement in Yemen
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Press Conferences , Edited News | WFP
‘Super El Niño’ and converging crises worsen hunger in South Sudan and across the region - WFP
South Sudan’s hunger crisis is becoming increasingly catastrophic as violence, extreme weather and dwindling aid leave millions without enough food, the UN World Food Programme (WFP) warned on Tuesday.
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Press Conferences | HRC
Update on the human rights situation in Belarus by the UN Group of Independent Experts on the Human Rights Situation in Belarus
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Press Conferences | HRC , OHCHR
Update on the human rights situation in Syria by the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Syrian Arab Republic
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Press Conferences | UNOG , IOM , UN WOMEN , UNCTAD , WHO , UNECE
IOM Yemen's Western Coast displacement; UN WOMEN on Gaza; UNCTAD Strait of Hormuz disruptions impacts; WHO Ebola logistics in DRC; WHO smoking and infertility; UNECE Data centres and energy.
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Press Conferences | UNITAR , WMO
UNITAR: GA resolution on the merger of the United Nations System Staff College into the United Nations Institute for Training and Research; WMO: Air Quality and Climate Bulletin released; WHO: Ukraine update
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Press Conferences , Edited News | WMO
Powerful El Niño heightens extreme-weather risks through 2027, as countries brace for impact - WMO
Fuelled by extraordinarily warm waters across the tropical Pacific Ocean, the El Niño climate pattern is expected to intensify in the coming months. Forecasters are almost certain that it will persist through February next year, with unusually warm conditions expected across the globe.
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Press Conferences | IFRC , UN WOMEN , WFP , WHO , WMO , OCHA
UN WOMEN/IFRC: Update on the impact of the floods in Nepal, WFP: Food assistance in the West Bank, WHO: Gaza’s rehabilitation needs and continued spread of diseases
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Press Conferences | IFRC , ITU , OCHA , OHCHR , UNCTAD , UNDRR , UNHCR , UNICEF , WHO , WMO
UNDRR/OCHA/IFRC/UNICEF/WHO: Nepal updates; IFRC/WMO: El Niño Update; WHO: Health situation in Ukraine; UNHCR: 65 years after landmark Convention; OHCHR: Human Rights situation in Haiti;
ITU: Upcoming Greening Digital Companies 2026 report; UNCTAD: World Investment Forum 2026 in Doha 25-27 October
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Press Conferences | UNIDIR
Launch of the 2026 Arms Trade Treaty Monitor report
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Press Conferences | ICRC , OHCHR , UN , UNICEF
UN/ICRC: Renewed Call from UN Secretary-General and ICRC President to Adopt Rules on Autonomous Weapon Systems; OHCHR: Human rights situation in Myanmar new report; UNICEF: Worsening child nutrition crisis in Afghanistan
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Press Conferences | OHCHR , Treaty Bodies
UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) publishes findings on Finland, Honduras, India and Kuwait