The United Nations Office at Geneva
Multimedia Newsroom
PRESS BRIEFING BY THE UNITED NATIONS INFORMATION SERVICE
4 April 2023
Human Rights Council update
Pascal Sim for the Human Rights Council (HRC) said today was the last day of the 52nd session of the Human Rights Council. 21 draft resolutions would be considered today. 22 resolutions were adopted yesterday, 15 of which were adopted without a vote. This morning, the Council had adopted a resolution on the right to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment without a vote.
In response to a question on a resolution regarding Haiti, Mr. Sim said that this was not the first time that a country concerned was co-sponsoring a resolution concerning a domestic human rights situation.
Mr. Sim said a list of resolutions and voting results was available on the Human Rights Council extranet.
Announcements
Christian Lindmeier for the World Health Organization (WHO) said that tomorrow at 2 p.m. at the Palais des Nations, the World Health Organization would hold a press briefing on the rise of dengue outbreaks and impact of climate change. This would be a chance to see how this disease was advancing worldwide.
On Thursday, 7 April at 3 p.m., a hybrid press briefing would be held at World Health Organization headquarters to mark the 75th anniversary of the World Health Organization. Light refreshments would be available and most of the principles of the Organization would attend.
Next Tuesday, 11 April, from 1:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m., a technical webinar on post-COVID-19 conditions would be held. It would bring global experts together to present the latest global understanding of the condition, how it was affecting lives and the direction of future work in this area.
Rolando Gomez, Chief of the Press and External Relations Section at the United Nations Information Service (UNIS) in Geneva, said that the World Trade Organization (WTO) would tomorrow release its annual trade forecast at 2 p.m. An embargoed copy of the forecast would be available in the WTO media newsroom two hours prior to the release. A hybrid press conference to announce the launch would be held at 2 p.m. at WTO headquarters and live streamed from the WTO’s YouTube channel. WTO Chief Economist Ralph Ossa and other high-ranking WTO officials would be available to answer questions.
On Tuesday, 4 April at 2 p.m. at Room B-128 of the Palais des Nations, the UN Committee on Enforced Disappearances would hold a press conference to present its findings on Iraq, Argentina, Costa Rica, Germany and Zambia, and present their report on an official visit to Iraq. Speaking would be Carmen Rosa Villa Quintana, Chair of the Committee, Barbara Lochbihler and Mohammed Ayat, Vice Chairs of the Committee.
The Committee on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families was continuing its 36th session, which would close on Thursday, 6 April at 5:30 p.m.
On Tuesday, 11 April, the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination would start its 109th session, during which it will review the reports of Russian Federation, Niger, Argentina, Portugal, Philippines and Tajikistan.
Tomorrow in New York, the Financing for Sustainable Development report would be launched at 5:15 p.m. Geneva time and would be broadcast live on UN Web TV. The report set out several concrete recommendations to get progress toward the Sustainable Development Goals back on track and explored trends in international debt relief, aid delivery, bank regulation and sustainable public investment. The UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina J. Mohammed would be launching the report.
Today, 4 April was the International Day for Mine Awareness and Assistance in Mine Action. In his message for the day, Secretary-General António Guterres stressed how broader global efforts were essential to safeguard people from mines. “Let’s take action to end the threat of these devices of death, support communities as they heal, and help people return and re-build their lives in safety and security,” Mr. Guterres said.
Tomorrow, 5 April marked the International Day of Conscience. Mr. Gomez recounted the preamble to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which stated that “disregard and contempt for human rights have resulted in barbarous acts which have outraged the conscience of humankind.” The theme for this year’s observance was promoting a culture of peace with love and conscience.
Thursday, 6 April was the 10th anniversary of the International Day of Sport for Development and Peace. The global theme for the day was “Scoring for Peace and the Planet”, and the day also supported the Sustainable Development Goals.
Friday, 7 April was the International Day of Reflection on the Genocide in Rwanda. An event to mark the day would be held next Thursday, 13 April from 3 to 5 p.m. in Room XX of the Palais des Nations. The Director-General of the UN Office at Geneva, Tatiana Valovaya, would deliver remarks at the opening, and speakers would include a survivor of the 1994 genocide and the Ambassador of Rwanda in Geneva.
Friday, 7 April was also a UN holiday, and no UNIS press briefing would be held. The next briefing would be held on Tuesday, 11 April at 10:30 a.m.
Similar Stories
1
1
1
Press Conferences | IOM , OHCHR , UN WOMEN , UNFPA , UNHCR , UNOPS , WHO
UN Geneva briefing: Yemen crisis worsens, urgent aid needed across multiple sectors.
1
1
1
Press Conferences | HRC
Press conference on the latest report of the Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela to the UN Human Rights Council
1
1
1
Press Conferences | OHCHR
Victims Still Waiting: A Global Briefing on Transitional Justice Around the World
2
1
2
Edited News , Press Conferences | WMO
As world’s water reserves change, countries must prepare for a new reality: WMO
New data showing that rivers were at their lowest level for decades last year provides further evidence that the climate crisis is real and countries must act immediately to protect themselves from the increasing threat to communities and livelihoods, the UN World Meteorological Organization (WMO) said on Thursday.
The key findings from WMO’s State of Global Water Resources 2025 report covering the hydrological cycle and extreme events in the five-year period to last year:
- 2025 was one of driest years for river discharge in 35 years
- Past seven years have seen abnorfmal river flows
- Water storage on Earth’s land surface has decreased in past decade
- Widespread glacier loss across all regions for fourth consecutive year
- Asia and Africa are regions most affected by water-related disasters
- Water data availability has improved, but gaps remain in hard-hit areas
Highlighting the long-term decline in the Earth’s freshwater storage and glacier melt, WMO Secretary-General Celeste Saulo explained that the planet’s water reserves used to act as a planetary “savings account” that absorbed the occasional dry season, avoiding a water crisis. “One of the central stories of the 2025 report is what is happening to that savings account? And the simple answer is that we are depleting it,” she told journalists in Geneva.
Groundwater reserves are equally stretched and have been in decline since 2014, WMO’s report states, with nearly two-thirds of monitored wells worldwide showing levels lower than the historical norm and indicating a shift “further toward deficit…not recovery”.
“At the same time, we are seeing more water-related disasters,” Ms. Saulo said, while also stressing that the currently strengthening El Niño “will increase the risk of drought in some areas, and flooding in others”.
Glaciers disappearing
In 2025, for the fourth consecutive year, every major glaciated region on Earth lost ice mass, leading to short-term hazards including floods and long-term water insecurity, according to WMO.
Responding to a question about whether the changing global water cycle might have contributed to the deadly Nepal-China flooding disaster, Ms. Saulo explained that melting ice and rock was just one factor in the chain of events that ultimately sent a massive and deadly wall of water and debris downstream on 26 August, killing at least 1,367 people.
“You asked if it could happen again? Absolutely; the problem in this region is that there’s 63,700 glaciers at the last count,” she told a Press Conference in Geneva. “Even if you’re looking with remote sensing with satellites at these glaciers, you might see some faults, you might see some slight shifting, that does not mean necessarily catastrophic collapse. So, in order to plan for this, it’s very, very difficult. But the international community is looking very hard at ways in which we can bring people together to solve some of these monitoring issues.”
Data indicates that glaciers shrank between 2023 and 2025 with cumulative losses of 1,400 gigatonnes of water – or about one third of annual fresh water needs.
Every major glacier region on Earth lost ice for the fourth consecutive year.
“All 19 glacier regions around the globe lost ice; in Central Asia, Iceland, the Russian Arctic and western Canada and the United States, it was among the three worst years on record,” said Wayne Jenkinson, WMO’s Director of Hydrology and Cryosphere.
Some regions with smaller glaciers such as Central Europe, the Caucasus, the western Canada and the United States may already have reached “peak water”, Mr. Jenkinson warned.
“After this point, the glacier gives less meltwater each year simply because there is less ice left to melt. That matters for every community downstream that relies on water during hot, dry summers,” he explained.
Narelle van der Wel, WMO’s Head of Cryosphere Monitoring, Predictions and Services, stressed that while some further glacier loss is unavoidable, the eventual scale of the decline is not predetermined.
“Some glacier loss is inevitable, but total loss of glaciers is not yet inevitable,” she said, pointing to emissions reductions as central to limiting future losses.
Preparing for moving baselines
The report does not attribute every observed change to climate change alone. WMO says pressure on water resources and natural variability also contribute.
Mr. Jenkinson said governments need to prepare for “moving baselines” as historical patterns become less reliable.
“The situation 30 years ago is not where we are today,” he said. Countries, he added, need to prepare “for those changes that have really already arrived”.
ends
1
1
1
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
2
1
2
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.
1
1
1
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
1
1
1
Press Conferences | HRC , OHCHR
Update on the human rights situation in Syria by the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Syrian Arab Republic
1
1
1
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.
1
1
1
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
2
2
2
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.
1
1
1
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