Press Conferences | UNCTAD
Key messages delivered by Rebeca Grynspan, UNCTAD Secretary-General (UN Conference on Trade and Development) this morning Wednesday 4th of October at the Palais des Nations in Geneva, on the occasion of the publication of the Trade and Development Report 2023.
Key messages delivered by Rebeca Grynspan, UNCTAD Secretary-General (UN Conference on Trade and Development) this morning Wednesday 4th of October at the Palais des Nations in Geneva, on the occasion of the publication of the Trade and Development report 2023.
"There are five messages that we want to emphasize from the Trade and Development report of this year. The first message is that the global economy is slowing down. This, despite the good news of the unexpected soft landing of the U.S. economy this year. But the perspectives of accelerating growth in the coming years are very slim.
The second message is that debt is a problem and that a lot of the developing countries are in a debt and development crisis. And debt has to be part of the discussion at the international level to be able to find the right solutions for restructuring debt in many developing countries, including middle income countries.
The third message is that investment is weak and credit is going down. So, the question of where the new sources of growth will come from has to be addressed.
And the fourth message is that we are worried about the market concentration, lack of competition in financialization of trade in very important markets, meaning energy, food, pharmaceuticals and digital are some examples.
So, the important thing is what are the policy recommendations?
On the one hand, we think that we need the policy mix, we have been calling for this. We think that interest rates should not be the only instrument use. And we have called for a revision of the inflation target of 2%, that could mean a collateral damage if not revised, especially for the developing countries, but also for the long term financial stability in the developed world.
The second recommendation is the reform of the international financial system. It would be the instruments to face the liquidity problems, the investment scale that is needed from the multilateral development banks, and, as I said before, a permanent mechanism to deal with the debt problem in the developing countries."
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Press Conferences | UNECE
UNECE Press conference on the Ministerial Meeting on Housing Affordability and Sustainablility
On 8 October 2025, UNECE member States' ministers meet to focus on the urgent challenges and strategic priorities surrounding housing affordability and sustainability in the UNECE region. Ten years after the adoption of the Geneva UN Charter on Sustainable Housing, ministers will highlight challenges and key priorities for the achievement of the Charter's objectives, and present good practice and strategic solutions in this regard. As the key outcome of the meeting, ministers will be invited to agree on practical commitments towards sustainable and affordable housing.
The meeting will take place as part of the eighty-sixth session of the UNECE Committee on Urban Development, Housing and Land Management (8–10 October 2025).
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Press Conferences | OCHA , UNHCR , UNICEF , UNOG , WHO , IPU
Alessandra Vellucci, Director of the United Nations Information Service in Geneva, chaired a hybrid press briefing, which was attended by the representatives and spokespersons of the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, UNICEF, the World Health Organisation, and the International Parliamentary Union.
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Press Conferences | UNHCR , UNICEF , UNIS , WHO
Alessandra Vellucci, Director of the United Nations Information Service in Geneva, chaired a hybrid press briefing, which was attended by the spokespersons and representatives of the United Nations Children’s Fund, the World Health Organization, the United Nations Refugee Agency, and the International Committee of the Red Cross.
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Press Conferences | HRC , OHCHR
Report of the Independent Expert on Human Rights situation in the Central African Republic.
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Press Conferences | UNECE , WHO , OCHA , UNHCR , UNICEF
Alessandra Vellucci, Director of the United Nations Information Service in Geneva, chaired a hybrid press briefing, which was attended by the representatives and spokespersons of the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (the UN Refugee Agency), the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, the United Nations Children Fund, the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe and the World Health Organization.
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Press Conferences | WHO , FAO
Michele Zaccheo, Chief of the Radio, TV and Webcast Section at the United Nations Information Service in Geneva, chaired a hybrid press briefing, which was attended by spokespersons and representatives of the Food and Agricultural Organization and the World Health Organization.
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Press Conferences | UNCTAD
Global maritime transport is facing growing uncertainty, volatility and higher costs while growth in maritime trade is slowing down, UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD) warns in its Review of Maritime Transport 2025, released on 24 September.
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Press Conferences | HRC , OHCHR
Launch of the latest report by the Group of Human Rights Experts on Nicaragua.
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Press Conferences | WHO , OHCHR , UNICEF
Michele Zaccheo, Chief of the Radio, TV and Webcast Section at the United Nations Information Service in Geneva, chaired a hybrid press briefing, which was attended by the representatives and spokespersons of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, the World Health Organization, and the United Nations Children’s Fund.
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Press Conferences | HRC
Launch of FFM Venezuela’s latest report to the Human Rights Council
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Press Conferences | HRC , OHCHR
Situation of human rights in the Russian Federation
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Press Conferences | UNCTAD , OHCHR , ICRC , UN WOMEN , ILO
Alessandra Vellucci, Director of the United Nations Information Service in Geneva, chaired a hybrid press briefing, which was attended by the representatives and spokespersons of the United Nations Trade and Development, UN Women, the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, the International Labour Organization, the World Health Organization, and the International Committee of the Red Cross.