The United Nations Office at Geneva
Multimedia Newsroom
UN GENEVA PRESS BRIEFING
2 April 2024
Drought in Malawi
Paul Turnbull, World Food Programme (WFP) Country Director for Malawi, speaking from Lilongwe, informed that on 23 March, Malawi had declared a state of disaster in 23 out of the country's 28 districts. World Food Programme was appealing for urgent resources to deliver life-saving food assistance to two million people reeling from the devastating impacts of drought, exacerbated by the effects of El Niño.
The country was still suffering from the impacts of tropical storms and cyclones in 2022 and 2023 and the compounded effect was to push up to 40 percent of Malawi’s population into hunger, threatening both lives and livelihoods. Prolonged dry spells had blighted harvests in southern and central regions while flooding had washed away crops in northern and central areas. As national maize stocks ran low, the country had been forced to import staple commodities, driving food prices to alarming levels. Maize prices had nearly doubled in just one year and had tripled against the five-year average. With over 80 percent of the population relying on agriculture to cover basic needs, the steep decline in staple crops such as maize, rice, soya beans, cowpeas and groundnuts had been devastating for millions of people. The Government’s preliminary estimate was that close to two million farming households were affected. The Government was coordinating an effort to procure 600,000 tons of maize; WFP would do its part and was calling for an urgent scale-up of assistance. Normally, the lean season started in October, but this year it could start in July, warned Mr. Turnbull. Early release of funding for food procurement was needed. International solidarity and common action were of particular importance in this case, concluded Mr. Turnbull.
Responding to questions, Mr. Turnbull said that exploitation was happening among refugee populations, most of whom were from the Democratic Republic of the Congo. An estimated 90 percent of the population in Malawi were already engaging in negative coping mechanisms. UNICEF was organizing a comprehensive survey to estimate a proper situation of malnutrition in the country. Mr. Turnbull said that the 600,000 tons of maize would cost about USD 210 million. WFP needed USD 70 million to provide emergency food assistance to two million people for three months, delivering a combination of in-kind and cash to affected households.
Situation in Gaza
Margaret Harris, for the World Health Organization (WHO), responding to questions, said that horrific levels of violence had continued in Gaza over the Easter weekend. The Al Shifa hospital was now in ruins and was no longer able to function in any shape or form. At least 21 patients had died during the siege. With the destruction of the Al-Shifa hospital, the heart of the health system in Gaza had been ripped out. WHO was hoping to reach several hospitals in Gaza today. A ceasefire had to happen now - it should have happened months earlier, but it was necessary now.
Alessandra Vellucci, for the UN Information Service (UNIS), said that Martin Griffiths, UN Humanitarian Chief, had expressed his outrage at the killing of the seven aid workers of the World Central Kitchen. Those actions were indefensible, stressed Mr. Griffiths. Ms. Harris said that this particular mission had been agreed upon in advance, using a deconfliction mechanism, and the aid vehicle had been clearly marked as such. This situation was a moral stain on humanity that should not allow to continue. WHO would continue with its mission, stressed Ms. Harris. A big rise of children born low weight was being reported; many infants and young children were suffering from malnutrition, which made them far more prone to other illnesses. Finally, Ms. Harris said that the following day, 3 April, Dr. Tedros would hold a press conference.
Ms. Vellucci stated that on 3 and 4 April, at the Palais des Nations, there would be a Conference of Civil Society Organizations Working on the Question of Palestine, convened by the UN Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People. The title of the conference was “Building Bridges with International Civil Society to Address the Ongoing Nakba.” More information is available here. A press conference would be held on 3 April at 1:30 pm, with the Ambassadors of Senegal, Indonesia, Malaysia, Cuba, and the State of Palestine, Permanent Representatives of their countries to the UN in New York [later, Ms Vellucci specified that the five ambassadors will be briefing the press in-person from the UNOG press room].
Human Rights Council
Pascal Sim, for the Human Rights Council (HRC), said that today, the Council was discussing five different country situations: Ukraine, Colombia, South Sudan, Haiti, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The following day, the Council would start looking into 34 draft texts, of which 33 draft resolutions. Several of these draft resolutions would deal with renewals of a number of mandates, including investigative bodies on Ukraine and Iran, and special rapporteurs on the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, Myanmar, environment, right of food, and adequate housing, among others. More information is available here.
Announcements
Alessandra Vellucci, for the for the United Nations Information Service (UNIS), informed the media about the International Week at Balexert in Geneva, from 16 to 20 April. The objective of this event, featuring 16 agencies and international organizations, was to showcase to the local audiences the importance of the work done by “International Geneva”. More information is available here.
ANNOUNCEMENTS
HRC Pascal Sim (PR)
· Human Rights Council update
TOPICS
WFP Paul Turnbull, WFP Country Director Malawi from Lilongwe (Zoom)
· Malawi – Declaration of a State of Disaster over drought
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