United Nations

The appeal comes in his message ahead of World Press Freedom Day, celebrated annually on 3 May, in line with a 1993 UN General Assembly resolution. The focus this year is on the connection between press freedom and overall human rights. A global problem “Freedom of the press is the...

14 April 2023SDGs Without $97 billion in extra funding, a range of countries will fail to meet their 2030 national education targets, a new UN report revealed on Friday, calling for an urgent review of financing. The paper Can countries afford their national SDG4 benchmarks? by the Global...

The Special Rapporteur on the right to freedom of expression said she was encouraged by the Government’s plans to reform media laws in line with international standards. However, she was also alarmed by “the toxic public discourse, from politicians or public officials and amplified by...

“The history of slavery is a history of suffering and barbarity that shows humanity at its worst,” he said. “But it is also a history of awe-inspiring courage that shows human beings at their best – starting with enslaved people who rose up against impossible odds and extending to the...

With myriad objects casting a new light on some of the darkest pages of history, Slavery: Ten True Stories of Dutch Colonial Slavery has been brought to the UN by Amsterdam’s Rijksmuseum. “It’s baffling to me that there are a lot of countries still apologizing for slavery,” Daniela Paredes,18...

The West-Eastern Divan Orchestra, appointed by the UN Secretary-General in 2016 as a United Nations Global Advocate for Cultural Understanding, recently played their first concert at UN headquarters in New York, at a special event organized to demonstrate that when people listen to each other...

Amina Mohammed was visiting the École Pays-Bas, in a suburb of the capital Niamey, which less than two years ago, burned to the ground, after the straw it was made from caught fire, amid searing temperatures and a suspected electrical wiring fault. A total of 21 children died in the inferno –...

More than 4,300 people participated in the Internet for Trust Conference, organized by the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), which will launch the guidelines in September. The three-day event marked the latest phase in the global dialogue to develop regulatory...

22 February 2023Culture and Education Almost a year into the war in Ukraine – and amid new missile strikes targeting the eastern city of Kharkiv on Wednesday – top rights experts issued a strong appeal for the deliberate destruction of the country’s cultural treasures by Russian forces to...

Commemorating the world’s languages – all 6,700 of them – since 1999, the Day aims at celebrating ways of showcasing the world’s linguistic tapestry, committing to the preservation of the diversity of languages as a common heritage, and working for quality education – in mother tongues – for...

Alima from Burkina Faso wants to be a police officer, Awa from Mali dreams of being a nurse, and 11-year-old María Gabriela from Ecuador hopes to go to veterinary school. Although their names are not real – to protect them – their dreams are. Right now, 222 million young dreamers like Alima...

Lending his support to a call for more funding for education in emergencies spearheaded by the UN global fund Education Cannot Wait (ECW) the UN chief insisted in a video message that no-one should be denied their chance to learn. A full 222 million children today experience blighted education...

The six-hour-long documentary “The US and the Holocaust”, released in 2022, sheds light on the catastrophic consequences of hate speech and disinformation, and the desperate bid for freedom by millions of Jews fleeing Nazi Germany. Taste of freedom What does freedom taste like? Joseph...

World Radio Day, observed annually on 13 February, celebrates the power of the medium. The theme this year is ‘Radio and Peace’, highlighting its role in conflict prevention and peacebuilding. “Since it was developed about a century ago, radio has proven to be an exceptional means of...

It is estimated that some 584 million children have limited or no access to basic drinking water services at school. Nearly half live in sub-Saharan Africa, according to the study by the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the...

3 February 2023UN Affairs On the occasion of the International Day of Human Fraternity, observed on Saturday, the UN chief called for renewed commitment to forge an “alliance of peace” amid a surge in hate speech, sectarianism and strife. The International Day of Human Fraternity...

The war in Ukraine, has resulted in high food and energy prices, global hunger, and inflation – just one example of the way that crises, affecting millions around the world, including children, affect each other. The report, “Prospects for Children in 2023: A Global Outlook”, also looks at a...

Yoga is an ancient physical, mental and spiritual practice that originated in India and is now practiced in various forms around the world. The word “yoga” derives from Sanskrit and means “to join or unite”, symbolizing the union of body and consciousness. Countering depression, anxiety As the...

Released at the start of what is being heralded as a “decade of action” for education, as the world grapples with the COVID-19 crisis, the 2020 Global Education Monitoring (GEM) Report illuminates how countries are putting diversity at the core of their education systems, with varying degrees of...

30 June 2020UN Affairs The UN is asking people to make the same judgement calls they’ve been applying to social distancing, to social media, and take extra care before sharing. That’s the latest message from the United Nations’ Verified initiative, which wants people around the world to...