Peacebuilding Commission, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ukraine & other topics- Daily Press Briefing

Briefing by Stéphane Dujarric, Spokesperson for the Secretary-General.

• Categories: Media / Press Conferences
• Video Length: 00:19:06
• Production Date: 30 March 2022
• Asset Language: English
• Personal Subject: DUJARRIC, STEPHANE
• Corporate Name: PEACEBUILDING COMMISSION - PBC; SECURITY COUNCIL
• Subject Topical: CORONAVIRUS DISEASE - COVID 19; POPULATION; SCHOOLS
• Geographic Subject: AFGHANISTAN; DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF THE CONGO; EL SALVADOR; ISRAEL; MYANMAR; SOUTH SUDAN; UKRAINE; YEMEN
• MAMS Id: 2723804
• Parent Id: 2723804

Description

This morning, the Secretary-General, Antonio Guterres, spoke to the Peacebuilding Commission, via video link, and reminded Member States that right now, one quarter of humanity lives in conflict-affected areas.

An investigation into the tragic incident that took place in the Democratic Republic of the Congo yesterday is underway.

Noeleen Heyzer, the Special Envoy of the Secretary-General for Myanmar, will be in Cambodia tomorrow to meet with Prime Minister Hun Sen, as well as his Foreign Minister in their capacities as the Chair of ASEAN as well as the ASEAN Special Envoy for Myanmar to discuss their ongoing cooperation and the complementarity of the UN-ASEAN efforts on Myanmar.

Today, the UN Refugee Agency said that 4 million people have now fled Ukraine and 6.5 million people are displaced within the country. UNHCR also said that 13 million are estimated to be stranded in affected areas or unable to leave.

Yesterday afternoon, Security Council members heard a humanitarian briefing on Ukraine. One from the Deputy Emergency Relief Coordinator, Joyce Msuya, and they also heard from David Beasley, WFP’s Executive Director.

Moving onto Afghanistan. Martin Griffiths, the Emergency Relief Coordinator, is in Kabul on the third day of his mission in the country.

Yesterday evening, we welcomed the announcements made in recent days by the Saudi-led Coalition and by the Houthis to temporarily halt military operations in Yemen, and that is in line with our continued and collective calls for such a move.

In South Sudan, the UN Mission is urging all parties to respect the peace agreement, given current tensions among signatories as well as increased subnational violence.

The Secretary-General condemned the recent terrorist attacks in Israel, which claimed the lives of at least 11 Israeli citizens.

The Secretary-General learned with concern about the spike in violence in El Salvador over the weekend.

UNICEF today released a report showing that as the COVID-19 pandemic enters its third year, 23 countries – home to about 405 million schoolchildren – are yet to fully reopen their schools, with many schoolchildren at risk of dropping out.

The UN Population Fund – which looks at sexual and reproductive health - found that nearly half of all pregnancies around the world – that’s 121 million each year – are unintended.

For further details please see SOURCE below.
Office of the Spokesperson for the Secretary-General