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HIGHLIGHTS OF THE SPOKESPERSON’S NOON BRIEFING

BY MARTIN NESIRKY, SPOKESPERSON FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL BAN KI-MOON

MONDAY, 25 JULY 2011

ONE BILLION DOLLARS NEEDED IN AID FOR HORN OF AFRICA CRISIS, SAYS SECRETARY-GENERAL

• Valerie Amos, the Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs, attended the Emergency Ministerial Meeting on Food Security in the Horn of Africa in Rome today, on the Secretary-General’s behalf.
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• She delivered a message from the Secretary-General to that meeting, in which he said that a catastrophic combination of high food prices, drought and conflict had left more than 11 million people in the Horn of Africa in desperate need.
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• Short-term relief must be linked to building long-term sustainability, the Secretary-General says. This means an agricultural transformation that improves the resilience of rural livelihoods and minimizes the scale of any future crisis. It means climate-smart crop production, livestock rearing, fish farming and forest maintenance practices that enable all people to have year-round access to the nutrition they need.
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• The Secretary-General adds that providing accessible nutrition must be our top priority. To do this, we need about $1 billion for the rest of this year.
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• Asked about the declaration of famine, the Spokesperson noted that famine had been declared in parts of Somalia, but that there is also a danger, if aid efforts are not stepped up, of more widespread hunger.

SOMALIA: SECURITY COUNCIL URGES MEMBER STATES TO PREVENT CRISIS FROM DEEPENING

• This morning the Security Council received a briefing from Catherine Bragg, Assistant Secretary General in the Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), on the humanitarian situation in Somalia.
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• In a press statement afterwards, the members of the Security Council expressed grave concern at the famine affecting the Bakool and Lower Shabelle regions of southern Somalia and the acute malnutrition in parts of the Horn of Africa triggered by the drought. They welcomed the mobilisation of the international community so far, including at the emergency FAO meeting held in Rome today.
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• The members of the Security Council expressed their serious concern at the shortfall in humanitarian funding for Somalia, and urged all Member States to contribute to the Consolidated Appeal for Somalia.

U.N. INCREASES HUMANITARIAN EFFORTS IN HORN OF AFRICA

• UN agencies are scaling up aid efforts throughout the Horn of Africa, including the World Food Programme , which is feeding 1.5 million people in Somalia and working to reach a further 2.2 million people in areas of the south that have been inaccessible. Food drops are being considered in order to get food to these people urgently.
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• The UN Children’s Fund, UNICEF, says that 780,000 children are acutely malnourished in south Somalia, an increase of over 35 percent, or one million people, since January this year. UNICEF has sent nearly 900 metric tonnes of therapeutic and supplementary feeding supplies, which will help some 38,000 children in the area in the coming days.
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• The UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) is distributing aid packages to some 189,000 people in southern Somalia and is working with the authorities and other partners to register Somali refugees in Kenya and Ethiopia, and to urgently improve shelter, water and other aid services for them.

SECRETARY-GENERAL ENCOURAGES DIALOGUE BETWEEN AUNG SAN SUU KYI AND MYANMAR GOVERNMENT

• The Secretary-General welcomes the meeting today in Yangon between Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and Minister for Social Welfare U Aung Kyi. He notes that the parties have expressed satisfaction at their positive talks and their intention to cooperate further on matters beneficial to the people of Myanmar.
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• The Secretary-General encourages such contacts and dialogue. It will be recalled that his Special Adviser, had meetings with Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and Minister Aung Kyi during his recent visit to Myanmar.
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• In line with the international community’s expectations and Myanmar’s national interest, the Secretary-General hopes such efforts will continue with a view to building mutual understanding through genuine dialogue. He also calls upon the Government of Myanmar to consider early action on the release of political prisoners in that country.

U.N. HUMANITARIAN CHIEF CONCERNED ABOUT DECREASING HUMANITARIAN SUPPLIES IN SOUTH KORDOFAN

• Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs Valerie Amos has expressed concern that humanitarian supplies are dwindling for the people in the areas of Southern Kordofan held by the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement–North.
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• If we are not allowed access to replenish them, the consequences for civilians affected by the fighting will be grave, she said.
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• Relief workers have distributed emergency aid to more than 70,000 people in mountainous areas of South Kordofan State.
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• Ms. Amos said she is worried about how people will cope once their rations have run out. She is calling on all parties to the conflict to allow aid to be brought into the area.

DARFUR: TWO PEACEKEEPERS INJURED IN AMBUSH

• Two peacekeepers serving with the joint United Nations-African Union mission in Darfur (UNAMID) were injured last Friday in an ambush.
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• The incident took place between two camps for the internally displaced near El Geneina, West Darfur, while UNAMID was escorting two fuel tankers.
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• One peacekeeper is in serious condition while the other is in stable condition.
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• The mission is investigating the incident.

COMPLETION OF FLOTILLA PANEL REPORT DELAYED UNTIL AUGUST

• Asked when the report of the panel examining the 31 May 2010 flotilla incident would be completed, the Spokesperson said that the members of the Flotilla Panel have agreed to delay finalising the report until later, in the month of August. This decision is based on consultations between the Secretary-General, the Panel members and the two concerned Governments.
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• The Spokesperson added that the Secretary-General continues to encourage the parties to reach a political resolution.

SECRETARY-GENERAL URGES MEMBER STATES TO EXPAND OPPORTUNITIES FOR YOUTH

• At the opening of a two-day high-level Meeting on Youth today, the Secretary-General urged the international community to expand opportunities for young men and women and to support them as agents of change.
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• He said that although the Facebook generation is showing resolve to change the world, the global economic crisis is constraining opportunities.
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• The Secretary-General added that the United Nations is investing in young people and making greater efforts to engage them in decision-making.
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• Young people, he said, must play a central role in bringing new ideas and fresh thinking to the Rio+20 process next June.
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• The Secretary-General added that sustainable development should become the defining issue of this generation to address climate change and the needs of citizens.
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• Meanwhile, in the Outcome Document, the General Assembly will urge Member States to take measures to protect young people from terrorism and incitement, and to ensure the rights of those living under foreign occupation.

JAPAN TO HOST U.N. DISARMAMENT MEETING IN MATSUMOTO

• The 23rd UN Conference on Disarmament Issues will be held in Matsumoto, Japan, from 27 to 29 July, hosted by the Government of Japan and the city of Matsumoto, and organized by the UN Office for Disarmament Affairs (ODA). The theme of the conference is “Urgent and United Action toward a Nuclear-Weapon-Free World.”
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• Enhancing nuclear safety and security is also high on the Conference’s agenda, especially in the wake of the recent accident at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant.

CRIMES AGAINST HUMANITY MAY HAVE OCCURRED IN SYRIA, SAY U.N. OFFICIALS

• In a statement issued on Friday, the Special Advisers of the Secretary-General on the Prevention of Genocide and on the Responsibility to Protect said that there was a serious possibility that crimes against humanity may have been committed and continue to be committed in Syria.
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• Francis Deng and Edward Luck urged the Government of Syria to ensure that all forces and personnel under their command fully comply with international human rights obligations.

OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS

SECRETARY-GENERAL COMMENDS NORWEGIAN REACTIONS IN AFTERMATH OF ATTACKS: Asked about the killings in Norway, the Spokesperson said that the Secretary-General has commended Norway for saying that Norway’s people intend to stick to their core values in the face of the Friday attacks.

U.N. HAS OFFERED TO SUPPORT ELECTION PROCESS IN EGYPT: Asked about elections in Egypt, the Spokesperson said that the eyes of the international community will be on the election from start to finish. �鶹��ý has offered assistance and will support the process as requested by Egypt.

CYPRUS: LEADERS DISCUSS GOVERNANCE, POWER-SHARING: The leaders of the Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot communities met today in Nicosia on governance and power-sharing. It was also the first of nearly 20 all-day talks as part of intensive negotiations which will last until late October.