25 January 2021 (Transcript of the speech, exactly as it was delivered)
Thank you, Mr. President. May I start by thanking you for calling this debate. The United Kingdom reiterates its full support for the Secretary-General’s call for a global ceasefire and the implementation of the commitments under resolution 2532.
Sadly, as we’ve heard, despite a global pandemic of historic proportions, peacebuilding has not always been afforded the priority it deserves. There has indeed been some progress, but implementation of the resolution continues to be mixed, as the following three examples illustrate.
In Yemen, as we’ve heard, the Houthis failed to reciprocate the Saudi-led coalition’s unilateral ceasefire offers in 2020, and the recent Houthi attack on Aden has gravely undercut peace efforts. Now is the time to rally round the UN Special Envoys efforts to secure a lasting political solution to the conflict. The stakes have never been higher and the humanitarian crisis, already
Date Time
Reiterating UK’s full support for Secretary-General’s call for a global ceasefire
Thank you, Mr. President. May I start by thanking you for calling this debate. The United Kingdom reiterates its full support for the Secretary-General’s call for a global ceasefire and the implementation of the commitments under resolution 2532.
Sadly, as we’ve heard, despite a global pandemic of historic proportions, peacebuilding has not always been afforded the priority it deserves. There has indeed been some progress, but implementation of the resolution continues to be mixed, as the following three examples illustrate.
In Yemen, as we’ve heard, the Houthis failed to reciprocate the Saudi-led coalition’s unilateral ceasefire offers in 2020, and the recent Houthi attack on Aden has gravely undercut peace efforts. Now is the time to rally round the UN Special Envoys efforts to secure a lasting political solution to the conflict. The stakes have never been higher and the huma
Hundreds of thousands of Mauritanians are struggling to feed themselves as they fall victim to the effects of climate change.
A chronically hungry country, Mauritania could see the availability of food drop to its lowest level in years if drought continues to ravage crops, livestock and livelihoods.
An estimated 1.3 million people will face food insecurity this year, according to the latest assessment by the UN-backed Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC). Among them, nearly half a million people are expected to fall into severe food insecurity by June and be “unable to meet their food needs without external assistance. Around 21,000 will suffer extreme food insecurity, or a near complete depletion of their livelihoods.
Uniting a global WASH response with an evidence-based approach: the WASH Severity Classification
Format
When the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) was originally created in 2004, the impetus came from the humanitarian community’s need to understand food security crises faster and with greater precision, so as to shape a more effective response. The IPC has since then become a landmark in the fight against food insecurity. Decades later however, a similar approach- where vast and various data sources are fed into a recognized and trusted analysis system- has yet to emerge in the Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH) sector. With this in mind, a new inter-agency global initiative was launched, with the support and early buy-in from over twenty aid organizations. As the pilots of this new approach have yielded their first results, we are glad to introduce the new WASH Severity Classification (WSC).
Beyond the bang-bang: Reporting from the front lines of peace. This article is part of our peacebuilding coverage, reporting on how atrocities can be prevented, how societies can be made more resilient, and how peace can be sustainably built.
JUBA/PIBOR/YEI, South Sudan
On the streets of South Sudan’s capital city, billboards honour the country’s politicians for ending five years of conflict that cost almost 400,000 lives and displaced millions. “Peacemakers” and “Children of God” declares one poster, quoting the Bible alongside a photo of the president.
But nearly a year after President Salva Kiir formed a unity government with opposition leader Riek Machar – now the vice-president – key parts of the agreement have not been implemented amid entrenched distrust between the two men, funding shortages, and renewed fighting that cost thousands of lives in 2020.