Donors pledge $670 million at UN-backed conference to support aid operations in Lake Chad region
24 February 2017 – Giving voice to people affected by conflict and crises in Africa's Lake Chad Basin, a global United Nations-supported humanitarian conference in Oslo today generated more than $670 million in pledges that will help sustain critical relief operations over the next two years and beyond across four counties where millions are in need of aid.
A Window on the Historic Workings of the United Nations Security Council
Ever since the United Nations was founded shortly after the Second World War, the Security Council has addressed global questions of peace and security, based on the powerful role it was accorded in the Charter of the United Nations.
The Repertoire of the Practice of the Security Council is the official and comprehensive record of this work, shedding light on the evolving practice of the Council and its interpretation and application of the Charter and its own Provisional Rules of Procedure since 1946.
The Repertoire is a collection of books, with the first edition covering 1946 to 1951 and subsequent supplements covering periods up to 2011 in hard copy and 2015 in advanced segments online. The entire collection is available at the .
Target Audience
How the Visiola Foundation is helping to drive Sustainable Development Goal #9
This article from the Visiola Foundation is the first in the United Nations Academic Impact (UNAI) Women in Science, Technology and Innovation series that analyses the gender dimension of Sustainable Development Goal #9: Industry, Infrastructure and Innovation. Leading women inventors of the 21st century were asked to avail themselves for interviews and submit articles highlighting the gender dimension of their work, research or inventions as they relate to SDG #9 and outlining their implications in helping to realize that goal. Please note that the interviews and articles are for discussion, and do not necessarily reflect the views of the United Nations.
Women at the Intersection of Science, Technology and Innovation
A gifted mathematician, , the Right Honourable Countess of Lovelace, later known as Ada Lovelace, is considered to have written instructions for the first computer program in the mid-1800s. Ada displayed her mathematical aptitude at an early age. At the age of 12, she designed a steam-powered flight machine. In her late teens, she was asked to translate an article on Charles Babbage's Analytical Engine that had been written by Italian engineer Luigi Federico Menabrea for a Swiss journal. Aside from translating the original French text into English, Ada also added her own thoughts and ideas about the machine. Her notes ended up being three times longer than the original article. Ada's contributions to the field of computer science were not discovered until the 1950s.
Famine declared in region of South Sudan – UN
20 February 2017 – Famine has been formally declared in parts of South Sudan, the United Nations said today, warning that war and a collapsing economy have left some 100,000 people facing starvation there and a further 1 million people are classified as being on the brink of famine.
Famine has become a tragic reality in parts of South Sudan and our worst fears have been realised, said Serge Tissot, the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) Representative in South Sudan, in a news release issued jointly with the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and the World Food Programme (WFP).
Many families have exhausted every means they have to survive, he stated, explaining that these people are predominantly farmers who have lost their livestock, even their farming tools.
Famine is currently affecting parts of Unity State in the northern-central part of the country. A formal famine declaration means people have already started dying of hunger.
A decade on, UN urges all Governments to endorse convention on enforced disappearance
17 February 2017 – Marking the tenth anniversary of an historic treaty to keep people from suffering enforced disappearance or secret detentions, the United Nations today urged all Governments that have not done so to ratify it, as the world body honoured victims separated from their loved ones.
The UN General Assembly adopted the  on 20 December 2006, and it opened for signature the following February.
Reflections on the Day of Holocaust Remembrance
In memory of the victims of the Holocaust, the United Nations annually observes the International Holocaust Remembrance day. During this year's commemoration week, the United Nations Department of Public Information organized special exhibitions, film screenings, NGO briefing and the Holocaust Memorial Ceremony to bring awareness and remind the world of the threat posed to us all when genocide and crimes against humanity are allowed to occur.Â
Call for Nominations for the 2017 United Nations Public Service Awards
Nominations for the 2017 United Nations Public Service Awards (UNPSA) are currently being accepted until 17 March 2017. UNPSA aims to recognize public service institutions that exemplify innovation and excellence in their work. All public organizations are welcome to be nominated including governments and public sector institutions that are engaged in public-private partnerships for delivering services. Candidates are expected to present innovative projects that contribute to improved public service delivery and can inspire similar initiatives around the world.
Nominations for the 2017 UNPSA are classified into three categories:
The Mission to Stop Ebola: Lessons for UN Crisis Response
The International ¹ú²úAV Institute published its new report entitled &lsquoThe Mission to Stop Ebola: Lessons for UN Crisis Response&rsquo on 15 February 2017. Written by its vice president, Adam Lupel and Michael Snyder, an independent researcher, the publication outlines the United Nations Mission for Ebola Emergency Response (UNMEER) efforts, successes, failures and lessons learnt while combatting the Ebola pandemic of 2014 to 2016.  
Following the outbreak in West Africa, particularly in Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone, the United Nations established its first-ever emergency health mission, UNMEER. In September 2014, UNMEER was authorized by the United Nations General Assembly to coordinate and increase the United Nations&rsquo activities on the ground to curb the deadly outbreak. To read the publication, visit .
At Prevention Forum, Participants Discuss Education Strategies for the Prevention of Violent Extremism
Delegates and members of civil society gathered on 13 February 2017 at United Nations Headquarters in New York to discuss and provide a forum for debate on strategies and methods for the prevention of violent extremism.
The Forum, co-organised by the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations' (UNAOC) Media and Information Literacy programme and the United Nations Academic Impact's (UNAI) Unlearning Intolerance programme, carried the theme Media and Information Literacy: Educational Strategies for the Prevention of Violent Extremism.
'Radio provides accessible, real-time medium to bridge divides,' UNESCO says on World Day
13 February 2017 – Radio has never been so dynamic, engaging and important in the midst of deep change in ways to share and access information, the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization () said today, World Radio Day.
At a time of turbulence, radio provides an enduring platform to bring communities together,  UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova in her message on the .
The Africa We Want
On 30th January 2017, the 6th United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) Youth Forum, began with a call to action by United Nations (UN) Secretary-General António Guterres, who urged young people to speak up and share their stories.
New Partnerships for Digital Education
The 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) address core development issues including education. A panel discussion hosted by the International ¹ú²úAV Institute (IPI) and the Sustainable Development Goals Fund (SDGF), identified education as a key driver for social change and poverty eradication. Four speakers, including Paloma Duran, Director of the SDGF; Cesar Alierta, President of Foundation Telefonica; Madhavi Ashok, Senior Advisor of UN Partnerships at UNICEF and Anthony Bosah, Charge d'Affaires of Nigeria to the UN, discussed that in this modern era with high technology proliferation, innovation in education is a critical element for the realization of the Global Goals. They agreed that digital education is an effective tool that should be adopted in every country's education system. Digital education is the process of facilitating a learning session with the aid of digital content and platforms.Â
UN urges renewed fight to end female genital mutilation as populations grow where practice occurs
6 February 2017 – Female genital mutilation denies women and girls their dignity and causes needless pain and suffering, with consequences that endure for a lifetime and can even be fatal, United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres has said, stressing that the UN Sustainable Development Agenda promises an end to this practice by 2030.
Early cancer diagnosis, better trained medics can save lives and money – UN
3 February 2017 - Early cancer diagnosis saves lives and cuts treatment costs, the United Nations health agency today said, particularly in developing countries where the majority of cancer cases are diagnosed too late.