UN News Centre - Africa

Some 4.6 million people in Burundi are food insecure, with more than 500,000 of them requiring urgent emergency food assistance, the United Nations food relief agency has said, warning that food stocks are stretched as a result of the fragile socio-economic context in the country.

About two million people, or half the population, in the Sahelian belt of Chad face hunger and more than a quarter of them are in severe need of external assistance to meet their minimum daily food needs, the United Nations food relief agency said today.

Concluding a three-day visit to Côte d&#39Ivoire, the United Nations Special Representative on Sexual Violence in Conflict has welcomed progress made thus far by the Government, and in particular by the national armed forces, in addressing sexual violence crimes in the country.

The verdict announced by a special court in Senegal on the conviction of the former President of Chad, Hissène Habré, of crimes against humanity sent “a strong signal” to those who perpetrate serious crimes of international concern, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has said.

The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights today welcomed the "historic" verdict of the special court in Senegal convicting the former President of Chad Hissène Habré of crimes against humanity, summary executions, torture and rape.

Five United Nations peacekeepers were killed in an ambush in central Mali earlier today, with another &#39blue helmet&#39 seriously injured, according to preliminary information reported by the country&#39s UN mission, which deplored the &#8220heinous act of terrorism&#8221 as all the more shocking because it occurred on the day set aside for the global community to honour UN peacekeepers.

The United Nations Security Council today approved a two-month extension of the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM), allowing adequate time for the 15-member body to consider the outcome of its recently-concluded visit to the Horn of Africa country.

In the wake of protests in Guinea-Bissau, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today urged all political stakeholders and their supporters to act responsibly, refrain from violence and avoid an escalation of the situation by settling their concerns through dialogue.

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today welcomed the meetings of the political dialogue for Burundi, held in Arusha, from 21 to 24 May under the auspices of the Facilitator of the East African Community (EAC), Benjamin William Mkapa, former President of Tanzania.

The United Nations Mine Action Service (UNMAS) in South Sudan said today it will receive 37 new explosive detection dogs as part of an increase in the presence of such dogs throughout the country.

At a meeting today in the United Nations Security Council on the situation in the Sahel region of sub-Saharan Africa, senior UN officials stressed that climate change plays a direct role in the region’s security, development and stability by increasing drought and fuelling conflict.

Justice, accountability and the deterrent effects of the law remain “critical components” for achieving lasting peace in Libya, the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) told the United Nations Security Council today, encouraging the country’s Government to give priority to devising effective plans and strategies to address atrocity crimes, and to invest in the relevant national institutions responsible for such work.

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has expressed profound concern over reports of increasing political tensions in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) linked to the continuing uncertainty surrounding the country’s electoral process.

Despite an uncertain global economic landscape, Africa’s prospects are positive, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said today, urging the continent’s leaders to use recent gains to address rising social and economic inequalities.

Acknowledging the sustained progress made on rebuilding Liberia after the 1999-2003 civil war, the United Nations Security Council today terminated an arms embargo against the country and dissolved the related mechanisms, namely the sanctions Committee and the expert panel.

The United Nations Humanitarian Coordinator for South Sudan has strongly condemned the killing of Veronika Racková, a Slovakian nun and medical doctor who was shot on 15 May in Yei, while on a humanitarian mission, and later succumbed to her wounds.

Two United Nations agencies have begun providing both seeds and food to nearly 50,000 hungry farming families in some areas of the conflict-torn Central African Republic (CAR) to ensure that they don’t eat seeds meant for planting.

The Security Council today stressed the importance of strengthening the existing cooperation between the United Nations and the African Union (AU), a regional organization described by a senior UN official as “the most important peacekeeping partner.”

The United Nations Independent Investigation in Burundi, which was set up to investigate human rights violations in the country since April 2015, said today it has completed the deployment of a team of human rights monitors on the ground.

With two-thirds of Africans expected to live in cities by 2050, how Africa urbanizes will be critical to the continent’s future growth and development, a new report presented by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) has found.