United Nations Daily Highlights, 04-07-26

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From: The United Nations Home Page at <http://www.un.org> - email: unnews@un.org

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE NOON BRIEFING

BY FRED ECKHARD

SPOKESMAN FOR THE

SECRETARY-GENERAL

OF THE UNITED NATIONS

UN HEADQUARTERS, NEW YORK

Monday, July 26, 2004

ANNAN TO CO-CHAIR SUMMIT ON COTE

DIVOIRE

THIS WEEK

Secretary-General Kofi Annan will be attending a summit on Cote dIvoire to begin this Thursday in the Ghanaian capital of Accra.

This meeting builds on the mini-summit that the Secretary-General hosted at the African Union summit in Addis Ababa

earlier this month. But in addition to the nine heads of state that attended in Addis, the heads of state of all 15 members of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) have been invited. Its not yet certain how many of those will actually attend.

The purpose of the meeting is to assist the Government of the Cote dIvoire and the opposition to faithfully implement the peace plan known as the Linas-Marcoussis Agreement. It will be co-chaired by the Secretary-General along with President John Kufuor of Ghana in his capacity as the chairman of ECOWAS.

The Secretary-General is expected to be back in the office at the beginning of next week.

SECURITY COUNCIL BRIEFED ON

ABKHAZIA,

GEORGIA;

TO RECEIVE BRIEFING ON

IRAQ

MONITORING BOARD

The Security Council just concluded consultations on the UN Observer Mission in Georgia. Hedi Annabi, Assistant Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations, briefed members on the latest Secretary-Generals report on Abkhazia, Georgia, and recent developments.

Under other matters, Annabi also briefed on Kosovo.

In the afternoon at

3:00 p.m., the Council will hold consultations on Iraq. Members are scheduled to hear a briefing by UN Controller Jean-Pierre Halbwachs, who is Chair of the International Monitoring and Advisory Board.

The Board recently released an initial audit of the Development Fund for Iraq (DFI), which was set up last year to take over management of the country's petroleum revenues.

Asked about progress at the Security Council on Sudan, the Spokesman said he did not think the situation had changed since Friday, with Council members considering a draft resolution sponsored by the United States.

JOINT VERIFICATION MISSION

VISITS DISPLACED PERSONS CAMP IN

DARFUR

As Security Council experts continue to discuss a draft resolution on Sudan at UN headquarters, in the field, a joint verification mission comprised of UN staff, Sudanese Government officials and representatives of concerned countries this morning travelled to a displaced persons camp near Nyala in South Darfur.

Organized under the auspices of the Joint Implementation Mechanism (JIM), set up after the United Nations and Sudan signed a communiqué on 3 July outlining their commitments to alleviate the humanitarian crisis in that region of Sudan, the mission will remain in Darfur for three days to assess the security situation.

Specifically, the mission will investigate locations where voluntary returns have taken place; review the security concerns of Internally Displaced Persons; and see whether the Sudanese Government is making progress on its pledges to disarm the Janjaweed.

Heavy rains overnight are making access difficult for the group.

The mission will reports its findings to the next meeting of the Joint Implementation Mechanism, scheduled for August 2. Jan Pronk, the Secretary-Generals Special Representative for Sudan is scheduled to attend that meeting.

SUDANESE POLICE OFFICERS COMPLETE SEX INVESTIGATION TRAINING

Amid widespread reports of sexual violence and rape of women and children in Darfur, UNICEF, the UN Childrens Fund, announced that it concluded a three-day training of Sudanese police officers designed to assist them in investigating cases of the rape of children.

UNICEF also said that a polio vaccination campaign, supported by the World Health Organization and covering all of North Darfur, will begin tomorrow.

Humanitarian agencies, meanwhile, remain seriously concerned about the increasing pressure by the Sudanese Government on the displaced populations to return to their villages or other relocation sites. IDPs are being enticed by promises of food and supplies at such sites, according to the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.

FLOODING IN

BANGLADESH

COULD LEAD TO HUMANITARIAN CRISIS

The World Food Programme (WFP) warns that Bangladesh

could face a major humanitarian crisis as heavy rains there have prevented water levels from dropping, leading to continued flooding.

The WFP is particularly concerned about the upcoming high tide in the Bay of Bengal

expected in early August which would considerably limit the outflow of flood water into the sea.

Flooding over the past few months has destroyed substantial parts of Bangladeshs rice crop as well as the food stocks of many households.

The WFP has just finished distributing high-energy biscuit supplies in three northern districts, and it is preparing to hand out some 3,000 tons of rice.

U.N. ENVOY FOR WESTERN SAHARA

TO CONSULT WITH MOROCCO, FRENTE POLISARIO

Alvaro de Soto, the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Western Sahara, arrived in Laayoune early in the month of July.

De Soto has carried out in-depth consultations in Washington, Paris and Madrid.

He is hoping to initiate consultations in the framework of his enlarged responsibilities following the resignation of James Baker as the Secretary-Generals Personal Envoy, with Morocco and the Frente POLISARIO before the August lull.

BASIC SUPPLIES URGENTLY NEEDED THROUGHOUT

ETHIOPIA

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs reports that multi-agency assessment teams have agreed that basic supplies are urgently required in many locations throughout Ethiopia. Last month, some one million people in the eastern Somali Region were receiving food assistance, while in all of Ethiopia, the figure was close to seven million.

In addition, UNICEF, the UN Childrens Fund, and the World Health Organization, along with other partners, are seeking $6.9 million to help pay for new, more effective anti-malarial treatments. Malaria is a leading cause of death in Ethiopia currently, some 48 million people live in malaria risk areas.

UNICEF WARNS DEATH RATES RISING AMONG ERITREAN CHILDREN

UNICEF says death rates are rising among more than 400,000 children in

Eritrea

living in extreme poverty due to the prolonged drought and the deteriorating economy.

An additional $3.8 million to fund its projects there and to support children displaced by the crisis in the East African country for the rest of the year is being sought by UNICEF.

AIDS VICTIMS IN

INDIA

SUFFER DROP IN HOUSEHOLD INCOME

The recent International AIDS Conference in Bangkok, highlighted that the ability to continue working provides a vital lifeline for people living with HIV/AIDS.

As of 2002, India is estimated to have some 4 million people living with HIV/AIDS.

A new study by the International Labour Organization in India shows that household incomes of HIV/AIDS sufferers are depleted by one third, while average monthly expenditure on food and treatment increases substantially.

As a result of this many households have to compromise on their children's education, with nearly 38% of respondents reported being forced to send their children to work.

MORE THAN 40% OF ELIGIBLE AFGHAN WOMEN REGISTERED TO VOTE

The UN Mission in Afghanistan reports that, as of last week, Afghan women broke the 40% mark for voter registration, with more than 3.2 million women or 41% of the total number of voters registered for the upcoming elections.

Nearly eight million Afghans in all have registered, as the voter registration process approaches its closure at the end of this month.

OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS

UNITED NATIONS NOT ASKED TO PROVIDE OBSERVERS FOR VENEZUELAN REFERENDUM: Asked why the United Nations was not providing election observers for the referendum in Venezuela, the Spokesman said he did not believe such activity was requested of the United Nations. The United Nations, he added, would defer to the Organization of American States and the Carter Center, who have been involved with the process in Venezuela for a long time.

UNICEF CONGRATULATES KANO PROVINCE FOR JOINING POLIO CAMPAIGN: UNICEF and its partners, in a press release issued in Abuja, Nigeria, have congratulated Nigerias Kano State Government for rejoining the polio eradication campaign. The country is now united in the fight against polio and has the unique opportunity to spare future generations from this crippling disease, it says.

MEDIA POLICY IN ASIA-PACIFIC SHOULD HELP BUILD OPEN INFORMATION SOCIETIES: In a message, the Secretary-General today said that media policy in Asia and the Pacific needs to be directed toward building truly open information societies that benefit and empower all people. That goal, he noted, is easier said than done. The message was delivered to the general conference of the Asia-Pacific Institute for Broadcasting Development taking place in Colombo, Sri Lanka.

WORLD LEADERS CHALLENGED TO MAKE ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION A TOP PRIORITY: Children from some 50 countries challenged world leaders last Friday to make environmental protection a top priority, as a UN Environment Programme conference came to a close in

New London,

Connecticut. About 450 children aged 10 to 13 took part in the four-day conference, which included a series of hands-on workshops and field trips on the issues of energy and waste, freshwater and marine protection, and biological and cultural diversity.

LOCAL COMMUNITIES URGED TO HELP WITH FIRE PREVENTION: The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) is calling on local communities to get involved in fire prevention and control. FAO says that their involvement is crucial, given that globally, 95% of all fires are caused by human activity. Main causes of fire outbreaks in rural areas include: uncontrolled use of fire for agriculture; setting fire to forests and grassland to convert them into agricultural fields; the use of fire to gain access to hunting; and arson. FAO is assisting Bulgaria,

Ethiopia, Guatemala, Mongolia, Namibia and Syria.

UNITED NATIONS RECEIVES DONATION OF NEW UNIFORMS FOR HQ TOUR GUIDES:The United Nations is receiving a new donation of uniforms for its tour guides from clothing company Le Monti. Over the next two years, the New York-based firm is donating two full sets of uniforms for each of the 60 UN tour guides here at headquarters. A signing ceremony will be held tomorrow in the Dag Hammarskjold Library penthouse.

Office of the Spokesman for the Secretary-General

United Nations, S-378

New York, NY 10017

Tel. 212-963-7162 -

press/media only

Fax. 212-963-7055

All other inquiries to be addressed to (212)

963-4475 or by e-mail to: inquiries@un.org

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