United Nations Daily Highlights, 97-05-29

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

DAILY HIGHLIGHTS

Thursday, 29 May 1997

HEADLINES

• UN Security Council reaffirms national sovereignty of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, calls for rapid settlement of the crisis in the Great Lakes region.
• United Nations is evacuating the last of its staff from Freetown, Sierra Leone.
• Head of UN economic commission in Africa says stronger links between political and development communities can lead to peace on the continent.
• UNICEF reports alarming levels of malnutrition among Iraqi children.
• Unsafe use of pesticides in farming is a major threat to health and environment, warns UN food and agriculture agency.
• UN publishes a comprehensive reference work on its fiftieth anniversary year.

Recalling the United Nations five-point peace plan, the Security Council appealed for the rapid and peaceful settlement of the crisis through dialogue and the convening of an international conference on peace, security and development in the Great Lakes region. The Council also called for rapid agreement on peaceful transitional arrangements leading to the holding of democratic and free elections with the participation of all parties.

Protection and security for all refugees and displaced persons was another major concern for the Council which urged facilitation of access to humanitarian assistance. The Council also reiterated its call for cooperation with the UN mission investigating reports of massacres. Concerned by reports of systematic killings of refugees in the east of the country, the Security Council called for an immediate end to the violence.

Addressing the opening of a three-day meeting of the Council of Ministers of the Organisation of African Unity (OAU) in Harare on Wednesday, the Executive Secretary of the Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) K.Y Amoaka urged the international community to make more assertive investments in the peace process.

Mr. Amoaka told ministers from 53 African countries that the development community was at a loss to suggest how best to either avoid situations such as occurred in Rwanda, or shift from such crises to more normal development.

"We should be learning more about the lessons within Africa on preserving development during crises and recovery of development after crises", said the head of the Addis Ababa-based Commission, which is charged with implementing development programmes in Africa.

Highlighting the role of poverty and extreme inequality in incubating conflict, the ECA chief stressed the importance of "anti- poverty and pro- people" policies in education, health and social security as steps towards peace.

In a press release issued in Baghdad, UNICEF detailed the results of a survey the UN children's agency had carried out in April 1997 together with the World Food Programme (WFP) and the Iraqi Ministry of Health. The survey, conducted in 87 primary health centres in 15 provinces in central/south Iraq, shows that since 1991 the number of malnourished children under five years of age in has risen by over 15 per cent, to some 750,000 children.

Concerned about the unsafe use of pesticides, the UN body tasked with encouraging sustainable agriculture, called for the adoption of minimum standards for the efficient application of agrochemicals through good quality equipment and better training of farmers.

According to FAO, many farmers and equipment operators have insufficient knowledge about pesticides and correct methods of application.

In an effort to assist farmers and equipment operators, the FAO has developed guidelines and standards for pesticide application equipment, and has also suggested that incentives should be created for improved equipment quality.

The forty-ninth Yearbook of the United Nations has detailed information on the work of the UN and its family of organizations during 1995. It also contains illustrated accounts of the fiftieth anniversary ceremonies in San Francisco and New York, as well as excerpts form 200 speeches delivered by world leaders at the special commemorative meeting at UN Headquarters. The cover of the 1,615-page edition features an historic photo of world dignitaries attending the October 1995 commemorative session.

The Yearbook, which is published by the UN Department of Public Information, is the primary authoritative reference work on the United Nations, reproducing in their entirety the texts of all major General Assembly, Security Council and Economic and Social Council resolutions.

From the United Nations home page at <http://www.un.org> - email: unnews@un.org

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