Medical Mission Sisters at the UN

Dear Readers,

The year 2020 is an important milestone for the United Nations in many ways, it is also the International year of Plant Health and the year of Nurse and Midwife. The highlights are: 

• 75 years of the adoption of the UN Charter or UN+75, 
• 25 Anniversary of the Fourth World Conference on Women’s Beijing + 25 
• 25 Anniversary of the World conference on Social Development- Copenhagen +25 
• Decade of Action on the SDGs  SDGs+5
• Paris Climate Agreement +5 

UN2020: The UN2020 initiative is dedicated to using the 75th anniversary of the UN in 2020 as an opportunity to take stock and strengthen the UN system in partnership with civil society, governments, and the UN in support of a people-centered multilateralism. To get involved, please follow the link: https://www.un.org/en/un75

Global Conversations:One of the activates around UN+75 is the online global conversation on protecting civic space: SG calls …

Dear Readers,

The highlights of December news from the United Nations are as follows:

Dec 5: The United Nations Career Workshop provided prospective employees, students and interns with the necessary information on the different roles one could fulfill and the benefits of being a UN staff. The workshop consisted of an interactive panel discussion on matters of writing a CV, a cover letter, and the in-person interview process. Lea and Vaiju our interns attended it .  

ILO 190: A briefing on the ILO(International Labor Organization)  Convention 190 on violence and harassment in the workplace and Recommendation 206 shared with the NGO committees and encourage ratification . This binding treaty will include the first international standards on violence and harassment in the workplace if ratified. According to the government delegate of Romania Adrian Vierita, “no one should have to choose between their right to work and their right to live free …

Dear Readers,                                                                                                                                                                  Orange the World: 2019 theme for the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women (Nov 25) is  ‘Generation Equality Stands Against Rape”. As before, this year’s International Day marked  the launch of 16 days of activism, concluding on 10 December, which is International Human Rights Day.

During the official commemoration of the  International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women, 26-year-old  Anja Jusic from Bosnia, President of the Forgotten Children of War Association, spoke about her advocacy to end the stigma of survivors of sexual violence in conflict and their children.  She was born out  of rape during the Bosnia war and  said “ “I used to ask myself,  “Who my father is, what is my genetics”.  Her story moved everyone in the hall and gave her a standing ovation . Studies shows that there were 20,000 children born out of rape during the 100 days of genocide in Rwanda alone. Rape …

Dear Readers,

October is the month of UN Day Celebration and the continuation of General Assembly started in Sept.  

Oct 11. International Day of the Girl 

The International Day of the Girl is October 11 and the 2019 theme was: “GirlForce: Unscripted and Unstoppable,” to emphasize the past work in the adoption of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, as well as future work in girls’ health, education and safety.  The girls literally occupied the UN Conference room and spoke with clarity and conviction. Link for more info: http://bit.ly/GirlOct2019

Oct 17. Symposium on Women and Girls Experiencing Homelessness 

The CSocD Priority Theme of 2020 will be “affordable housing and social protection systems for all to address homelessness.” It is pertinent to understand the definition of homelessness and identify the most vulnerable groups, such as women and girls. Leilani Farha, the UN Special Rapporteur on Adequate Housing, spoke about a framework …

Dear Readers,

September was the busiest month at the UN with the 74 UN General Assembly high-level week, from 21 to 27 September, and other events. World leaders gathered at the UN creating very high security and traffic jam in NYC. 

Secretary General had asked leaders to announce concrete plans of action that can boost global ambition. “If we want our planet to remain the same – healthy and able to support prosperity and opportunity for all – we will have to completely transform our world.” Heads of States and Government are using their 15 minutes at the podium not only to underscore modern challenges and garner action to curb global ills facing today’s and tomorrow’s world but also accusing one another which has become a trend recently.  

International day of Peace: Every year celebrated on Sept 21 and the theme for 2019: Climate Action for Peace and …

The highlight of August was the 68 United Nation’s Department of Global Communications annual Conference called the UN Civil Society Conference held in Salt Lake City -Utah from August 26-28, 2019. Inclusive and sustainable cities and communities (SDG. 11)  was the focus of this conference, noting that cities are well placed to help combat the global climate emergency and point the way towards sustainable, low-emission development. There were 4000 participants from over 100 Countries. Salt Lake City (SLC) has been preparing for the conference for over a year, led by Mayor Jackie Biskupski, who declared that cities and local communities have never before played such an important role in the health and well-being of the world. SLC became the first city (besides NY) in the US to host a UN conference since 1945.

Partnerships with civil society and youth are essential to achieving the goals of key UN-backed international agreements, …