XUNICEF News and Views

Mayor receives masks at UN COVID-19: UN donates quarter of a million face masks to NYC health workers By news.un.org 1 min View Original In a statement, Mr. Guterres said that the face masks are part of UN stocks, deemed surplus to requirements, and are currently located in United Nations facilities in New York. The UN chief praised medical professionals in New York City who, he said, have been working “courageously, selflessly, and tirelessly in response to the spread of COVID-19 across the boroughs,” in a reference to the five boroughs into which the City is administratively divided (Manhattan, Queens, The Bronx, Brooklyn and Staten Island). Mr. Guterres went on to express his hope that the protective equipment will “play some small role in saving lives”. Shortly after the statement was released, the governor of New York, Andrew Cuomo, said in a press conference that the spread of the virus is leaving people disorientated. The State is on lockdown and, said Mr. Cuomo, the peak of

The global coronavirus pandemic, which has closed many schools indefinitely, has had a huge effect on students — 1.5 billion of them around the world, according to Robert Jenkins, UNICEF’s chief of education. “This is a whole new scale that even our worst-case scenario wouldn’t have thought of,” he told Yahoo News in an interview. UNICEF currently has education offices in 135 countries dealing with the effects of the pandemic. Jenkins said that for now the organization's focus is threefold: continuing education remotely, providing safety for vulnerable students, and working with governments and educators to ensure that schools are ready when their doors reopen. UNICEF is tailoring its approach based on the availability of mobile networks and access to e-learning technology, and employing low-tech solutions such as radio broadcasts and print where necessary. “We need to take a comprehensive view on not only learning but the support that schools provide children,” Jenkins said. “The

A first shipment of supplies arrived in Italy today - including surgical masks, surgical and test gloves, protective suits and goggles, masks, gowns and thermometers – co-ordinated by UNICEF Italy to support health workers on the frontline of Italy’s fight against COVID-19, UNICEF Italy said today. UNICEF Italy President Francesco Samengo and Director-General Paolo Rozera welcomed the truck carrying 37 pallets of supplies that arrived in Rome this morning. The supplies have been delivered to the Civil Protection, which will make them available to health centers in the areas where there is a greater need. “For this first concrete operation in support of the Italian Government, we want to thank the Special Commissioner for the Coronavirus Emergency Domenico Arcuri and the Civil Protection for their support. In the coming days we will announce further initiatives,”  said Samengo. UNICEF is working in countries around the world, including in Italy, to help children and families affected by

Home made masks even bandana to cover the face instead of depleting the supply meant for health professionals Nuzhat

Editor's Note:   View the full report as a PDF at bottom of the page Dear colleagues, New estimates on child malnutrition for the indicators of stunting, wasting, severe wasting, and overweight were released yesterday by UNICEF, WHO and the World Bank. The COVID-19 pandemic has put the world on a crisis footing. Malnourished children are vulnerable and at higher risk of being adversely affected by COVID-19 due to a weakened immune system. And reduced or ceased access to nutritious and safe food and essential health care can tip more children over the edge into malnutrition. Timely, disaggregated and quality data help identify where vulnerable children live so that interventions, including those aiming to counteract the potential adverse effects of COVID-19, favour the children most in need. And annual data updates can help us see if our promise to protect the children of the world is upheld during the unprecedented crisis. In 2019, there were 144 million stunted children, 47 milli

Action: Call for a Feminist COVID-19 Policy By feministallianceforrights.org 11 min View Original Dear reader, Below you’ll find open letter prepared by the Feminist Alliance for Rights (FAR) Steering Committee calling on all Member States to adopt a feminist policy to address the COVID-19 outbreak. Please fill out this form to let us know if you and/or your organization would like to sign the letter, by Tuesday, March 24 at 8pm EST . The sign-on form is available in this link: tiny.cc/endorsenow We, the undersigned organizations committed to feminist principles and women’s human rights, call on governments to recall and act in accordance with human rights standards in their response to COVID-19 and uphold the principles of equality and non-discrimination, centering the most marginalized people — women, children, elderly, people with disabilities, people with compromised health, rural people, unhoused people, institutionalized people, , refugees, migrants, indigenous peoples, statel

Five Actions for Gender Equality in the Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) Response: Technical Note By Lauren Rumble, Chief of Gender and Rights Team unicef.org 1 min View Original UNICEF is committed to ensuring gender equality is at the heart of our COVID-19 response, especially as it pertains to front-line service delivery, system-strengthening support, and advocacy and communications. We continue to work alongside our United Nations sister agencies, government partners, civil society collaborators and private-sector allies. To that end, UNICEF prioritizes five core programmatic and advocacy actions that recognize the public health, social and economic consequences of this pandemic: 1. Care for caregivers. 2. Prepare for increases in gender-based violence throughout the COVID-19 outbreak. 3. Maintain core health and education services and systems. 4. Engage women's and youth rights networks to support connectivity and the flow of vital information. 5. Ensure gender data are availab

Billie Eilish: elle se mobilise et lance une belle opération pour l’UNICEF ! By S.G mcetv.fr 2 min View Original Sur Twitter, Billie Eilish propose des dessins de coloriage à son effigie pour occuper ses fans. Les fonds seront reversés à l'UNICEF. Pour divertir ses fans, Billie Eilish vend des dessins de coloriage à son effigie. Tous les fonds seront reversés à l’Unicef, l’organisation qui protège et défend les droits des enfants. MCE vous en dit plus. Quoi de plus important que l’entraide ? La solidarité ? Et la générosité ? En cette période de confinement à cause du Covid-19, les habitants doivent se serrer les coudes ! D’ailleurs, c’est ce que Taylor Swift ne cesse de le répéter. La chanteuse de 30 ans demande à sa communauté virtuelle de se mobiliser. Mieux encore, de faire des dons à des organisations. « L’organisation Mondiale de la Santé et Feeding America sont quelques-uns des organisations à qui je fais des dons. Si vous en avez la possibilité, rejoignez-moi et faites une

if your computer is ok and you available today between 1 and 3 CDT. ..see below. could be good reference point...anyone looking for new hobby in " these sometimes troubled times" positive skill building or understanding of proven simple good practice or for useful capture of sources for lessons learned.. "how to" best wishes. -adhiratha ps.Possibly friends interviewing admired friends across distances..to share. " while both still remember " some have claimed might be better exercise than just a one sided view " after one passing "...If not uncomfortable with possible bit of "Praise for the living" :-) Webinar: Oral History at a Distance: Conducting Remote Interviews by Stephen Sloan Sponsored by Baylor University’s Institute for Oral History and the Oral History Association Tuesday, March 31, 1pm to 3pm CDT Followed by an extended Q&A session This webinar is free for the public, and requires no pre-registration. A recording

Dear colleague, Please find links to a) Office of the Spokesperson of the Secretary-General on the resignation of the Representative for the Secretary-General for Investments, Mr. Sudhir Rajkumar: https://www.un.org/sg/en/content/sg/note-correspondents/2020-03-29/note-correspondents-the-resignation-of-sudhir-rajkumar and b) UN Pension Fund: in the Covid-19 crisis, the Secretary-General must step in now to resolve internal issues on investments http://unpension.blogspot.com/2020/03/un-pension-fund-in-covid-19-crisis.html Excerpt: "For the past year, internal turmoil has roiled the UN Pension Fund's Office of Investment Management (OIM) led by Sudhir Rajkumar, the Representative of the Secretary-General for Investments (RSG). This article presents available facts, in the hope that bringing them into the open will spur necessary attention and steps to restore internal calm to OIM to enable both staff and management to better weather the current external storm caused by the Covid-

As more and more outpourings of philosophical thoughts on the crisis come our way, here is another exceptional one that says it ALL in a few words. Fouad Nous nous sommes endormis dans un monde et nous nous sommes réveillés dans un autre. Soudain, Disney n'a plus de magie, Paris n'est plus romantique, New York ne reste plus debout, le mur chinois n'est plus une forteresse, et la Mecque est vidée. Les câlins et les bisous deviennent soudainement des armes et le fait de ne pas rendre visite aux parents et aux amis devient un acte d'amour. Soudain, vous avez réalisé que le pouvoir, la beauté, l'argent ne valaient rien et ne pouvaient pas vous procurer l'oxygène pour lequel vous vous battiez. Le Monde continue sa vie et il est magnifique ; il ne met en cage que les humains. Je pense qu'il nous envoie un message : "Vous n'êtes pas indispensables. L'air, la terre, l'eau et le ciel sans vous vont bien. Et même mieux. Quand vous reviendrez, rappelez

I hope you are well and safe. If you would put this on the "network" I would be happy, along with my greetings to everyone for a safe and healthy time. Thanks Susan (Durston) In just a few months, COVID-19 has upended the lives of children around the world. EDUCATION CANNOT WAIT INTERVIEWS HENRIETTA H. FORE, UNICEF EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR Henrietta H. Fore, Executive Director, UNICEF. Henrietta H. Fore became UNICEF's seventh Executive Director on 1 January 2018. She has worked to champion economic development, education, health, humanitarian assistance and disaster relief in a public service, private sector and non-profit leadership career that spans more than four decades. From 2007 to 2009, Ms. Fore served as the Administrator of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and Director of United States Foreign Assistance. The first woman to serve in these roles, she was responsible for managing $39.5 billion of U.S. foreign assistance annually, including su

Here are my views on the Coronavirus crisis facing humankind. Warm wishes to all, Richard M. The Thorny Crown Now the moment of truth, some of us may see It should be worth the pain to find what we can be Time for contemplation on the things we've done wrong For reflecting, composing, working on a new song Resurrecting Humanity I'm rising up early with little to do The trees rising high, taunting me, haunting you Sunlight toys with my mood and refreshes my dreams Bees tend to the flowers, birds play on the beams Tempting my Humanity We are heroes and villains, saints on every block Red crosses, white paint and e-files to unlock The chorus of courage and desperate pleas For are we the cure, are we the disease That interrogates Humanity The last words of prophets, first thoughts of the fools Each crying a warning in a world without rules The child and the pensioner make common cause When science and freedom are crushed by the laws Of a ruthless Humanity Blame for the Chinese, th

The United Nations says 86 staff members around the world have reported cases of COVID-19. U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric said most of the infected staff members are in Europe, but there are also staffers in Africa, Asia, the Middle East and the United States that have the coronavirus. To try to reduce transmission, he said the vast majority of U.N. staffers are working from home. At U.N. headquarters in New York, where a normal day would see staffers’ passes swiped 11,000 times, the number of swipes Friday morning stood at 140, Dujarric said. In Geneva, he said, the number of staff at the U.N. office has dropped from around 4,000 people on a regular day to just about 70 on Thursday. In Vienna, more than 97% of U.N. staff are now working remotely, he said. And, in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, 99% of staff are working from home. ___

Excellent analysis of lessons learnt from Italy's response to COVID-19. It also illustrates how Donald Trump and Boris Johnson did precisely what they should not have done and in the case of Trump, he never learns and continues to be driven by his egotistical, self-righteous hubris. Kul As policymakers around the world struggle to combat the rapidly escalating Covid-19 pandemic, they find themselves in uncharted territory. Much has been written about the practices and policies used in countries such as China, South Korea, Singapore, and Taiwan to stifle the pandemic. Unfortunately, throughout much of Europe and the United States, it is already too late to contain Covid-19 in its infancy, and policymakers are struggling to keep up with the spreading pandemic. In doing so, however, they are repeating many of the errors made early on in Italy, where the pandemic has turned into a disaster. The purpose of this article is to help U.S. and European policymakers at all levels learn from I

Juan Aguilar kindly wrote to point out a serious mistake in the photo credit below our lead article in the March Quarterly.  The photographer and contributor was not Juan, but rather Horst Cerni.  Our sincere apologies to Horst, and our thanks to Juan for pointing out the error. Corrected: FROM YOUR EDITORS - Life in a Time of Corona A corona forms around the sun.  Credit Horst Cerni, March 10, 2020

Editor's Note:  The following comments are in the order we received them.  We very much appreciate comments by our readers.   We are repeating here only comments directly related to the Quarterly and dropped any personal comments on how the writer is spending these days of lockdown.  Juan Aguilar Dear colleagues/friends Thank lots for this wonderful and timely First Quarter 2020 issue, which includes our short pics narrative “Discovering the Silk Road” as well as the other interesting XUNICEF’S travels and travelers. Please take note that the credit given for the pic “A corona form around the sun” March 10, 2020, is incorrect since it’s not mine. Thank you again and I’m ready for the next Travels and Travelers issue. Love from Guatemala Ines & Juan Aguilar Shahida Azfar Dear Editors First a big thanks to you all for keeping us so well informed and connected through the regular issues of “XUNICEFNews and Views” which is deeply appreciated: The March Quarterly has come as breat