Published Weekly by the United Nations Information Centre New Delhi

55 Lodhi Estate, New Delhi 110003

24 July, 2004
 

Table Of Contents

 

UN Assembly Votes Overwhelmingly To Demand Israel Comply With ICJ Ruling 1

The United Nations General Assembly on 20 July voted overwhelmingly to demand that Israel comply with an advisory opinion issued earlier this month by the World Court, which declared the construction of a separation barrier in and around the West Bank to be illegal.

In adopting a resolution by a vote of 150 to 6, with 10 abstentions, the Assembly also called on all UN Member States to comply with its obligations as contained in the finding by the International Court of Justice (ICJ), which include a duty "not to recognize the illegal situation resulting from the construction of the wall in the occupied Palestinian territory, including in and around East Jerusalem" and "not to render aid or assistance in maintaining the situation created by such construction."

On 9 July the ICJ _ the UN's principal judicial organ _ issued an advisory opinion saying the separation barrier was illegal and that construction must stop immediately. The Court also said Israel should make reparations for any damage caused, and that the Assembly and the Security Council should consider what steps to take "to bring to an end the illegal situation" created by the barrier.

The resolution, brought forward by Jordan on behalf of the Arab States, also asks Secretary-General Kofi Annan to set up a register of all damage caused to "all the natural or legal persons" in connection with Israel's construction of the barrier.

The Assembly called on both the Government of Israel and the Palestinian Authority to immediately implement their obligations under the Road Map peace plan sponsored by the UN, European Union, Russian Federation and United States, which calls for a series of parallel and reciprocal steps by each party leading to two States living side-by-side in peace by 2005.

 

S-G: Palestinian Authority Should Tackle Crisis Through Reform 2

The current turmoil in the Palestinian Authority should prompt reforms in the security sector and the political power structure, United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan said on 21 July.

"I really hope that as difficult and as complicated as the crisis is in Palestine, they will exploit this crisis positively and move ahead and really come out with some of the reform structures which are required, particularly in the security area," he told reporters at a news conference in New York.

Specifically, Mr. Annan called for consolidating the security structures, empowering the Prime Minister and Minister of Interior to "really take charge" and undertaking other reforms related to the Cabinet.

"I hope Chairman Yasser Arafat will seize the need in supporting this sort of reform at this stage and be able to move the process forward," he said.

The Secretary-General was also asked about the General Assembly's adoption of a resolution on 20 July demanding that Israel comply with an advisory opinion issued earlier this month by the International Court of Justice (ICJ), which declared the construction of a separation barrier in and around the West Bank to be illegal.

He acknowledged that the Israeli Government did not like the General Assembly resolution. "But the Israeli court itself also came out with a decision on the route of the barrier and asked them to change it because of its impact on the Palestinians, so one cannot say that the International Court of Justice was entirely wrong," he said.

The Israeli court's decision, he added, was "courageous and bold."

The Secretary-General also stressed the need to "heed and pay attention to the Court's decision; even though it is not enforceable, it has some moral bearing on what they do."

 

S-G And Qazi: UN Role In Iraq Is To Support Its People 3

Emphasizing the importance of security for United Nations activities in Iraq, Secretary-General Kofi Annan and his newly-appointed senior envoy to the country, Ashraf Jehangir Qazi, said on 22 July that this work will focus on supporting national efforts to achieve the political transition.

Security concerns are paramount as the world body prepares to return to the strife-torn nation where last year 22 people were killed in an attack on the UN's Baghdad headquarters.

The Secretary-General told reporters Mr. Qazi would travel to Iraq "as soon as practicable" once arrangements have been made to protect him and his small staff.

At the same time, he cautioned that for the UN to build up a larger presence "a dedicated force protecting the UN staff and its facilities" will be needed.

Security, Mr. Qazi added, "is not only the first consideration _ it is the first priority, the second priority and the third priority."

He noted, however, Iraqis "do believe that the UN has a vital role of assistance, of facilitation, to play in bringing about a successful political transition in which the entire Iraqi people are stakeholders.

"There is every reason for the Iraqi people to see the UN mission in Iraq as a mission in their service and for them, and it will be my job to strengthen that impression there," he said during a press encounter shortly after a meeting with
Mr. Annan.

The Secretary-General reiterated that the UN would be in the country to provide assistance to its people. "We are not going to run the elections," he said. "The Iraqis will run the elections with our help, our advice and technical assistance."

Asked about his work, Mr. Qazi said he would support the planned convening of a national conference, the creation of an Interim Council, the holding of elections by January 2005, "which would then lead to the post electoral phase _ constitutional building _ and then finally an election under the constitution."

In this process, Mr. Qazi said, he would work as closely as possible with the interim Government and to bring "the disparate elements in Iraq" into the political process while consulting with neighbouring countries as well as the permanent members of the Security Council.

The Secretary-General, while stressing the need to be "coldly realistic" about security, noted that the UN had already accomplished much despite the constraints. "We have been able to help form an interim government. We have been able to work with them to put in place an electoral framework, a legal framework for elections, and they are counting on us to help them work their way through the electoral process until the elections next year, and also assist with the constitutional process," he noted.

"But also, everyone must realize that beyond that, the circumstances have to be right for us to scale up our operations and activities and get into other areas like institution building and human rights, recovery and reconstruction," he said.

 

Afghanistan Elections 4

Afghans still living in Iran and Pakistan will be able to vote in Afghanistan's upcoming presidential and parliamentary elections, the United Nations Assistance Mission to the country (UNAMA) announced on 20 July.

UNAMA and Afghanistan signed memorandums this month with the governments of the country's two neighbours that pave the way for the estimated hundreds of thousands of Afghans living in Pakistan and Iran to take part in the polling.

In a statement issued on 20 July, UNAMA said Afghanistan reached a deal on 20 July on voting and voter registration with Pakistan, eight days after striking an agreement with Iran. The Iran deal only covers voting because out-of-country voter registration was already approved last year.

The Secretary-General's Deputy Representative for Afghanistan, Filippo Grandi, said the deal completed the out-of-country voter registration processes.

"The process itself will be a challenge, particularly from the organizational side, but the UN will do its utmost to help guarantee its integrity," he said.

Afghanistan's presidential election is due to be held on 9 October, while the national and local parliamentary elections have been postponed to next April.

 

New Report Finds Political Intimidation In Parts Of Afghanistan 5

The level of political freedom Afghans are able to exercise varies widely across their country, with some areas marred by intimidation, the just-released findings of a study by the United Nations and the Government say.

The first report of the Joint Verification of Political Rights by the Afghan Independent Human Rights Commission and the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) reveals greater respect for rights in the capital, Kabul, and in the East.

But in parts of the South, violence by extremists is hindering popular participation in the electoral process, while in the West, registered political parties complain that local authorities are curtailing their freedom of expression and operation, a UN spokesman said on 19 July.

"The report observes that there is a high level of self-censorship among groups, parties and individuals who do not share the beliefs of the factions in power in different regions," Manoel de Almeida e Silva told the press in Kabul. "This self-imposed restraint is strengthened by the behaviour of local representatives of the central Government who tend to consider any political activity as subversive."

 

Sec-Gen: UN And Regional Groups Should Refine Their Partnerships To Build Stability 6

When a country emerges from war, regional organizations are often well-placed to foster peace, but United Nations assistance is usually required to sustain the effort, Secretary-General Kofi Annan told the Security Council on 20 July.

Citing examples from Afghanistan, Haiti, Kosovo and Burundi, Mr. Annan said the UN can and should work together with regional bodies to establish peace and security and to help reconstruct States emerging from crisis and conflict.

But he told the Council's meeting on cooperation between the UN and regional organizations that many of the partnerships so far have been improvised, rather than targeted to specific strengths.

"I believe that more institutionalized channels of cooperation would help ensure more efficiency and effectiveness, and perhaps even economies of scale," he said, pointing out that future partnerships must be shaped according to the individual challenges that arise.

Mr. Annan said the UN will soon hold talks with regional groups about setting up cooperation mechanisms on several issues, including the protection of civilians in armed conflict, promoting tolerance and dialogue among civilizations.

 

Sec-Gen: Life-Saving UN Relief Operations In Sudan Face $200 Million Budget Gap 7

The United Nations has received just $145 million so far of the $349 million in funds it has requested to ameliorate the humanitarian crisis engulfing Sudan's Darfur region, Secretary-General Kofi Annan said on 21 July, explaining the world body particularly needs helicopters and other equipment to deliver aid.

Mr. Annan also told a press conference at UN Headquarters in New York that the Sudanese Government has not taken "adequate steps" to meet its commitments to disarm the Arab-dominated Janjaweed militias that have conducted deadly attacks against Darfur's black African population.

The more than 1 million people who are internally displaced in Darfur have a "right to be nervous," Mr. Annan said, adding they need to see Khartoum take practical measures to improve security before they can be expected to return to their home villages. 

"The Sudanese Government doesn't have forever" to meet the pledges _ such as disarming the Janjaweed and punishing those responsible for human rights abuses _ it made on 3 July in a joint communiqué with the UN, the Secretary-General added.

He said the UN may move to take tougher action against Sudan if it is not satisfied that the Government is making enough headway towards achieving its targets.

So far progress has been uneven, he said, although he praised Khartoum for improving access to humanitarian agencies previously restricted from operating in Darfur.

Senior UN officials have described the situation unfolding in Darfur and neighbouring Chad, where about 180,000 people live as refugees, as the world's worst humanitarian crisis. The conflict began early last year when two rebel groups took up arms against the Sudanese Government.

Mr. Annan said the international community has a responsibility to step up pressure on Sudan to meet its commitments and on all sides to negotiate a peace agreement "in good faith." But he noted that foreign donors are well behind in meeting the UN appeal for funds for Darfur and Chad.

"We need money and more resources for humanitarian efforts. We need them now, not tomorrow. Tomorrow may already be too late," he said. "We are $204 million short. I appeal to donors to make good on the pledges they have already made, and to increase their assistance."

Mr. Annan said UN agencies also need specific help with equipment, specifying six helicopters are required to transport aid to Darfur's more remote areas during the current rainy season.

 

Sudan Trying To Force Darfur's Displaced To Return Home, Say, UN Agencies 8

United Nations humanitarian agencies said on 19 July that the Sudanese Government is increasingly pressuring internally displaced people (IDPs) within the troubled Darfur region to return to their homes, even though the beleaguered civilians remain afraid of militia attacks and security has still not improved.

Already more than 11,000 people have been relocated forcibly, and Khartoum wants to move IDPs in Mornei, one of West Darfur's biggest camps, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said in a statement.

On 17 July, at a meeting of the Joint Implementation Mechanism (JIM) _ the body set up to monitor the pledges made in the recent communiqué by the UN and Sudan _ UN officials told Sudan that there has been "no progress" on security and protecting IDPs.

The officials said IDPs were afraid of returning to their home villages because they feared attacks by the Janjaweed, Arab-dominated militias allied to the Government.

More than 1 million people have been uprooted since fighting broke out early last year between the Sudanese Government and two rebel groups, and the Janjaweed began carrying out deadly attacks against local black Africans.

OCHA said the number of IDPs in Darfur has swelled by 100,000 in the past month, with fresh groups of people arriving daily at the numerous IDP camps across the region.

While there have been improvements in allowing humanitarian access to Darfur, OCHA said, some staff have been stopped at checkpoints because local security officials did not recognize the newer, less onerous forms. Many agencies are also finding it difficult to recruit nationals to help with health care.

But the number of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) operating in Darfur has surged from about 170 at the end of May to a predicted 500 at the end of this month. OCHA said, however, that not all areas of Darfur have a humanitarian presence.

 

S-G Urges Donor Support For Haiti To Ensure Stability 9

Haiti needs $1.37 billion over the next two years if it is to make a successful transition from conflict to reconciliation and to meet its crucial political, institutional and development needs, United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan told a pledging conference in Washington, DC, on 20 July.

In a message to the International Donors Conference on Haiti, delivered by his Special Representative, Juan Gabriel Valdés, Mr. Annan urged the international community to "pledge generously in support of the priority areas in the political and economic domains of peace-building _ political governance and national dialogue; economic governance and institutional development; economic recovery and improving access to basic services."

A revolt by an armed band roiled Haiti in late February, prompting the departure of President Jean-Bertrand Aristide, who now lives in South Africa.

No one should underestimate how fragile Haiti remained, Mr. Annan said. "Armed groups continue to endanger stability. The rule of law has not yet been restored. Political forces remain at loggerheads. Basic services need urgent rehabilitation. Unemployment is widespread."

Both the Haitian people and the international community would be tested in the difficult period ahead, he said. The international community should fully support the Haitian leadership during the years to come.

He welcomed Prime Minister Gerard Latortue's "assurance that his government will be fully transparent and accountable, including to its citizenry, about the spending of international resources."

"This is an important message which, I trust, will not fall on deaf ears today," he added.

Mr. Annan said the UN Stabilization Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH) is preparing for "an inclusive and nationwide dialogue and reconciliation process, an even-handed fight against impunity, preparations for free and fair elections and the development of Haiti's economy."

 

New UN Panel Aims To Boost Global Support For Africa's Economic Development 10

Worldwide support for Africa's economic development will be strengthened by a recently-appointed United Nations panel of economists, development experts, former government ministers and academics, the Secretary-General's Special Adviser on Africa said on 20 July.

Briefing journalists in New York, Ibrahim Gambari said the 13-member panel, which will report to Secretary-General Kofi Annan, will assess existing forms of international support, encourage that support to be increased and recommend new models for pursuing development goals for the world's most impoverished continent.

Mr. Annan announced the formation of the panel, which has been created to help achieve the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD), during a speech two weeks ago to the African Union (AU) summit in Addis Ababa. 

First adopted by African leaders in 2001 and endorsed by the General Assembly the following year, NEPAD is a comprehensive programme for Africa's economic, social and political advancement based on the determination of Africans to extricate the continent from the malaise of underdevelopment and exclusion in a globalizing world.

Mr. Gambari said the panel's first task will be to assess the quantity and quality of the development partnerships so far. Referring to the many promises of support in the past, he said the panel should ask: "How far has this translated into reality?"

The panel has been set up as Mr. Gambari has handed down reports charting progress made in three key areas of NEPAD _ improving capital flows to Africa, integrating NEPAD priorities into national development strategies and building so-called South-South cooperation on African development.

Capital links will only improve if African governments do more to attract investment, through measures such as tax incentives, and if industrialized countries reduce their farm subsidies, according to the reports.

The reports also recommended African nations increase their links to Latin American and Caribbean countries in agriculture, health and education, telecommunications, peace, security and other areas.

The panel will be headed by Chief Emeka Anyaoku, the former Nigerian Foreign Minister and Commonwealth Secretary-General. Other panellists include Michel Camdessus, the former Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF); Richard Jolly, the former Deputy Director of the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF); Anne Kristin-Syndes, former Norwegian Cooperation and Development Minister; and the noted economist Jagdish Bhagwati. 

 

New UN Office Seeks To Better Address Plight Of 50 Million Uprooted People 11

Seeking to better address the plight of 50 million people around the world uprooted from their homes by war and other emergencies, the United Nations has created a new office to "fill in the gaps" that previous efforts failed to tackle, its director said on 20 July.

Those internally displaced persons (IDPs) "are the forgotten or neglected victims of conflict worldwide," Dennis McNamara, Special Adviser to the UN's Emergency Relief Coordinator and Director of the Inter-agency Internal Displacement Division, told a press briefing in Geneva. "Displaced civilians remain a massive humanitarian crisis."

The new Division, established on 1 July, will focus on the six to eight major countries of displacement _ Sudan, Uganda, Somalia, Liberia, Burundi and Colombia, with access being negotiated for the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and Sri Lanka _ for the next year to 18 months.

Mr. McNamara noted that of the 21 conflicts raging worldwide, 18 of them were internal, so most of the population displacement _ some 25 million people in all, about twice the size of the 13 million to 15 million global refugee population _ is taking place without people crossing international borders. Another 25 million people have been displaced by natural disasters and development projects.

Those 50 million people probably matched or was more than the number of people around the globe suffering from AIDS, "but they get relatively minor international attention," Mr. McNamara said.

The Division was established to address the fact that no adequate inter-agency response to displacement existed, particularly for victims of war and human rights abuses, the most obvious recent example being in Darfur, Sudan, he added.

Even so, the gap in response was not a problem for agencies and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) alone, Mr. McNamara said, stressing that governments also bear responsibility since IDPs by definition were citizens in their own country and the host State often created conditions for displacement or responded inadequately to the phenomenon.

In addition, the international donor community was also at fault for response shortfalls: the UN's 2004 Consolidated Appeal (CAP) had asked for $5 billion and had received just $3.5 billion. 

"The global humanitarian aid budget last year was $10 billion; the global military expenditure budget $800 billion _ 80 times the amount of the global humanitarian aid budget," reflecting distorted priorities and the consequences of the inadequate humanitarian response, he said.

This was an "international shame, most obviously but not only in Darfur but also in many other countries with equal if not greater numbers (of IDPs) and equal human suffering," he said. "It must be addressed, it can be addressed if there is the political will and priority given to it both by the UN system and the responsible States."

 

UN Continues Relief Efforts In Flood-Plagued South Asia 12

With floodwaters still plaguing South Asia, United Nations agencies continue to help Bangladesh and India with efforts to bring relief to well over 30 million people affected by the disasters.

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reported UN agencies in Bangladesh have officially activated their disaster management team (DMT) to coordinate the humanitarian community's responses to the region's recent devastating floods.

UN agencies on the ground are assessing the situation, while the UN World Food Programme (WFP) has been distributing food to over 36,000 people.

Heavy monsoon rains led to destructive floods in Bangladesh last week, and water levels are expected to rise because of a number of factors, including excess water from neighbouring India. More than 7,000 primary schools have been closed and 500 others are being used as shelters, OCHA said.

The Government of Bangladesh has responded by authorizing the distribution of emergency supplies, including by airdrop in otherwise inaccessible areas. Over 11 million people have already received emergency assistance.

Meanwhile in eastern India, the same floods have affected more than 28 million people and claimed 215 lives. The UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) has been supplying materials to purify the area's drinking water, as well as providing oral rehydration salts.

 

International AIDS Conference Ends With Call For Solidarity 13

The 15th International AIDS Conference wound up its week of work in Bangkok, Thailand, on 16 July with ringing calls from UN officials for solidarity in the battle against the pandemic.

The world would never be the same again because AIDS had rewritten the rules, leaving "millions of orphans, children taking care of families, schools without teachers, States without fiscal revenues, fields without farmers, and rising numbers of people living in extreme poverty," said Dr. Peter Piot, Executive Director of the Joint UN Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS).

An exceptional threat demanded exceptional financing, development, trade rules, activist strategies, public service delivery and fiscal ceilings, he said, calling for action across those fronts.

"Some of the greatest challenges we face today are of our own making: the obstructions of bureaucracy, the injustice of stigma, the rivalry, lack of coherence and the failure of political leadership," Dr. Piot said.

Flying in after his investigation of the health status of internally displaced persons (IDPs) in troubled Darfur, western Sudan, the Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO), Lee Jong-wook, echoed this call for action. "I know that voices have been raised, I know that fingers have been pointed, but it is through our solidarity that we will finally defeat this menace," he said.

The WHO chief also pledged the agency's full participation at the forefront of efforts to prevent and to treat HIV/AIDS.

He added that history would judge the world by whether it met the bold commitments of the Conference, whose theme was `Access for All.'

With more than 5 million people living with AIDS in South Asia, most of them in India, Indian film star and social activist Shabana Azmi told conference participants on 15 July that young people were not being fully informed about their choices or given the necessary support to keep themselves safe from HIV.

Ms. Azmi, a UN Population Fund (UNFPA) Goodwill Ambassador known for her strong commitment to social justice causes _ the rights of women, minorities, displaced slum dwellers, AIDS patients _ was the first celebrity in India to join a campaign to raise HIV/AIDS awareness at a time when such talk in public was taboo.

In another development, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation pledged to contribute an additional $50 million to the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria, an initiative of UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, bringing the Foundation's total donation to the Fund to $150 million.

South Asian religious leaders in Bangkok, meanwhile, formed the South Asia Inter-Religious Council on HIV/AIDS, comprising senior representatives of the Hindu, Muslim, Buddhist, Christian, Sikh, Jain and Baha'i faiths.

The initiative followed from the South Asia Interfaith Consultation on Children, Young People and HIV/AIDS, organized by the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) in Kathmandu, Nepal, in December 2003. At the meeting, participants pledged to strengthen their cooperation in addressing the pandemic.

 

Carbon Dioxide In World's Oceans May Threaten Many Marine Species 14

The world's oceans are absorbing an unprecedented amount of carbon dioxide (CO2), increasing their acidity and possibly threatening the long-term survival of many marine species, including corals, shellfish and phytoplankton, according to a report released on 16 July at a United Nations-sponsored symposium.

This development in turn could disrupt marine food chains and alter ocean biogeochemistry in ways that are not yet understood or predictable, according to the research presented at the symposium organized by the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission of the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organizations (UNESCO) and the International Council for Science's Committee on Oceanic Research.

Symposium participants found that by the middle of this century, the accumulating burden of CO2 entering the ocean will lead to changes in acidity of the upper layers that are three times greater in magnitude and 100 times faster than those experienced between ice ages. Such dramatic changes have not been observed for more than 20 million years of earth's history, the meeting concluded.

Concluding that changes are clearly underway and their effects may be large and may seriously destabilize marine ecosystems, the report signalled the need for more investigation and identified research priorities in a bid to increase understanding of the consequences and to allow for more informed policy decisions in this area.

The symposium brought together scientists from the world's leading oceanographic institutions to develop research priorities to study these future effects. The experts also discussed potential environmental consequences of proposals to use the ocean to sequester excess atmospheric CO2, which is one of the most important greenhouse gases.

According to research led by Christopher Sabine of the United States National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration, the ocean has taken up approximately 120 billion metric tons of carbon generated by human activities since 1800. Some 20 million to 25 million tons of CO2 are being added to the oceans each day, UNESCO said.

 

UNFPA Regrets US Decision To Deny Funds 15

The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) on 16 July voiced regret that the United States administration has decided to withhold $34 million appropriated by Congress for the agency, warning that lives will be lost as a result.

UNFPA called the US administration's reason for continuing to withhold funding for a third straight year _ that the agency supports coerced abortions in China _ "baseless." The US State Department conducted an assessment which found no evidence to back the allegations, and instead reported that the Fund had registered its strong opposition to coercive practices. That team recommended that funds allocated by Congress be released to UNFPA.

Three other independent teams, from the UN, the British Parliament and a multi-faith panel of religious leaders, reached the same conclusion, UNFPA said.

The US is the only country to withhold funding to UNFPA for non-budgetary reasons, and the impact will be felt, according to agency chief Thoraya Ahmed Obaid, who said the denied contribution "could have saved thousands of lives."

UNFPA estimates that Washington's $34 million could have helped prevent as many as 2 million unwanted pregnancies and nearly 800,000 abortions, 4,700 maternal deaths and over 77,000 infant and child deaths. The
funds could also have been used to scale up promising maternal health and HIV-prevention efforts.

"Historically, the United States has been a world leader in promoting reproductive health and family planning and we hope it will take up that role again," Ms. Obaid said. "Promoting global health and alleviating poverty are urgent tasks that require strong partnerships and international cooperation."

UNFPA works in nearly 140 countries to increase access to reproductive health services, including family planning, to promote safe motherhood, and to prevent unintended pregnancies, sexually transmitted infections and HIV/AIDS.

 

Fighting Hunger And Rural Poverty With Satellites And Internet 16

Using satellite imagery and spatial databases on the frontline of the battle against hunger and rural poverty, United Nations agencies have developed a new Internet-bases system to provide vital agricultural information to decision-makers in developing countries.

GeoNetwork's InterMap viewer, developed jointly by the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the World Food Programme (WFP), allows users to overlay maps from multiple servers housed at development institutions worldwide to create a customized thematic composite map on their own computer covering such variables as soil quality, vegetation and population density and marketing access.

"Geographic information is crucial in identifying problems and suggesting possible solutions," the Rome-based FAO said on 21 July. 

"FAO has taken a lead role in the area of spatial information management, not just in the UN system but generally. Other organizations value our experience in this area and seek our expertise in enhancing their own," added John Monyo, Assistant Director-General of the agency's Sustainable Development Department.

GeoNetwork is unique in that it is designed specifically to help developing countries improve their ability to manage spatial information, harmonizing and improving access to FAO's spatial databases in agriculture, forestry, fisheries and food security. It promotes multidisciplinary approaches to sustainable development by allowing FAO, other UN agencies, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and research institutions worldwide to share and distribute geographically referenced data more easily. 

By overlaying various map layers, InterMap can illustrate the spatial relationship between a series of variables. It can suggest, for example, the extent to which a poor transport infrastructure is keeping a region with a rich agricultural endowment in poverty. Its use of free, open-source software minimizes costs to users _ a particular plus for those in developing countries, who can use, modify and redistribute the system source code and do not need to rely on foreign suppliers or costly proprietary software.

GeoNetwork has proved its effectiveness in the field. In Mozambique, 12 government and international agencies working on agriculture, food security and humanitarian issues have been using it since September 2003 to share information and avoid duplication. WFP has implemented the system in its regional bureaus in Senegal, South Africa and Uganda.

 

WHO Urges Steps To Prevent Bird Flu Causing Human Pandemic 17

Concerned by a new simultaneous outbreak of bird flu in several Asian countries, the United Nations health agency on 16 July warned of the possible emergence of a strain capable of sparking a potentially deadly global human pandemic and called on local authorities to take all necessary precautions when culling infected poultry.

"While these outbreaks thus far remain restricted to poultry populations, they nevertheless increase the chances of virus transmission and human infection of the disease," the Geneva-based World Health Organization (WHO) said of the new cases of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza H5N1 reported in China, Thailand and Viet Nam.

The same virus killed 22 people in Thailand and Viet Nam earlier this year when more than 100 million birds died or were culled in at least nine countries across Southern and Eastern Asia. 

WHO re-emphasized the need to protect individuals involved in culling infected poultry by giving them proper equipment, including protective clothing, masks and goggles, since there is a high risk of exposure during the slaughtering process.

It also recommended that all those involved in mass cullings, transportation and burial or inclination of carcasses should be vaccinated with the WHO-recommended influenza vaccine to avoid the co-infection of avian and human influenza, which could lead to the emergence of a pandemic influenza virus.

Other recommendations include close monitoring of all those exposed to infected poultry or to farms under suspicion, and antiviral treatment for suspected human cases. If antivirals are available in sufficient quantities, prophylactic use should be considered. 

Meanwhile the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) urged against culling wild birds in the present outbreak. "Killing wild birds will not help to prevent or control avian influenza outbreaks," Juan Lubroth of the FAO Animal Health Service said. "Wild birds are an important element of the ecosystem and should not be destroyed."

Although certain species of water fowl can be a reservoir of bird flu viruses, "to date, there is no scientific evidence that wildlife is the major factor in the resurgence of the disease in the region," he added.

The major factors contributing to the spread of the virus are poor hygienic practices related to the production, processing and marketing of poultry, contaminated products, gaps in biosecurity and individuals not following recommended control measures, FAO said.

 

UN Tourism Agency To Assess Situations Affecting International Travel 18

The World Tourism Organization's Executive Council, at its first session governing the new United Nations specialized agency, made plans to commemorate the International Year of Sport in 2005, assess the influences affecting international travel and update its related forecasts for 2010 and beyond.

"It was a very intense, but successful meeting," the organization's Secretary-General Francesco Frangialli said after the meeting earlier this month in Hyderabad, India. His remarks came at the end of the body's 73rd session, but its first since becoming a full-fledged UN agency last December.

The WTO governing body discussed the Sustainable Tourism-Eliminating Poverty initiative, which has received pledges of some $5 million from the Government of the Republic of Korea, and the Global Code of Ethics for Tourism programme.

The anti-poverty initiative seeks to strengthen the partnership between the private sector and national tourism authorities in developing countries. Its major component is to promote research and identification of best practice models.