Online Program Enrolling Now - Seton Hall - United Nations Institute for Training and Research
Online Program Enrolling Now - Seton Hall - United Nations Institute for Training and Research

BLUE SMOKE: A monthly column, from PassBlue and UNA–UK, spotlighting senior appointments at the UN

Damilola Banjo

Damilola Banjo is a staff reporter for PassBlue. She has a master's of science degree from the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism and a B.A. in communications and language arts from the University of Ibadan, Nigeria. She has worked as a producer for NPR's WAFE station in Charlotte, N.C.; for the BBC as an investigative journalist; and as a staff investigative reporter for Sahara Reporters Media.

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Ask anyone if they will expose a crime if they know their careers might be hurt, and they will most likely give an emphatic no. Yet this happens for many whistleblowers around the world, including at the United Nations….

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This week, the Taliban carried out their first execution, letting a man shoot the person who allegedly murdered his son. You are reading This Week @UN, summarizing the most pressing issues before the organization. The information is gathered from…

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Ruchira Kamboj, India’s ambassador to the United Nations, said the Security Council could no longer afford to delay being more reflective of the diversity of the UN “wider membership” if it wants to remain relevant. The South Asian country…

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This week, we focus on the issues of intensifying violence in the Mideast raised separately by UN special envoys in the Security Council. You are reading This Week @UN, summarizing the most pressing issues before the organization. The information…

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Guy Ryder, 66, immediate past director-general of the International Labor Organization for 10 years, begins his new role in New York City as the UN under secretary-general for policy, about 10 days into a World Cup rocked by accusations…

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This week, we focus on climate commitments made at the just-concluded COP27 as well as the UN Environment Program honoring activists. You are reading This Week @UN, summarizing the most pressing issues before the organization. The information is gathered…

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It’s a sad one this week as two girls were beheaded in a camp in Syria. You are reading This Week @UN, summarizing the most pressing issues before the organization. The information is gathered from UN press briefings, PassBlue…

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LAGOS — The United Nations is ignoring repeated calls for help in resolving a resource war between largely Christian farmers and mainly Muslim herders in Kaduna, a state in northwest Nigeria. The conflict has been smoldering since 2011 and…

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This week, world leaders are gathering in Egypt to renew their commitments to sustainable climate conditions.  You are reading This Week @UN, summarizing the most pressing issues before the organization. The information is gathered from UN press briefings, PassBlue…

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There’s a new sheriff in town! This week, UN Secretary-General António Guterres appointed a new man to lead the Department of Peace Operations as the police adviser. You are reading This Week @UN, summarizing the most pressing issues before the…

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Ambassador Harold Agyeman, Ghana’s permanent representative to the United Nations, said the jury was still out on the use of sanctions to bring Russia’s president, Vladimir Putin, to heel over his decision to challenge the sovereignty of Ukraine. With…

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It was UN day this week! Hurray!! We saw schoolchildren around the world celebrate the creation of the organization on Oct. 24, 1945, and we also took a cue from the message of the UN secretary-general. You are reading…

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After weeks of negotiations and delayed voting, the United Nations Security Council overwhelmingly agreed to sanction Jimmy Cherizier and other gang leaders accused of raping and terrorizing Haitian people. The sanctions were approved on Oct. 21 in a resolution…

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This week, a United Nations agency released a damning report on how plastics are damaging our world and harming the people in it.  You are reading This Week @UN, summarizing the most pressing issues before the organization. The information…

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This week, we celebrate the International Day of the Girl Child amid various restrictions on and violations of girls’ rights globally.  You are reading This Week @UN, summarizing the most pressing issues before the organization. The information is gathered…

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UNGA78: A quiz from PassBlue
Online Program Enrolling Now - Seton Hall - United Nations Institute for Training and Research

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