UN Agencies

US Jump-Starts IOM Leadership Election Race

• October 13, 2022

First came the bid this year for the International Telecommunication Union director-general position. Now the United States has set its sights on clinching the top job at the International Organization for Migration (IOM) after its candidate, Amy Pope, officially launched her campaign in Geneva on Tuesday. Currently, the IOM’s deputy director-general for management and …

Migration, UN Agencies, US-UN Relations

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UN Watchdog Board Is Expected to Criticize Russia for Its Actions at the Ukraine Nuke Plant

Stephanie Liechtenstein

• September 9, 2022

VIENNA — Poland and Canada have circulated a draft resolution among members of the board of governors of the International Atomic Energy Agency, criticizing Russia’s “violent actions against nuclear facilities in Ukraine, including the ongoing presence of Russian forces and Rosatom personnel at the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant.” The resolution by the board at …

Nuclear Disarmament, Peace and Security, UN Agencies

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WORLDVIEWS

Unesco Protects Borscht as a National Treasure of Ukraine. What Would My Mother Say?

Dulcie Leimbach

• August 27, 2022

Unesco daringly announced this summer the “urgent need of safeguarding” borscht. Or as Ukrainians spell it, borsch. When the Ukrainian government asked the UN cultural and education agency to save the soup’s historical place as a national dish amid Russia’s bloodbath on Ukraine, they weren’t kidding. “The victory in the war for borsch is …

Ukraine-Russia War, UN Agencies, WORLDVIEWS

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Russia’s Violations of Global Aviation Rules Could Leave the UN With Tough, Costly Choices

Dawn Clancy

• August 16, 2022

Dozens of planes and helicopters leased from Russia by United Nations peacekeeping missions and humanitarian operations have been grounded as war-driven sanctions against Russia begin to bite, leaving UN officials scrambling to figure out how to keep critical air transport services running without compromising safety and falling afoul of international aviation law. In an …

Peace and Security, Secretary-General, UN Agencies

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The UN’s Fund for Agricultural Development Has a New Boss. He Faces a Cash Crunch.

Susanne Courtney

• July 12, 2022

With the world facing an unprecedented food crisis, the smallest of the three Rome-based agencies of the United Nations — the International Fund for Agricultural Development — has a new president. Álvaro Lario, its chief financial officer and a Spaniard, was elected as the agency’s seventh president on July 7, starting Oct. 1 for …

Development, Poverty, SDGs, UN Agencies

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The UN Development Program Has 4 New Projects Funded by Russia, Despite Its Illegal War on Ukraine

Dawn Clancy

• June 22, 2022

In the waning days of 2021, roughly two months before its invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24, Russia agreed to contribute $14 million to the United Nations Development Program for climate-related projects in Europe and Central Asia to begin this year. In fact, an agreement between Russia and the UN agency on one project, …

Development, Peace and Security, Security Council, UN Agencies

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A Blogger Exposed a UN Agency’s Wrongdoings. Its Boss Has Resigned

Susanne Courtney

• May 11, 2022

Mukesh Kapila has been shining a spotlight on a low-profile United Nations agency that was recently exposed by several media for possible corruption, based on Kapila’s explosive blog posts that began in early March on the UN entity. Kapila, a former UN senior official and a professor emeritus at the University of Manchester, has …

Development, UN Agencies

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The Obscure Organization Powering a Race to Mine the Bottom of the Seas

Anna Bianca Roach

• November 8, 2021

On the seafloor, anemones with eight-foot-long tentacles live alongside blind crabs that cultivate food in their arm hair, sharks with glow-in-the-dark bellies and glass sponges that have been thriving since before the invention of the wheel. “Because of the lack of light and the fact that creatures do need to see each other to …

Africa, Asia, Caribbean, Climate Change, UN Agencies

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THIS WEEK @UN

Spoilers of Peace in Yemen; COP26’s First Week; Morale Boosting by Blinken

Anna Bianca Roach

• November 5, 2021

COP26 opens with a foreboding announcement from the UN secretary-general; peacekeepers shot by the presidential guard in the Central African Republic; Mexico’s agenda on the Security Council. You are reading This Week @UN, summarizing the most pressing issues facing the organization. The information is gathered from UN press briefings, PassBlue reporting and other sources. …

Africa, Asia, Climate Change, General Assembly, Humanitarian Aid, Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Secretary-General, Security Council, This Week @UN, UN Agencies, US-UN Relations

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THIS WEEK @UN

Human Rights for Western Sahara?; a Cease-Fire Comes to Central African Republic; Weapons Spending Drives Gender Inequalities

Anna Bianca Roach

• October 22, 2021

The UN boss points to rising global military spending as a source of gendered violence; the UN’s tech envoy, mired in controversy, may be exiting; the Human Rights Council rolls out a multimillion-dollar project with the Philippines. You are reading This Week @UN, summarizing the most pressing issues facing the organization. The information is …

Africa, Asia, Gender Violence, General Assembly, Human Rights, ICC, Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Secretary-General, Security Council, This Week @UN, UN Agencies, UN Special Envoys, US-UN Relations

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TOPIC: WOMEN

What Should the New Head of UN Women Tackle First? Strong Advice From Feminists

Barbara Crossette

• September 28, 2021

More than 50 former staff members of UN Women sent a pointed open letter to the new executive director of the agency, Sima Sami Bahous, an ex-Jordanian diplomat, on Sept. 28. They suggest a comprehensive agenda for her, undertaking managerial reform and more actively and successfully promoting gender equality across the world. “UN Women …

Gender Violence, UN Agencies, Women

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THIS WEEK @UN

#UNGA76 Is Here; Women on Edge in Afghanistan; Biden’s Hit-and-Miss With Allies

Anna Bianca Roach

• September 10, 2021

Calling all world leaders to the General Assembly; the Taliban shun women; Biden’s confounding foreign policy. You are reading This Week @UN, summarizing the most pressing issues facing the organization. The information is gathered from UN press briefings, PassBlue reporting and other sources. Scoop: Incoming members of the obscure but influential UN General Assembly Credentials …

General Assembly, Secretary-General, Security Council, This Week @UN, UN Agencies, US-UN Relations

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TOPIC: WOMEN

A Jordanian Diplomat With Development Expertise Will Lead UN Women

Barbara Crossette

• September 6, 2021

Sima Sami Bahous, until recently Jordan’s ambassador to the United Nations since 2016, has been chosen as the next executive director of UN Women. Her appointment may be announced as soon as Tuesday, Sept. 7, according to numerous people who have been closely following the search for a successor to Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka of South …

Gender Violence, SDGs, Secretary-General, UN Agencies, Women

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THIS WEEK @UN

The UN Sticks to Afghanistan; Ireland Steers the Security Council; Preying on Mothers’ Fears

Anna Bianca Roach

• September 3, 2021

The UN’s priorities in Afghanistan for now; how certain multinational corporations feed on new-mothers’ fears amid Covid; Ireland’s envoy defends the rights of women and girls in Afghanistan. You are reading This Week @UN, summarizing the most pressing issues facing the organization. The information is gathered from UN press briefings, PassBlue reporting and other sources. …

Human Rights, Secretary-General, Security Council, This Week @UN, UN Agencies, US Foreign Relations, US-UN Relations

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WOMEN AS CHANGEMAKERS

Women Will Achieve Equality, No Matter What: Natalia Kanem of UNFPA Explains

Barbara Crossette

• August 24, 2021

For Natalia Kanem, the executive director of the United Nations Population Fund since 2017, the last couple of years have been a wild ride. In 2020, women the world over were getting ready to celebrate important anniversaries: 25 years since an international conference in Beijing pledged global action on women’s rights, including their reproductive …

Health and Population, Secretary-General, UN Agencies, Women as Changemakers

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PassBlue Quiz: Women in Politics. Test your knowledge of female leaders and the issues they confront.

This Week's Most Popular

Navi Pillay, Who Leads a UN Rights Probe on Palestine and Israel, Hits Back on Slurs Against Her

Dulcie Leimbach

WORLDVIEWS

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UN Agencies

US Jump-Starts IOM Leadership Election Race

UN Watchdog Board Is Expected to Criticize Russia for Its Actions at the Ukraine Nuke Plant

Unesco Protects Borscht as a National Treasure of Ukraine. What Would My Mother Say?

Russia’s Violations of Global Aviation Rules Could Leave the UN With Tough, Costly Choices

The UN’s Fund for Agricultural Development Has a New Boss. He Faces a Cash Crunch.

The UN Development Program Has 4 New Projects Funded by Russia, Despite Its Illegal War on Ukraine

A Blogger Exposed a UN Agency’s Wrongdoings. Its Boss Has Resigned

The Obscure Organization Powering a Race to Mine the Bottom of the Seas

Spoilers of Peace in Yemen; COP26’s First Week; Morale Boosting by Blinken

Human Rights for Western Sahara?; a Cease-Fire Comes to Central African Republic; Weapons Spending Drives Gender Inequalities

What Should the New Head of UN Women Tackle First? Strong Advice From Feminists

#UNGA76 Is Here; Women on Edge in Afghanistan; Biden’s Hit-and-Miss With Allies

A Jordanian Diplomat With Development Expertise Will Lead UN Women

The UN Sticks to Afghanistan; Ireland Steers the Security Council; Preying on Mothers’ Fears

Women Will Achieve Equality, No Matter What: Natalia Kanem of UNFPA Explains

This Week's Most Popular

How to Move From Hostility to Cooperation in the UN Security Council

Will the General Assembly and the Human Rights Council Send a Strong Message to Iran?

Catch-22 in the Congo: Politics, Peacekeeping and the Fault Lines of Protection

At COP27, Russia Shows Up With Oil Lobbyists and Demands Sanctions Relief

UN-Scripted, Passblue's UN podcast series

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