UN Geneva Press Briefing: WIPO, WHO, UNICEF, UNHCR, IOM, WFP, FAO

Very good morning. Welcome to the UN Office at Geneva for this press briefing today, Friday the 25th of September. We have a very big agenda for you. We have a few announcements. We'll start with those from WIPO and from WHO, and then we have topics covering Yemen, Sudan, the Ebola situation in the DRC, as well as an update on the recovery from the Nepal floods from the World Food Program, and we also have an announcement at the end from FAO. on food loss and waste. So we'll start off right away with Ed Harris of WIPO, who has an announcement on the launch of a report. So Ed, over to you.

Thanks, Rolando. Good morning, everyone. You will have already received one notification from Eunice, but just to quickly reiterate, we're launching our Global Innovation Index, the 2026 edition on Tuesday at 1.30 during an event here in Geneva. Everybody's welcome. Please come across the street if you'd like, and I'm sure you'll enjoy the custom hospitality. For those who are maybe not super familiar with it, the Global Innovation Index ranks 139 economies worldwide this year. It uses 79 indicators to look at the state of innovation in these places, including venture capital figures, R&D data, IP filings, and much, much more. So basically, countries across the globe, they use the GII to understand how to better optimize their policies to create the kind of economic environments where people's ideas can result in new products, services, culture that makes the biggest impact for all of us. You've also seen that we are having an embargoed press conference on Monday. So that's under embargo Monday afternoon before the Tuesday event launch. That's at 3 p.m. The Director General, Darren Tang, will be presiding. I'll send all the embargoed materials to everyone first thing early morning so you have some time to peruse it before the press conference. Anybody who would like to have sort of one-on-ones with any of our experts, please get in touch. I'm happy to set that up for you as well. please come along at 3 p.m. on Monday. You'll be receiving the Zoom link via Rolando and his colleagues. Just a reminder that the embargo drops on all of this Tuesday morning next week at 9.30. The event's in the afternoon, but we're expiring the embargo at 9.30. So with that, thanks very much, everyone. Back to you, Rolando.

Great. Thank you, Ed. Thanks for the heads up and for all the details. We'll be watching that space, of course. Any questions for Ed? Online? Okay. I don't see that's the case. So thanks again, Ed. Okay, we'll move to WHO. Amna is connected, and she has an announcement on influenza vaccines. Amna.

Yes, good morning, good morning, Raul, good morning, colleagues. So this morning, WHO updated its recommendations for the composition of influenza vaccines for the 2027 Southern Hemisphere influenza season. This follows an extensive global consultation over the past four days. We have also updated candidate vaccine viruses for animal flu viruses to help countries prepare for future influenza pandemics. The announcement is being made at the WHO information meeting, which started at 9am and is live streamed as we speak on WHO's YouTube channel, where the recording will be available as well. And in the course of the day, please expect a press release with details of the recommended vaccine composition. Just a quick reminder, WHO issues these recommendations twice a year to help keep influenza vaccines effective as flu viruses continuously change. National vaccine regulatory agencies and pharmaceutical companies around the world use these recommendations to develop, produce and license vaccines that keep pace with the continuous evolution of the flu viruses. Back to you, Rolando.

Thank you so much, Amna. I think, Gorgi, is that a question for Amna? Online.

Hello.

Bonjour, Gorgi.

Oui, bonjour, Rolando, bonjour tout le monde. Non, en fait, peut-être que c'est mon... Non, j'ai pas demandé à... Et je vous remercie beaucoup pour.

L'intérêt. Je suis... Okay, let's move on. Thank you, Amna. I don't think there are questions, so I think it's very clear. Thanks very much for that announcement. And we are now going to move to our topic, starting off with situation in Yemen. We have Ricardo connected, and he's going to introduce a guest who's joining us from Aden in Yemen. So Ricardo, over to you. Excuse me, sorry, Ricardo, can we hold on just a second? I think, John, maybe there's a question for the previous briefer, so just put a pin in that just for a second, apologies. John, is that a question for our previous briefers? John Zaracostas? Okay. You know what, let's, we're having an issue maybe with unmuting, so let's just move on to the briefing, apologies for that, so Ricardo, please go ahead.

Thank you, Rolando. Good morning, everyone. Bonjour. Just to quickly introduce our country representative in Yemen, Akhil Iyer, who's going to be briefing from Aden on the increasing threat of malnutrition and hunger in the country as violence escalates. Over to you, Akhil. Thank you for joining.

Thank you and good morning to all, and thank you for the opportunity to speak about the... situation in Yemen, a very difficult situation with an escalating conflict. I thought I would start today not talking about numbers, but talking about a child. Yesterday, I visited Al-Fardous camp, which is a camp hosting internally displaced persons from the west coast of Yemen, a place called Al-Mohah district. And there I met a four-year-old child by the name of Taha. He was inside of a nutrition treatment facility supported by UNICEF, and he suffers, unfortunately, from severe acute malnutrition. We also spoke with his mother, and she told us that they had escaped with nothing and that her only fear was getting her son out before it was too late. Unfortunately, Taha's story is not unique, and what he and his family are going through is being repeated across the country, hitting a population that is already weakened by years of conflict and persistent food and nutrition crises against a backdrop of economic decline. So what is happening is another vicious cycle is being accelerated, one that children in Yemen know only too well. Conflict is driving hunger, and hunger makes children even more vulnerable to conflict. In the past weeks, some nearly 2,900 children have been screened by UNICEF mobile nutrition teams in areas where we have safe humanitarian access. And more than one in four of these children are acutely malnourished, and some 200 had the very serious condition of severe acute malnutrition. And this is only a glimpse of how devastating the situation is across Yemen. Across Yemen, based on the latest figures that we have, more than 2.2 million children under five are projected to be acutely malnourished this year, with over half a million projected to be suffering from severe acute malnutrition, the deadliest form. And so against this dire backdrop, access to health care and nutrition treatment is being disrupted and compromised. Too many families, the search for food is now happening while they're on the move. Over the past three weeks, some nearly 130,000 people including 71,000 children, have been forced from their homes due to the conflict. The majority are displaced from or from within the southern western governor of ties. And they have been unable to move to safer areas, often because of fighting, blocked roads or lack of transportation. Now, some of the families who have got out and been displaced and are now in accessible areas have not been displaced this one time. They've been displaced up to six times over the years. We spoke to Haifa, a young mother who fled Yemen's west coast as well, and she told us that the sounds of gunfire were closing in on her house as her house was shaking. She told us that she didn't have time to think. She just knew that she had to run and run quickly with her family. And today, she and her family live in extreme heat in a side of a tent with no source of income, and they are struggling for food and medicine. She pointed out to us that displacement has stripped them of their dignity. This is, in fact, what displacement does. It doesn't just take away a house, it takes away one's livelihood, one's community, one's independence, one's routine. The certainty that tomorrow will look anything like today is taken away. Beyond being uprooted from their homes, too many children have already paid the heaviest price in this conflict. Since early September, UNICEF has verified that at least 15 children have been killed and 14 injured by the conflict. There are many more unverified incidents that we're looking into. And we know that three children are still reported missing. But behind every one of those numbers is a child and a parent living through a nightmare of unimaginable grief, fear, and agony of not knowing. Education is also being deeply impacted. In the past three weeks, 243 schools have closed or suspended learning. affecting almost 140,000 students. UNICEF is expanding our emergency response to reach up to 231,000 people across Yemen, many of them children, through mobile health and nutrition teams, provision of safe water and sanitation, support to health facilities, education, and child protection services. But humanitarian assistance is not a substitute for protection. We cannot keep asking children to survive what they should have never been exposed to in the first place. All parties must protect children. They must protect civilians, and they must protect civilian infrastructure. They must uphold international humanitarian law and facilitate safe and unimpeded humanitarian access. The children that I have met here do not talk about geopolitics. They ask about their home. They ask about their school, the people and the friends they left behind. They ask where they're going to sleep tonight, and they're asking when they can go back home. These should not, in fact, be the defining questions of a childhood. Yemen's children have already lost way too much due to conflict, and they should not be forced to lose more. Thank you very much for the opportunity to speak about the situation in Yemen and particularly about the situation affecting its children.

Thank you very much, Akil. It's a devastating situation, but we appreciate you briefing our journalists on this. So let's see if there are questions for you. We do have one from Anadolu, Muhammad.

Thank you so much. Thank you for the briefing.

Actually, my question will be about the displacement. I mean, if someone, maybe UNHCR as well, if they are over there, can share the latest number, how many people displaced internally and externally in Yemen during this conflict?

I think, Akhil, you mentioned you gave a number of displaced, and there's also just colleagues just to consult the OCHA update, which you do receive last night. But, Akhil, maybe you can chime in on that point. And then Eugene and both Kennedy are joining us from IOM and UNHCR. But, Akhil, if you want something to add first.

Yes. So the most up-to-date figure is 131,000 people displaced. We do a daily tracking of the number of displaced, which is actually led by IOM, and this is the figure that UN agencies and NGO partners use in terms of guiding our response.

Thank you very much. Kennedy from IOM is here to maybe give some information on internally displaced.

Yeah, thank you very much. As it has already been mentioned, the current number that we have as of the 22nd of September stands at 134,000 people who have been displaced within Yemen. And just to add on that, we did mention that the largest concentration of displaced people are reported in Taiz Governorate, where the governorate is hosting around 75,000 people who have been displaced, which actually represent 56% of the total displacement figure.

Thanks. And I note that there may be a slight discrepancy in the numbers, but this is given the fluidity of the situation. It's a crisis, and I'm sure you appreciate that, these numbers. We do our best to provide updated figures, so thank you very much. Eugene's going to talk about maybe Djibouti situation.

And for the cross-border movement, we recorded 3,000, more than 3,700 refugees from Yemen arrived in Djibouti, mostly in Obok. Let's put it in the perspective, 3,700, that sounds very little number compared to other refugee hosting country in Africa, but Djibouti is a very small country. Djibouti only has 1.2 million people, and then previously they hosted 36,000 refugee before. Out of them, 4,000 was Yemeni. So meaning that adding almost 4,000 more, and it's just double the Yemeni refugee number, and then also that making the total number of 40,000 refugees hosted by Djibouti itself. As we already mentioned, we are also seeing a few hundreds also arriving in Somaliland and Puntland. It's just that the sea crossing is extremely dangerous at the moment, so we are not seeing a lot of risking their life to cross the sea. But as we mentioned previous briefing that mid-October, we are expecting that sea crossing is getting safer, and then we expected more to arrive to Somaliland and Puntland.

Thank you very much, Eugene. We have a question from Olivia, Reuters.

Morning, thank you very much indeed to all for this briefing. A question for UNICEF, you're saying you're seeing a rise in the, sorry, you're saying you've screened nearly 2,900 children for malnutrition, one in four are acutely malnourished. My question to you is, are you seeing an actual increase in the past three weeks since this uptick in fighting? in Yemen in malnutrition cases in children, but also among adults. And secondly, I just was wondering if you could expand on the point that you said that what's happening is another vicious cycle, conflicts driving hunger, and hunger makes children even more vulnerable to conflict. I was just wondering on the latter point, if you could just expand a bit more on what you Thank you.

Please go ahead, Akil.

Yes. Okay. So, absolutely, we are seeing an uptick in acute malnutrition among children, including the worst form, which is severe acute malnutrition. So, every day, we are seeing more and more cases in these mobile and health and nutrition clinics that we've set up. not just around Aden, but in all accessible areas where IDPs have arrived and where we can assist them. So we're very concerned about a very visible increase in acute malnutrition among children, not so much among adults, but among children. Children are by far much more vulnerable to malnutrition than the adult population. Regarding my comment about being more vulnerable to conflict, when a child is so malnourished and conflict returns to where they are, they are forced once again to displace. They're forced to move once again. And the journey in Yemen is extremely harsh. It's extremely arduous. So they are much more vulnerable to the effects of the conflict, which are forced displacement. And their chances of surviving it and overcoming their dire state of acute, often severe acute malnutrition, is lessened with each movement, with each forced displacement.

Okay, thank you very much. Well noted. We have a question now from Jeremy of Radio France Internationale. Jeremy. We see you're unmuted. I'm not sure if we can't hear. Hello. Could be a technical issue. If you want to drop your question in the chat perhaps or. Yep. Sorry, colleagues. Let's see. Oh, I see. While we're waiting for Jeremy, Christiane DPA had a question. 134 or 131,000 displaced. I think, Kennedy, you mentioned from the 22nd of September, so that is now what, three days old? So I don't know if there is any more clarity on the figures internal. I'm just referring to the OCHA update last night, Christiane, colleagues, 133,000 is mentioned as of yesterday, the 24th, so it's quite possible that things have evolved in those two days. As I mentioned, the situation is very fluid. Maybe I don't know if, Akil, you're on the ground there, so maybe you could provide some more clarity on that. While we're waiting for Jeremy, maybe let's try Jeremy again.

And if not, I will -- Mr.

NULAND: Ah, we okay, now we can hear you. Okay, go ahead.

Now that's better. OK, much better. Thank you. Question on what you said earlier. You said-- I didn't get it if you said like 50 children have been killed or 15, 1-5 or 5-0. And when it comes to the death and the civilian casualties, could you give us some kind of explanation? Do we know how they got killed? I mean, they were killed because of-- clashes between the Houthis and the Yemeni forces, or because of the bombardments from the Saudi forces? Can you give us a kind of an explanation how do those children got killed?

Please go ahead, Akil. I'm sorry, we can't hear you now. I think we're having a little technical difficulty this morning, colleagues. Let's see.

Okay.

Now we hear you. Sorry. Yeah, now we can. Sorry about that. Please go ahead.

So I said that there were 15, 15 verified killings of children. We verified that these children were killed. They were killed primarily due to shelling in the areas where they were. The other figure that I mentioned were were children who were injured or wounded, also by shelling. I do not believe we have information, verified information, on whose shelling it was necessarily, but we are still investigating.

Thank you very much for clarifying that, Akhil. Nina Larson, AFP, is online. Go ahead, Nina.

Yeah, hi. Thank you for taking my question. I was wondering, you also mentioned the problem of access to healthcare for these kids. I don't know if you can answer, or maybe WHO, but it would be interesting to have a little bit more detail about what the health other health issues that you feel are going untreated, and also diseases, perhaps, in the situation where children are finding themselves in a very, perhaps, difficult and unsanitary situation. Thank you.

Yes, please. So thank you for the question, Nina. Access to health care across Yemen is a very big problem because humanitarian agencies such as UNICEF do not have safe access to almost, I would say, between 65% and 70% of the children of the population in the country because These areas are under the control of the Houthis, and in those areas, we don't have safe, unimpeded access. So therefore, the access to health care, which is largely provided by international organizations such as UNICEF and WHO, is very much restricted. The types of diseases that we see when we can reach populations such as displaced populations that arrive in accessible areas are things such as measles, a disease that's preventable through vaccination if vaccination is taking place, acute respiratory infections, diarrheal disease. There's a lot of diarrheal disease, and there are cases of cholera. In the camp that I visited yesterday, There had been cases of cholera that had to be referred to hospitals closer to Aden. There's a very big risk of a cholera outbreak expanding and expanding quickly. And Yemen has a sad history with respect to cholera. So those are some of the major illnesses, particularly illnesses affecting children that we've noticed.

Thank you very much again, Akhil. Amna is connected. Amna, please, if you have anything to add on the health front, please just put your hand up and I'll turn to you. In the meantime, we'll go to Christian, DPA.

Thank you very much. My question also goes to Akhil. Can you give us a bit of a sense of what your access or the UN's access is in the in the territory is how many offices do you have and how many points can you reach or rather how many points can you not reach where you think there might be people in need? Thank you.

So at present, our head office is in Aden, and then we have a number of smaller field offices or hubs. Now, some of those hubs in the areas controlled by the de facto authorities, or the Houthis, are presently closed. However, we are able to provide humanitarian assistance without necessarily having a working field office. So, for example, we have been providing nutritional products and essential medicines, as well as vaccines across the entire territory of Yemen, including the government-controlled area and the Houthi-controlled area. However, to do that in the Houthi-controlled area, it does require an exceptional approval, but we have been able to obtain that exceptional approval internally within the UN and with the authorities to be able to provide that life-saving assistance to more than 3,200.

Thank you very much for the clarity. Okay, let me go back to Amna, because I think you want to chime in on the health, the previous health question. Amna.

Yes, thank you, thank you, Rolando. So on the… As we know, Yemen is facing multiple concurrent health risks, as we have heard from the previous speakers, and the latest conflict escalation and the mass casualties and displacement that is causing are putting additional pressure on the health system that is already weakened by years of conflict, disease outbreaks, food insecurity, malnutrition, and also severe funding constraints. Access, as UNICEF has noted, is becoming a major constraint, and the recent changes along the West Coast have also disrupted the referral programs, increasing the importance of alternative corridors and strengthening the seating hospitals, particularly in Aberdeen and the East. The areas with some of the highest health needs are increasingly difficult to reach. 90 of the 105 health clusters priority districts are in the most labouring operations. have been suspended. The disruption has a direct impact on essential services, including outpatient consultation, skill deliveries, and child health services. Just a couple of figures on the state of the health system. The health facilities are already operating under severe constraints and of the Over 4,000 health service delivery units that were assessed for functionality, only 60% were fully functioning for the compounding access to health care. 35% are partially functioning and 4% were non-functioning. Trauma care is available as full service packaging only 6% of these facilities, particularly concerning as trauma needs that is sharp with escalation.

Thank you very much, Amna. As always, if you can share notes, that would be very helpful for all of us. So thank you so very much for that. We still have a couple of questions going back to Reuters. It's Emma.

Yeah, Amna, I had some questions yesterday on your release, so I'm going to ask you here. Could you explain the death toll for Yemen that you put in your statement yesterday? I think you said 674 deaths. and 2,998 injuries. I was just wondering how you got that. Please, could you explain? Thank you.

Amna.

Okay, yes, now I'm ready. Sorry, I don't have the information on that, but I will check with our country office and I will get back to you on that.

Okay, fair enough. Thank you. John Zarakos.

Good morning. Can you hear me now?

Yes.

Yes, great. Yes, Amna, I've got two questions. Firstly, I was...

We lost you. Okay, John, yeah, we did too. I think we have definitely technical issues this morning. John, Yeah, we started to hear you, but now we can't. All right. We do have to move on to the next subject, so may I just suggest you reach out to Amna bilaterally. Sorry for that, but it's we have a pretty big agenda and we have to move on. So I think that does it for Yemen. Akhil, thank you so very much for joining us. Good luck to you, and thank you for updating us, and please do so at any time. Ricardo, thank you for bringing Akhil to us. So we're going to move on to the situation in Sudan. Eugene is on the podium, so you can stay here, and if you can stay with us as well, Amandi. So Eugene, over to you.

Oh, I can go directly? Very good. Okay. So I will introduce then Mamadou Dian Balde, who's the UN regional refugee coordinator for the Sudan situation and the UNHCR regional director for Eastern Africa. So he's joining us from Nairobi. Over to you, Mamadou, and thank you very much for joining us here in Geneva.

Thank you very much, Rolando. Are you able to hear me?

We do hear you, thanks.

Okay, very good. So thank you so much for having me and for me to speak about my recent mission to eastern Chad at the border with Darfur. It was, I would say, a painful visit on the one hand, but also a place where you witness how humanitarian interventions as well as development interventions can contribute to helping people who are forced to flee the brutal conflict still happening inside Sudan. On the painful side, one is that I was able to witness the arrival of new refugees, people who tell us that they flee the conflict, they flee the aerial bombardment, they flee the drone attacks, they flee the persecution, they flee the violence, and people who are also getting more vulnerable because of because of the impact of climate shocks such as water scarcity as well as lower level of rain. So people have been coming 400 daily. That's 20 times more than what we had a few months ago. And it still means that more people are coming into Chad, a very generous country, a country that is hosting brothers and sisters. And mind you, since the beginning of the year, 55,000 new refugees have arrived in Chad. And they come on top of, since the beginning of 2023, nearly 1 million, and who also found around 400,000 who are there since 2023. So just to tell you one is that newly arriving people and that's part of the painful things we see. And that pain, I would say to you, and was revolting because I met this young woman who was caring for the cousin who had fled violence, who was still recovering from a brutality that was put on her and disabled. And these are the type of vulnerabilities we see. The harrowing stories of rape, violence are still happening. And I would say after one year and a half not visiting that border areas, that pain is still, it's something that we should not hear in today's world. And I would say at the same time, we have seen that how UNHCR and 34 partners that are responding to the Sudan crisis in Chad are able to use the limited resources they have. The international community have given them around 20% of the need that are required, but it means less food, it means less capacities for people to be relocated to safer areas, it means less capacities to shelter themselves, and it also means people who remain in very dire and vulnerable situation. On the more positive side, I would say it's again a country Chad that is hosting the refugees, opening its borders, its communities that are sharing everything, but it's also development interventions that are coming and complementing humanitarian interventions that we see in the areas of water, in the areas of health care, for example, recognizing 400 medical or people who are professional in the health sector to be able to practice their work are all things that we believe are absolutely essential into responding in from a solution from the start. So again, just to highlight these two dynamics, one, that painful stories about more people coming, still an emergency, still an unfunded emergency, which requires greater support, but also innovation as well as possibilities to help sisters and brothers, as well as the host communities, to be able to take care of themselves. Thank you very much.

Thank you very much, Mamadou. So let's turn to you colleagues for any questions you may have. Yeah, maybe, Eugene, please add.

You will soon receive the briefing note from our end, and then you will find the report, the recent report showing that very consequences of declining support, which really extended beyond the immediate region, which actually show that how many Sudanese refugee actually take a decision to go to the Europe, what we call onward movement. And then it shows that it's not a single journey and then single decision. they are taking. While the overall arrival to Europe via Mediterranean has decreased, we are seeing the Sudanese arrival by sea to Europe have risen significantly since the conflict began. We're talking about 14,000 arrival recorded in 2025. I will give you the example of 2024. We recorded 4,000 arrival, the Sudanese arrival, meaning that it's 246% increase from 2024 to 2025. That actually that what we are hearing from Sudanese who arrive via Mediterranean is that the unmet protection and basic need in first country of asylum are among the factor contributing to onward movement. But you will see the link which has all the analysis detail of a previous year's arrival, et cetera. So you will soon receive the briefing note.

That's very helpful. Thank you, Eugene. We do have a couple more questions on the subject. So, Nina, AFP.

Yeah, thank you for the briefing. I -- sorry if I missed it, but I -- you said that it was -- you've received just 20% of what's needed. Could you provide the numbers, please, of how much you think you need and how much you've received? And if you could spell out a little bit more what the actual impact is? You mentioned it briefly, but if you could spell out sort of if you've seen specific situations on what that lack of resources means on the ground. Thank you.

Thank you very much, Nina. Good questions that are there. One, and we can provide even more details later, but what we have is a 1.6 billion that has been asked for the 123 partners around the Sudan situation, which is funded only at around 20%. So it's about, I would say, it's the seven countries impacted by the Sudan situation, including Chad, Egypt, Ethiopia, Uganda, and all countries that are neighboring the Sudan situation. And that has a real impact on the people. In Chad, you will see over 150,000 people who are still in border areas, in Adre, in Tine, in several parts, who we are not able to relocate to safer areas. The government has provided land, partners are ready. I was able to witness some relocation, but the pace at which the relocation is being made is not sufficient, is not commensurate to the needs and to the generosity that we see. We are seeing already now efforts to reduce the food rations that are being provided to newly arriving refugees, people who have been here only for one year or two years since this brutal conflict started, who are on their way to be supported in communities which do not have much, but they have shared what they have. So relocation, shelters, we are in dire need of shelter in the refugee site. We have received some support, but if as you are able to go and see the level of needs that are there, they are just harrowing. When you get only one-fifth of the needs that you have. So in relocation, in shelter, in food, in water systems, in a place like Urekasoni, which is the far north that I could not visit this time, this is a place, for example, where we had gone at around only three liters per person per day. Now, thanks to support that we have received, we have gone up to eight liters per person per day, but still much below the required standard that we have. So these all impact people. They impact people's life, they impact the standard of living, and they have people taking very, very dangerous journeys. As you mentioned, what we have seen is, and during conversation I had with you, is that if they don't get opportunities to live a bit more of dignified lives in a country like Chad, opportunities for skills, for development, and to such a time, and there is no better, I would say, much more resolute effort in relation to peace, as the Secretary General has mentioned, as the High Commissioner has mentioned, in relation to What people are going to do is to vote with their feet, and this is what we are starting to see in relation to Europe, but also in relation to other routes. But we can provide you more information, Nina, if you need it. Thank you.

That's very, very helpful. Thank you, Mamadou. Bonjour, Monsieur Baldé.

You have said that your emergency call has been financed to the height of 20%, which is quite minimal compared to the needs. I have a suggestion and a question. The United Nations, they know that I come back a lot on this. There is someone who is called George Clooney. He had invested a lot for the division of Sudan. Today, Sudan is living in a very difficult situation. Wouldn't it be better to get the number of this man and ask him to help you contact people who can help you get money? I think it's a moral duty for this man, who has been very involved in this referendum and the division of Sudan, to play his role. on sait aussi que le Tchad vit aussi une situation qui n'est pas très facile. Est-ce que, au niveau de la sécurité, les réfugiés que vous envoyez aussi au Tchad sont bien accueillis? Et comment aussi le gouvernement tchadien Propose son aide de temps plus que aussi eux, ils vivent une situation qui n'est pas très facile. Je vous remercie, Mamadou.

OK, merci Monsieur Gorgui. Si possible, je vais commencer par la question et puis je vais. Parler un peu du commentaire que vous avez fait par rapport à la question. Le gouvernement tchadien a été extrêmement généreux. Il reçoit les réfugiés à l'est du Tchad au moment où nous parlons. une personne sur trois est réfugiée à l'est du Tchad. Ça peut vous donner une idée si une personne sur trois à Dakar est réfugiée, ça vous donne une très bonne idée de ce que c'est. Donc le gouvernement est généreux, il reçoit les réfugiés, les communautés accueillent les réfugiés. Et une des personnes que j'ai rencontrées lors de cette visite m'a dit, j'ai fui les bombardements aériens au Darfour. When I arrived at the border with my husband, we didn't know where our two sons were, who are two adult sons. They had to come with their little children. And today, they live under a tent. We helped them. In addition to the tent, they started building part of the house with bricks, in a more sustainable way. They told me two things. One, yes, the first thing we appreciate here in the east of Chad is that we have peace. We don't fear air bombings anymore. We don't fear drones anymore. We don't fear that someone will come into our house and brutalize our people. And for our children. On vit dans la paix actuellement à l'est du Tchad. Donc voilà ce que les personnes que nous voyons nous disent. Donc sécurité, protection, nous en sommes là. Par contre, le niveau d'assistance et de support est relativement bas. Nous remercions toute personne, toutes les entités qui nous ont aidés. que ce soit des États ou encore du secteur privé, y compris des individus de bonne volonté qui nous ont apporté un soutien à nous-mêmes et aux 34 autres partenaires à l'est du Tchad ou aux 123 partenaires dans les 7 pays couverts par la situation soudanaise. Mais c'est assez bas et nous sommes presque à la fin de l'année. Donc l'appel, c'est aussi un appel de support parce que ça a un impact sur tous ces éléments-là. Par rapport à votre commentaire, est-ce que il faut aller vers des individus en particulier?? Je sais très clairement que c'est des efforts qui sont faits sur celui-là en particulier que vous avez indiqué. Nous pourrions également éventuellement en parler un peu plus, mais il y a eu beaucoup de. You know, I worked in Chad between 2001 and 2003, and I know very clearly that there were many opinions on this great country, who are good people, who are generous people, who unfortunately are in the state where they are. The refugees all ask for peace, they ask for peace, and they ask for peace, and that the peace is there, they ask for the possibility of living decently. Thank you very much, Rolando.

Let's move on to let's just make sure there are no further questions. Sudan, just checking once, twice. No, that's not the case. So thank you again, Mamadou, very much for joining us. Do keep us informed. I know you've briefed us in the past, and we can we look forward to further briefings from you. And thank you, Eugene, for delivering Mamadou to us again. Amundi, we're going to move to you again now on the situation of Ebola in the DRC, which persists, sadly. So we have an update from IOM, if you want to introduce your guests. Over to you.

Thank you very much, Rolando. As you already know, the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo continues to expand, placing affected communities under growing pressure and raising concerns about the risk of further transmission. Today we are joined, I'm happy to introduce our Deputy Regional Director for Operation, Nihan Adogan, who is calling in from Nairobi, and alongside Andrew Obert, who is our Regional Ebola Coordinator, for them to provide a bit of insights of how the response and the current situation in DRC is like. Over to you, Nihan.

Thank you very much, and thank you, colleagues, for hosting us. The Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo continues to expand, and it remains a major concern for the country and the wider region. Allow me to give you a few numbers. As of 21st of September, the DRC had reported more than 7,700 confirmed cases and 3,700 deaths. with the outbreak affecting over 60 health zones across seven provinces. Obviously, behind these numbers are families who have lost their loved ones and communities who are already facing conflict, displacement, limited services, and constant population movement. That is why, for us at IOM, mobility must be at the center of the response. So what do we do to support that? IOM is supporting the Ebola preparedness and response in the DRC, Uganda, and nine other at-risk neighboring countries. Our role is to help governments and partners reduce the risks associated with population movement, particularly at points of entry, points of crossing, displacement sites, transport corridors, markets, and river routes. How do we do that? One of the important tools we use is population mobility mapping and other mobility data to identify major movement corridors, hotspots, informal routes where surveillance and health interventions need to be strengthened. And through such strengthened surveillance, supported by IOM and the government's National Border Health Program, more than 700 alerts have been identified. And this includes more than 200 deceased people with over 60 confirmed Ebola cases detected through these efforts. This is important because this demonstrates why surveillance must extend beyond hospitals and former borders. Allow me to also highlight the Congo River. because Congo River is an important area of focus for us. It's a major transport and commercial corridor linking communities across the country, including Kinshasa, which, as you know, is home to more than 10 million people. IOM is working with the government WHO, Africa CDC, and other partners to strengthen screening, surveillance, referral, and community engagement along this important corridor. I also want to highlight the displacement sites because we are particularly concerned about them. IOM is supporting more than 65 sites, including around 50 of them in the displacement areas. These communities are especially vulnerable because of overcrowding, limited services, and high mobility. And across the response in DRC, IOM is supporting 124 active points of entry and points of control. And we have plans to expand further as the situation evolves. In total, we have supported more than 36 million health screenings, And we have reached more than 35 million people with targeted risk communication and community engagement message. I want to also add one point on Uganda, because although the outbreak has been declared over, IOM continues to support preparedness cross-border surveillance, screening, referral, and population mobility mapping. And all of this is to reduce the risk of reintroduction. As you can see, the scale of the outbreak is major, and such a scale requires additional resources. The IOM office in DRC, it has revised its six-months funding requirements from 14.7 million USD to 69 million USD. As I said, our work is not only in DRC, it also includes the other neighboring countries. This means IOM's overall regional appeal, it has increased from 55.8 million USD to 110 million USD. However, so far, IOM has mobilized 29.6 million USD. That means we still have a funding gap of approximately 80.4 million USD. Before I conclude, allow me to highlight our key message, which is simple. The response must move as fast as the outbreak, because Ebola does not stop at borders, river crossings, or displacement sites, and our response cannot stop there either. We need continued support to detect cases early, strengthen surveillance, protect displaced and mobile population, and reach communities along the major mobility corridors. Because every alert detected, every traveler screened, and every case identified early can help us save lives and prevent further transmission. Thank you very much.

Thank you very much, Niihann. Very, very clear. Thank you. Let's see if there are questions for you. We do have a question. Emma of Reuters.

Just a clarification. I didn't quite catch what you were saying about identifying 60 confirmed Ebola cases or deaths across through mobility mapping. Could you just explain, is that about sneaking bodies across crossing points? And secondly, please, could you give us an update on Ebola in the displacement camps? And also, tell us, has the shift in the epicenter of the outbreak to North Kivu from Ituri changed the dynamics in camps? Maybe it's less bad? Are there fewer people displaced in North Kivu than Ituri? Thank you very much.

Thank you. So you remember I talked about the importance of mapping the mobility of the people, because when people move, there's a chance of the outbreak to continue in that direction. So we have surveillance systems in place, not just as IOM, but also the government's National Border Health Program. So through this surveillance, we have more than 700 alerts identified. And this included, some of these alerts included people who were deceased. And when it was checked, when it was looked into the reasons of these dead bodies, we have identified 60, 6-0, confirmed Ebola cases. So that is the issue around surveillance in places where there is mobility. You also highlighted the IDP sites. As I said, yes, there is special vulnerabilities in these sites because of, as I said, overcrowding, limited services and high mobility. But maybe also important to highlight is the case fatality rate. Remember at the beginning I was mentioning more than 7,700 confirmed cases with 3,700 deaths. So if you do the mathematics, it's more or less 48% case fatality rate. But if you go to the IDP sites, unfortunately, the fatality rate increases. And that is because of the reasons I mentioned. That's why for us as IOM, working in the IDP sites, the displacement sites, is very important and an area of focus. And in terms of the last point on the shift, As if you're following since the beginning, that this is a very dynamic situation. It's not just about, changing it from North Kivu to the other provinces, but in general, as we have more and more health zones, with outbreak declared, it is definitely changing the dynamic. And that was one of the reasons, actually, Emma, that IOM had to increase its funding requirements because the situation is now in more health zones.

Thank you so very much. I think Emma has a follow-up for you. Go ahead, Emma.

Yes, thanks for your indulgence. Did you tell me what the fatality rate is in the IDP sites and how many have died of Ebola there overall? Thank you.

We have weekly reports, situation reports that come every Friday. I'm sure our colleagues can provide you with that. But so far in the displacement sites, the case fatality rate is as high as 81.

Happy to share with you the details after this. Thanks.

Yeah. So if you allow me maybe just to come in on the last question. Nian rightfully mentioned that the case fatality rate is quite high. So the 81% was reported in one of the meetings by the IMST, the intercontinental, the continental coordination body for the Ebola. And since then, IOM is also working very closely with the surveillance team to make sure that we have more detailed information. information which we are able to share, the detailed information, especially in the camps that IOM is currently supporting. But just to add on also that there are quite a number of sites which are not under the cluster system. And that is why Nihan was mentioning that one of our strategy is to expand into those areas that are not currently covered into the cluster system. By numbers, there are over 250 sites, there are pockets of sites. or population that are staying within the host community. And therefore, this is an area that we need to look into. Now, to add on also on the 60 plus cases that we have managed to detect at the point of control and point of entry. Some of these have been detected in informal routes, and that's why from IOM side, we don't just concentrate on those routes or POEs that are quite formal, the international entry and all that. What we do in the population mobility mapping, we try to understand where are people following, because usually when people know that there's screening in formal POEs and all that, we realize that they divert and use what slightly called in Africa, the Pania routes, the small informal routes. And that is where once we do population mobility mapping, we identify those routes and we are able to position some of the screening and surveillance in those areas. And most of this movement of the dead bodies have been captured in this area. And we can provide the latest update because we'll be releasing our SITREP today, by end of today, which has the most updated figures. But just to mention, total to be very accurate is 60 plus, and total is 69 in number at the moment. Over.

Thank you very much, Andrew. That's much appreciated. And as mentioned, Omondi will be sharing that sit rep with you later today, colleagues. Let's make sure there are no further questions for either of you. That seem to be the case. So, Nihan, Andrew, thank you very much for joining us. at this briefing in Geneva. And thanks to you as well, Omondi. Okay, colleagues, we're going to move to the situation in Nepal. And connected online is Andrea Berardo, who is Nepal's Nepal Deputy Country Director, joining us from Kathmandu. Thank you for your patience and sorry for the delay, but over to you, Andrea. And I know you're speaking about emergency food assistance in isolated communities. So very important subject indeed. Andrea, over to you.

Thank you very much for having me and giving me the opportunity to share a few points. I'd like to share three points actually today with the audience. First on the situation, and second on the complexity of the emergency response, and the latest information according to assessment. So first of all, tomorrow marks one month since the devastating floods that swept down the mountain rivers in northern Nepal, wiping out villages, roads, bridges, and claiming many lives. The response is continuing to be a government-led response with the humanitarian community, including WFP, providing support as required. As WFP, we already completed the first round of in-kind food assistance to flood-affected areas with ration covering 15,500 people with around 127 metric tons of food mixed commodities. We are running a humanitarian staging area in Kathmandu. The humanitarian staging area was opened back in 2015, actually one month before the devastating earthquake that hit back then. The humanitarian staging area now is fully operational. It's a coordination center and logistic base for WFP, for the government, and for partners. The WFP has also established a common humanitarian office and storage facilities in Nouakchott, which is in the heart of the affected areas, positioning and operational and coordination areas for the entire humanitarian community. The WFP-led logistic and telecommunication clusters has provided coordination services, including cargo and leads, and transport to 70 partner humanitarian organizations. For the next round of assistance, WFP has planned to shift to a cash response wherever possible, wherever markets are functioning, also to include a stimulus to market and to give beneficiaries way to choose what they most need. I was mentioning earlier, my second point is on the complexity of the operation. Many communities, they are in vulnerable situation and are reachable only by air due to the condition of the terrain, very mountainous area. And our access constraints also continue to be challenged by the floods, damage, debris, and the end of the monsoon season, which is just happening these days. We have delivered by order as much as possible. These are the most cost-efficient options. But when roads were destroyed and bridges were washed away, we delivered by helicopters. The farther where helicopters cannot land, we have been using humanitarian cargo drones. This is a breakthrough. The first time humanitarian cargo drones have been used to transport food and other commodities in a rapid onset emergencies. It's a pioneering use of this tool for delivery. There is a lot of WP to reach settlements that otherwise would have been taking days to be reached. And again, a comparison with the 2015 earthquake, where hard-to-reach locations were reached by yak, by mule, by porters, the famous Sherpa of Nepal. These days, we are taking minutes to reach those hard-to-reach locations that otherwise would have taken days, if at all possible. These, I was saying, it's a breakthrough. We believe that we can transform the humanitarian response in settings where last-mile delivery was previously challenging or even impossible at all. My third point is around the latest information that we have. WFP has run an assessment on the food security and market situation. The assessment is giving us some good news and some not so good news. First of all, the good news is that 92% of the survey population, the flood-affected population, have a greater food consumption. This shows that the system that was promptly put in place is working. We are saving off hunger, and we are doing it in an effective way. But the not so good news is that virtually all those housing have been relying on food assistance to access their staple food. Yes, there is a positive food consumption results, but displacement remain widespread, productive assets and food stock have been lost, dietary diversity remain very weak, and access to market is still very much constrained by the damaged infrastructures. This means WFP and the entire humanitarian community must not step back now. The community needs continued support to restore livelihood and rebuild communities. I'd like to acknowledge the fact that swift support by a number of key partners has allowed WFP and other humanitarian organizations to swiftly respond in a matter of hours to this sudden onset disaster. WP was able to assist those in need in an appropriate, timely, and effective manner, which allow us to stay true to the principle of not leaving no one behind, making the best use of the resources that the donor community entrusted us. It's a collective effort. We like to recognize that. And this collective effort demonstrate that it is possible to swiftly act and effectively act when the government, humanitarian organizations, and donors, they really come swiftly together and swiftly in action to provide assistance to the most in need. SWP, we were there before the disaster. We have been there to provide humanitarian assistance right now, and we will continue to stand by Nepal throughout the recovery period, which I'm sure it's looked like being quite long, unfortunately. These are all from my side. I'll thank you for the opportunity and the time, and I'm ready for any question. Thank you.

Thank you, Andrea, for your intervention, your comments. Very well noted. Let's see if there are questions for you. No, I don't see that's the case, Andrea. I think you were abundantly clear, and I think the notes will be shared with our colleagues. Thank you again for joining us and for your patience from Kapan Du, no less. So thank you, and for the excellent work you're doing. Okay, colleagues, our last briefer, and again, thank you for your patience, Nancy Aburto, who is a deputy director for the Food and Nutrition Division at the FAO, who is joining us from Rome, which to mark International Day of Awareness of Food Loss and Waste for 2026. So over to you, Nancy, and thanks for joining us.

Thank you, Rolando, and good morning, colleagues. It's a pleasure to be here with you today speaking about the International Day of Awareness of Food Loss and Waste 2026. In 2019, the UN General Assembly proclaimed the 29th of September as the International Day of Awareness of Food Loss and Waste. And every year, FAO partners with UNEP to commemorate this annual event, not only to raise awareness, but also to promote action to reduce food loss and waste and accelerate progress towards SDG 12.3 which calls for halving the per capita global food waste and reducing food losses along the supply chain by 2030. This year's theme is the transformative potential of reducing food loss and waste. Transformative because saving food from being lost or wasted saves nutrients, saves natural resources, and saves money. Yet, unfortunately, globally, there has been no apparent progress since 2015 on reducing food loss and waste. The most recent estimates are that more than 13% of food is lost globally after harvest and before reaching retail, while another 19% of food available to consumers is wasted at retail, food service, and household levels. This is a total estimated economic loss of more than $1.4 trillion US per year. And with an estimated 645 million people facing hunger and almost 2.7 billion unable to afford a healthy diet, clearly, we cannot afford business as usual. Therefore, I'm pleased to share that this year, the flagship event celebrating the International Day of Awareness of Food Loss and Waste will be conducted in conjunction with the World Forest Week and the FAO Committee on Forestry for the first time ever. This offers a strategic opportunity to redefine what is possible by raising awareness on the connections between food loss and waste, land use, forest, agriculture, and climate to inspire innovation and drive collective action. Agricultural expansion remains the leading driver of deforestation globally. And at the same time, approximately 28% of agricultural land or 1.4 billion hectares, an area larger than Canada, is used to produce food that is ultimately never eaten. Food loss and waste also generates roughly 10% of total global greenhouse gas emissions, contributing significantly to climate change. Integrating food loss and waste, sustainable forest management, and agri-food system transformation provides one solution for addressing multiple challenges. Reducing food loss and waste makes better use of land and also makes better use of the water, energy, and other resources already invested in food production, while helping to ease pressure on forest and other ecosystems. FAO supports members in their ambitions to reduce food loss and waste, transform agri-food systems, and protect natural resources, including our precious forest. At this year's International Day of Awareness of Food Loss and Waste, FAO will share the latest updates on food loss estimates and will launch an interactive map featuring the 2024 estimates from the Food Loss Index, for which FAO is the custodian agency. These data, when combined with the food waste estimates generated by UNEP, provide better information for targeted actions and tailored solutions. Everyone is invited to join the FAO-UNEP-led celebration of the 2026 International Day of Awareness of Food Loss and Waste to be held 29 September from 12:30 to 14:00 hours Central Europe Summer Time. Together, let's raise our ambition, strengthen our partnerships, drive innovation, and scale investment. We all have a role to play. Thank you very much, Rolando, and thank you all for your time today.

Thank you very much, Nancy. And indeed, we do have a role to play. Staggering statistics, taking note of these figures that you shared with us. And it's good to put it in perspective the way you did. Well noted about the 29th of September. Thank you very much. We'll make sure to save that date. I just want to make sure there aren't any questions for you. That's not the case. And of course, your colleagues will share the information that you shared with us here at this podium. So thank you, Nancy. Okay, colleagues, just about done. Just a few notes from me to mention. Of course, you're all focused on what's happening here as well as on the other side of the pond at the UNGA. Just a few figures just to mention. Since last Friday, when the General Assembly began last week, as you know, the General Debate this week, the Secretary-General Antonio Guterres held over 90 bilaterals over the course of this week, I think close to 92 at this point. We didn't share all the readouts with you because I think we'd be flooding your inboxes, but indeed, lots of information that is on the website, over 25 statements in addition to the readouts. Many of those statements were shared with you, including remarks by the SG or the DSG, the Deputy Secretary General, on his behalf. This is the figures thus far, and of course, the general debate continues, and there will be more readouts to be shared. One statement I just wanted to flag, two statements I wanted to flag that were delivered yesterday by the Secretary General. One Its Secretary General spoke at a ministerial meeting yesterday in support of the UN Relief and Works Agency, UNRWA, and he said that across decades in highly challenging environments, UNRWA has provided essential public services and prepared Palestine refugees for a more peaceful and dignified future, but its mandate and work are in jeopardy, he warned. The another statement that he addressed yesterday speaks to sea level rise. In particular, the Secretary General noted that, and it was a presentation of report, that in his report on sea level rise, he laid out, laid the bare scale and speed of the danger of sea level rise. He pointed out that in 2024, the global sea level rose approximately six, almost six millimeters, the highest annual increase ever recorded. And the pace is accelerating. So do take a look at those statements which we did share with you. A couple other notes really quickly. There is actually another statement I want to flag that will be delivered by the Deputy Secretary General on behalf of the Secretary General at 4:00 p.m. today, which will address, will be an address to a high-level meeting on pandemic prevention, preparedness, and response. 00 p.m. today. Press conferences you heard at the start of this press conference, this press briefing, rather, that Ed Harris of WIPO mentioned a press briefing by WIPO this coming Monday, Monday the 28th, yes, Monday at 9:30. So you took note of that. It's on WIPO's Global Innovation Index. Another press conference I'd like to announce is one taking place on Tuesday the 29th in this room. by the expert mechanism to advance racial justice and equality in law enforcement. Two of the members will be speaking to you here. This body, as you might remember, was set up by the Human Rights Council a few years ago. Meetings, just to note that the Committee on the Rights of the Child will conclude its 101st session today, after which it had reviewed the reports on Kazakhstan, Lesotho, Slovenia, Tajikistan, Timor-Leste, Uganda, and Tanzania. You've received all the notes on that. And of course, you've received all the updates from our colleagues at the Human Rights Council on the 63rd session of the Council, which continues. believe that they are discussing the Universal Periodic Review reports today. Let's see here. Almost done. Maybe just to mention on the last note that tomorrow is the International Day for the Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons, a subject obviously being addressed here in Geneva through the Conference on Disarmament. And now on this International Day, the Secretary-General says in his message, "We face a stark reality. The threat of nuclear catastrophe is immediate and growing." And he notes that the failure of recent multilateral efforts to advance nuclear disarmament and reinforce nonproliferation commitments has demonstrated the difficulty of consensus in a divided world. So he says that it's time to choose dialogue over division, diplomacy over confrontation, and disarmament over destruction. Very important message indeed to mark tomorrow's observance. And that's all I have. So thank you very much. Gorgi, is that a question for me? Please go ahead.

Yes, hello. In fact, if you have the information now, that's good. Otherwise, later. It's concerning the white votes. I'm afraid I don't have that information, Georgie.

I'll have to check specifically. As you well know, the Secretary-General election process is managed by states in New York. There have been a number of ballots that have been held, and I don't have information at the top of my head. Of course, we can share that with you, but at the same time, you may want to consult with our colleagues in New York, particularly the spokespeople for the President of the General Assembly, and of course, the spokesperson's office there could provide more information. So thanks for the question, though. John. Is that for me?

Can you hear me now?

Yeah, we can.

Can you hear me?

We can.

Great. Yeah, actually, I've got a question if anyone is still tuning in from the humanitarian agencies, if they have any new information from the field on the renewed civil war in Ethiopia. Hundreds reportedly have been killed in fighting between the warring sides. If you've got something on that, that would be great. Thank you.

Let's maybe wait a second to see if anyone pops their hand up. I think it's some have already dropped off on the call, but of course you will have seen, John, if you just give me a second, I'll draw it up here, the statement that the Secretary General issued. It was Wednesday, I believe. And I'm sure you've seen that. We did share that with you colleagues. The Secretary General expressed his grave concern by the rapidly deteriorating situation in northern Ethiopia, including the seizure and occupation of the three airports of Mekelle, Axum, and Shire, and reports of intensified fighting in and around Tigray and the spread of hostilities in neighboring areas. The Secretary General called on all parties to exercise maximum restraint, to immediately de-escalate tensions pardon me protect civilians, ensure safe and unhindered access to humanitarian partners to reach those in need, and avoid actions that could lead to a broader and more devastating conflict," the statement reads. So we did share that with you. Of course, we're keeping an eye on the situation in the Tigray region in the north of Ethiopia. I'm not sure if colleagues have anything to add. If not, maybe you can liaise with them or they can liaise with you thereafter after this briefing. But thanks for the question on this situation. On that note, I think we have concluded this briefing. So thank you very much. Have a good afternoon, and we'll see you here on Tuesday next.