News headlines in 2021, page 75

UNITED NATIONS, Oct 06 (IPS) - When the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan receives the political blessings of the 193-member General Assembly-- and eventually inherits its seat at the United Nations-- it will have to ultimately prove its credentials as a member of good standing by adhering to the UN Charter and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) – as all member states do.

The number of COVID-19 cases and deaths has continued to decline globally, with  3.1 million new cases and just over 54,000 new deaths, reported over the last week, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). 

Since 2017, a campaign by South Korean superstars BTS, and the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has reached almost every country in the world with a positive message of self-love and self-care, gathering more than 50 million interactions from Twitter users.

Only one in 10 people who need palliative care are receiving it, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).  

Africa’s film and audiovisual industries could create over 20 million jobs and contribute $20 billion to the continent’s combined Gross Domestic Product (GDP), the UN cultural agency, UNESCO, said on Tuesday in a new report highlighting this untapped potential. 

Between 2009 and 2018, the continuous rise in sea temperature cost the world 14 per cent of its coral reefs – that’s more than the size of Australia’s reefs combined – a UN-backed report revealed on Tuesday.

In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic devastated education systems throughout the world, making the year even more difficult for youngsters already embroiled in emergencies and protracted crises, according to a new UN-backed report launched on Tuesday, coinciding with World Teachers Day.  

PARIS, Oct 05 (IPS) - President Xi announced last month that China is stopping its financing for new coal-fired power plants overseas. With this announcement from Beijing, the governments of the world’s largest economies have now achieved a consensus to halt their overseas funding of coal plants in developing countries, thereby advancing global efforts to reduce future carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions.

ROME and AMSTERDAM, Oct 05 (IPS) - The USA and its allies have repeatedly stated that promoting women’s rights was one of the key reasons they were in Afghanistan. The US military top brass, in a letter to marines stated that they were in Afghanistan “for the liberty of young Afghan girls, women, boys, and men who want the same individual freedoms we enjoy as Americans”.

NEW YORK/GENEVA, Oct 05 (IPS) - The COVID-19 pandemic has changed the face of education globally, but for children in emergencies and protracted crises, its blow has been particularly devastating.