The UN chief expressed his profound sadness over the deadly earthquake that struck central Morocco late on Friday night which latest media reports say has killed over 2,000 people, and left well over 1,000 seriously injured. Mr. Guterres declared his solidarity with the Government and people of the country.

With a staggering hike in attacks targeting schools and hospitals, and over seven million refugee children out of school, the UN chief called on Saturday for a new push to defend vulnerable students and teachers worldwide.

UNITED NATIONS & NAIROBI, Sep 08 (IPS) - In a world set on fire by climate change and brutal conflict, millions of children in emergencies and protracted crises need educational support. Children in 48 out of 49 African countries are at high or extremely high risk of the impacts of climate change, particularly in the Central African Republic, Chad, Nigeria, Guinea, Somalia, and Guinea Bissau.

URBANA, Illinois, USA, Sep 08 (IPS) - A few weeks ago, my husband and I drove from Illinois to Iowa to visit a friend. I was excited about my over 5 hours’ drive. Sadly, 60 minutes into the drive, my excitement fiddled out. I was bored.  Field after field, as far as my eyes could see, all I saw was either corn or soybean. I also noticed that the field margins were empty-with no sight of wildflowers.

NEW YORK, Sep 08 (IPS) - Individually and collectively, member countries of the G20 are falling far behind in their greenhouse gas reduction goals and are failing to make the significant cuts on emissions that would be needed to keep global temperatures low, despite possessing the technological and financial capabilities for reducing emissions.

BANGKOK, Thailand, Sep 08 (IPS) - In Asia and the Pacific, migration is again on the rise. In 2020, almost 109 million people lived in a country other than that of their birth. They represented 2.3 per cent of the region’s population in 2020 and almost 38 per cent of the world’s international migrants.

NEW YORK, Sep 08 (IPS) - Twenty years ago this month, a colleague saved me from a likely gruesome death. He insisted I stay in his Baghdad office of the World Food Programme (WFP) for a hot drink. “You can't leave us without trying the tea I made for you! The best in Iraq.”

The world is not on track to meet the long-term goals set out in the Paris Agreement for limiting global temperature rise, a major UN report warned on Friday, calling for a commitment to decisive action.

The so-called elections held by Russia in occupied areas of Ukraine “have no legal grounds”, a senior political affairs official said on Friday, reiterating UN’s commitment to the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine.

More than seven million refugee children are out of school globally according to UN data – that’s more than half the world’s population of displaced, school-aged children.