A surge in the development of powerful artificial intelligence (AI) tools is already improving lives but is also bringing fresh urgency to calls for regulation, as more and more governments wake up to the risks. Effective global regulation to ensure that AI is developed safely for the benefit of all is urgently needed.

The UN and other bodies set up in the wake of World War Two, are struggling to cope effectively with today’s global threats and challenges. At a landmark event in New York this September, world leaders will consider far-reaching plans to shake up international institutions and bring about major reforms for a safer, fairer future for all.

With conflict and violence at record levels, the UN Member States have called on Secretary-General António Guterres to come up with a template for a more peaceful, secure world. The “New Agenda for Peace” will be a key component of the Summit of the Future, a landmark event to be held at UN Headquarters this September.

Some of the world’s poorest countries spend more on debt repayments than health, education and infrastructure combined, severely hampering their chances of developing their economies. The UN is calling for an overhaul of the entire international financial system, to reduce inequality and improve people’s lives.

Left unchecked, artificial intelligence (AI) could destabilize democratic systems by spreading disinformation, fueling hate speech and distorting public opinion through deepfakes, the UN Secretary-General has warned.

The civil war in Sudan has brought to country’s health system to its knees. UN mobile health teams are attempting to plug the gaps, crossing conflict zones to help pregnant women to give birth in safety.

KYIV Kyiv & NAIROBI, Sep 13 (IPS) - In a major escalation of a conflict that started in 2014 and which is the largest in Europe since World War II, Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022. Since then, thousands of Ukrainian civilians—many of them women and children—have lost their lives. Countless others have been displaced from their homes, clinging to what remains of the education system as their communities disintegrate.

UNITED NATIONS, Sep 13 (IPS) - On Monday, the Alau dam in Maiduguri, Borno State, collapsed, causing flash floods to ravage neighbouring regions in Nigeria. This comes after weeks of torrential rain, which caused severe structural damage to the dam. The floods have changed the lives of thousands and caused high levels of damage to infrastructures. The impacts of the recent floods compound with Nigeria's pre-existing humanitarian crisis, which includes armed conflict, widespread malnutrition, and a failing economy.

NEW YORK, Sep 13 (IPS) - This opinion piece is being published exactly on the date when twenty-five years ago today the UN took its most forward-looking stride in ensuring a peaceful planet for all of us since the signing of the Charter of the United Nations in 1945.

UNITED NATIONS, Sep 13 (IPS) - As the devastating 11-month-old conflict in Gaza keeps escalating, with over 41,000 mostly civilian killings, and more than 92,000 Palestinians injured --in retaliation for the 1,200 killings inside Israel last October-- the Israelis continue to defy the United States which maintains its uninterrupted flow of heavy weapons to Tel Aviv.