UN News Centre - Africa

An outbreak of the deadly Ebola virus disease in Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is over, the government announced on Wednesday, after a five-month response supported by the UN’s World Health Organization (WHO), and other partners.   

During her visit to Ghana on Monday, UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed met with young people living with HIV and disabilities in the capital, Accra.   

Some 10,000 health workers will be trained to support mothers and newborns in Africa through a partnership between the UN Children’s Fund, UNICEF, and Laerdal Global Health, the non-profit arm of a Norwegian company that provides innovative training, educational and therapy solutions for emergency medical care and patient safety.

A “full-scale humanitarian crisis” is unfolding as thousands of refugees flee ongoing fighting in Ethiopia’s Tigray region each day to seek safety in eastern Sudan, the UN refugee agency (UNHCR) reported on Tuesday. 

It will take a variety of different actors to confront and deal with the “daunting challenges” in the Sahel region, the head of UN peacekeeping told the Security Council on Monday.  

Maxwell Matewere, a Malawian crime prevention expert with the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), has been active in the anti-human trafficking field for more than two decades. Today, he trains officials throughout Malawi to prevent and combat this crime: this year alone, despite COVID-19 restrictions, his work has led to the rescue of around three hundred human trafficking victims and 31 arrests.  

Continuing violence in the wake of elections in  Cote d’Ivoire’s presidential elections held on 31 October, prompted the UN human rights chief on Monday to call for a peaceful solution, saying it was in “nobody’s interests to fuel the threat of increasing political instability”.

The UN Deputy Secretary-General is on a two-week solidarity visit to West Africa and the Sahel to underscore the Organization’s support to countries during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Talks to draw up a blueprint for a new political era in Libya began in Tunisia on Monday, following a peace deal struck by Libya’s warring sides last month.  

Some 13 million people in the central Sahel region of north Africa require urgent humanitarian assistance, due to violence, insecurity and extreme weather events. Behind these stark figures lie personal stories of tragedy, resilience and hope.

The UN human rights chief called on Friday for the de-escalation of violence and military clashes across parts of Ethiopia, urging all those involved to “engage in a genuine, inclusive and credible dialogue to solve any differences through peaceful means”.

Military officers from Libya’s warring parties have agreed practical steps towards implementing a ceasefire agreement, following the signing of an historic accord in Geneva last month, the UN mission in the country, UNSMIL, has reported. 

The UN Deputy Secretary-General on Tuesday urged the Security Council to do more to encourage combatants across the world to put down their guns and focus instead on fighting “our common enemy” – the coronavirus.

Inclusive dialogue is crucial to diffuse tensions across Ethiopia, said the UN Secretary-General on Tuesday, following reports of dozens killed and injured during brutal attacks in the west of the country over the weekend.

The top UN official working to end rape during wartime said she was encouraged by recent “positive steps” taken by the South Sudanese army to bring perpetrators to justice, thereby underscoring the Government’s commitment to zero tolerance.  

The Nigerian Government must establish a credible, independent inquiry into the recent killing of at least 12 peaceful protestors by soldiers, a group of independent UN human rights experts said on Tuesday, as demonstrations against a discredited police unit continue across the country.

Several thousand people have fled from election-related violence in Côte d'Ivoire to seek sanctuary in neighbouring Liberia, Ghana and Togo, fearing a repeat of the major conflict that followed the election in 2011, the UN refugee agency UNHCR said on Tuesday.  

On Friday, the eve of the presidential election in Côte d'Ivoire, UN Secretary-General António Guterres called for all Ivorians to ensure that the polls are “conducted in a peaceful manner”.  

Chief Inspector Doreen Malambo, Gender Adviser at the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS), has won 2020 UN Woman Police Officer of the Year Award, in honour of her work supporting vulnerable groups, such as women, girls, children, and people with disabilities.

In Kenya, a major UN-led cash and nutrition relief project is underway for informal workers facing a hunger crisis brought on by COVID-19, amidst warnings on Friday that the situation is likely even worse in many poorer countries.