Monday 27 April 2015

World Day for Safety and Health at Work 2015 [ILO] - April 28

 世界日安全與健康工作,4月28日。
 2015年主题:“参与建设保障职业安全与健康的预防文化”

 Всемирный день безопасности и здоровья на рабочем месте, 28 апреля. 


World Day for Safety and Health at Work, April 28.
Theme 2015 :  Join in building a culture of prevention on OSH






The World Day for Safety and Health at Work is an annual international campaign to promote safe, healthy and decent work. It is held on 28 April and has been observed by the International Labour Organization (ILO) since 2003.28 April has also long been associated with the world's trade union movement's commemoration of the victims of occupational accidents and diseases.

Every year some two million men and women lose their lives through accidents and diseases linked to their work. In addition, there are 270 million occupational accidents and 160 million occupational diseases each year, incurring US$ 2.8 trillion in costs for lost working time and expenses for treatment, compensation and rehabilitation. Fatalities, accidents and illness at work are highly preventable and we have an obligation to act.
The annual World Day for Safety and Health at Work on 28 April promotes the prevention of occupational accidents and diseases globally. It is an awareness-raising campaign intended to focus international attention on the magnitude of the problem and on how promoting and creating a safety and health culture can help reduce the number of work-related deaths and injuries.

Each of us is responsible for stopping deaths and injuries on the job. As governments we are responsible for providing the infrastructure — laws and services — necessary to ensure that workers remain employable and that enterprises flourish; this includes the development of a national policy and programme and a system of inspection to enforce compliance with occupational safety and health legislation and policy. As employers we are responsible for ensuring that the working environment is safe and healthy. As workers we are responsible to work safely and to protect ourselves and not to endanger others, to know our rights and to participate in the implementation of preventive measures.

Emerging risks at work

New and emerging occupational risks may be caused by technical innovation or by social or organizational change, such as:
  • New technologies and production processes, e.g. nanotechnology, biotechnology
  • New working conditions, e.g. higher workloads, work intensification from downsizing, poor conditions associated with migration for work, jobs in the informal economy
  • Emerging forms of employment, e.g. self-employment, outsourcing, temporary contracts
They may be more widely recognized through better scientific understanding, e.g. the effects of ergonomic risks on musculoskeletal disorders.
They may be influenced by changes in perceptions about the importance of certain risk factors, e.g. the effects of psychosocial factors on work-related stress.


 A national occupational safety and health culture is one in which the right to a safe and healthy working environment is respected at all levels, where governments, employers and workers actively participate in securing a safe and healthy working environment through a system of defined rights, responsibilities and duties, and where the highest priority is accorded to the principle of prevention.
Programme

  • Opening: Ms Sandra Polaski - ILO Deputy Director-General for Policy
  • Dr (Ms) Gan Siok Lin - Executive Director, Workplace Safety and Health Institute - Ministry of Manpower Singapore
  • Mr Ulas Yildiz - Legal Advisor, Turkish Confederation of Employers Associations (TISK)
  • Ms Silvana Cappuccio - Senior Officer, Italian General Confederation of Labour (CGIL), Member of the Workers’ Group of ILO Governing Body
  • Mr Hans-Horst Konkolewsky - Secretary General, International Social Security Association (ISSA)
  • Ms Nancy Leppink - Chief of the ILO Labour Administration, Labour Inspection and Occupational Safety and Health Branch (LABADMIN/OSH)
  • Launch of the 2015 SafeDay website:

 FORUM : World Day for Safety and Health at Work [ILO] - 28 April



28 April 2015, 14:30 | Geneva, ILO headquarters, Room XI (R2 South)
Join us to celebrate the World Day for Safety and Health at Work together!

Join in building a Culture of Prevention on OSH


 
 LINKS :

World Malaria Day 2015, April 25


Theme 2015 : Invest in the Future: Defeat Malaria.




News release
 
WHO is calling on the global health community to urgently address significant gaps in the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of malaria. Despite dramatic declines in malaria cases and deaths since 2000, more than half a million lives are still lost to this preventable disease each year.
At least three quarters of malaria deaths occur in children under 5. Yet in 2013, only about 1 in 5 African children with malaria received effective treatment for the disease, 15 million pregnant women did not receive a single dose of the recommended preventive drugs, and an estimated 278 million people in Africa still live in households without a single insecticide-treated bednet.
“As we celebrate World Malaria Day on April 25, we must recognize the urgent need to expand prevention measures and quality-assured diagnostic testing and treatment to reduce the human suffering caused by malaria,” says Dr Hiroki Nakatani, WHO Assistant Director-General for HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis, Malaria and Neglected Tropical Diseases.

Updated treatment guidelines

Updated "Guidelines for the Treatment of Malaria" are being issued by WHO this week. They include the latest recommendations on preventive treatment for infants, children under 5 and pregnant women. The updated guidelines should help expand access to recommended treatments.
For uncomplicated malaria cases, WHO recommends the use of artemisinin-based combination therapies (ACTs). Globally, 392 million ACT courses were procured by malaria-endemic countries in 2013, up from just 11 million in 2005. However, millions of people are still not treated for malaria, primarily because the communities most affected by the disease have limited access to health care.
WHO recommends diagnostic testing for all suspected malaria cases to ensure that malaria drugs are used only for those who have the disease and that—when a test is negative—other causes of fever are investigated. Rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs) are now widely available and more than 319 million were purchased in 2013 compared to 46 million in 2008. Despite this progress, nearly 40% of people with suspected malaria at public health facilities in Africa are not tested.
WHO also recommends that the most vulnerable groups in malaria-endemic areas of sub-Saharan Africa—pregnant women, children under 5, and infants—receive preventive treatment to reduce the risk of malaria infection. Preventive treatments are highly cost-effective, with the potential to save tens of thousands of lives each year. Coverage with such treatments, however, remains low and needs to be significantly scaled up.
The need to urgently address gaps in preventive treatment for malaria is also being highlighted by the Roll Back Malaria (RBM) Partnership, which has issued a global call to action to increase national coverage with preventive treatment in pregnancy.

Accelerating towards elimination—a new WHO strategy

WHO has developed a new global malaria strategy for the 2016-2030 period, which will be reviewed by the World Health Assembly in May 2015. Developed in close consultation with endemic countries and partners, the new strategy sets the target of reducing the disease burden by 40% by 2020, and by at least 90% by 2030. It also aims to eliminate the disease in at least 35 new countries by 2030. The strategy provides a comprehensive framework for countries to develop tailored programmes that will sustain and accelerate progress towards malaria elimination.
Commitments to malaria elimination have already been made by a number of countries and regions. In recent years, elimination efforts have been intensified in many parts of Africa—including in Southern Africa’s “Elimination 8” countries (Angola, Botswana, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Swaziland, Zambia, Zimbabwe)—in Central America and Hispaniola, as well as in South-East Asia. In 2014, heads of state at the East Asia Summit made a commitment to eliminate malaria from the Asia-Pacific by 2030 and WHO is currently working on an elimination strategy for the Greater Mekong Subregion.
“We must take the malaria fight to the next level. Moving towards elimination will require high-level political commitment and robust financing, including substantial new investments in disease surveillance, health systems strengthening and research,” says Dr Pedro Alonso, Director of the WHO Global Malaria Programme. “In addition, we urgently need new tools to tackle emerging drug and insecticide resistance, as well as innovative approaches that will accelerate progress.”
Increased political commitment and greater funding have averted more than 4 million malaria deaths since 2001, and 55 of the 97 countries and territories with ongoing malaria transmission are on track to meet the current World Health Assembly target of reducing malaria incidence by 75% between 2000 and 2015.

Note to editors
World Malaria Day was instituted by WHO Member States during the 2007 World Health Assembly and is celebrated on 25 April each year. It is an occasion to highlight the need for continued investment and sustained political commitment for malaria control and elimination. The theme for the 2013-2015 campaign is “Invest in the Future. Defeat malaria”.
Roll Back Malaria (RBM) is a global partnership of national governments, civil society, non-governmental organizations, research institutions, professional associations, UN and development agencies, development banks, the private sector and the media.

Media contact:
Christian Lindmeier
Communications Officer
Mobile: +41 79 500 65 52
Telephone: +41 22 791 19 48
E-mail: lindmeierch@who.int

Alison Clements-Hunt
Communication Officer
Mobile: +41 79 386 3943
Telephone: +41 22 791 1995
E-mail: clementshuntal@who.int
 

Share the Facts
Working together with national governments and other donors, PMI has reached millions of people with life-saving prevention and treatment measures through a variety of approaches at hospitals, health facilities, and communities. Seventeen PMI focus countries have now reported declines in deaths among children under the age of five. These declines range from 18 percent (in both Liberia and Nigeria) to 55 percent (in both Senegal and Zambia). 

Share the facts below via Twitter to help spread the message about the fight against malaria.

Reduction in All-cause Mortality Rates of Children Under Five - President's Malaria Initiative (PMI)


    On April 25th people across the globe take part in a wide range of activities to mark World Malaria Day. For half the world every day is malaria day - a day to keep up the fight against this killer disease. This website is a communication and advocacy platform for civil society north and south to showcase your work , share resources , engage in dialogue, contribute views, ideas and events to mobilise the world against malaria.

World Malaria Day 2015 theme is Invest in Malaria, Defeat Malaria.


 LINKS :


PUBLICATIONS

Guardian shorts : The Deadly Air
Meet the cutting-edge scientists who are genetically modifying mosquitoes on the frontlines of the fight against one of the world’s deadliest diseases: malaria.Click here to read a free extract and buy the eBook for just £1.99

 Audio/Video :  World Malaria Day 2015.

For World Malaria Day, 25 April, WHO calls on the global health community to urgently address significant gaps in the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of malaria. Despite dramatic declines in malaria cases and deaths since 2000, more than half a million lives are still lost to this preventable disease each year

International Mother Earth Day 2015, April 22.




Columbia Glacier, Alaska, October 2014,
NASA's Earth Observatory.


Тема Дня 2015 года «Пора взять инициативу в свои руки»
 Thème 2015 : « A notre tour de donner l’exemple »
2015年主题:“未来,你我主宰”
موضوع عام 2015:
❞إنه دورنا للقيادة❝



 Message of the United Nations Secretary-General for the International Mother Earth Day 2015.

The word ‘mother’ holds great power. It evokes memories of the women who gave us life, nurtured us as infants and helped mould us into who we are today. The Earth is the ultimate mother – an astounding planet that has, since time immemorial, supported life in myriad forms. As humans, we outgrow the need for constant maternal care. But we can never outgrow our reliance on Mother Earth. As long as we live, we need air, water, fertile soil and the countless other gifts this planet bestows.
This dependence makes it all the more astonishing that we have allowed rapid and often unwise human development to disrupt so many of the delicate systems that have functioned harmoniously for millennia. We are increasingly aware of the damage our species has wrought – the pollution, the dwindling resources, the species of flora and fauna forever gone, the rush towards tipping points that may alter the way our planet functions. Even with this knowledge, we have yet to change our ways.
But we can change, and 2015 brings a critical opportunity to do just that. This year, the world aims to finalize the post-2015 sustainable development agenda and reach a new and meaningful universal climate change agreement. These processes have the potential to redefine our future for the better, by eradicating extreme poverty in all its forms and resetting our relationship with this planet and every living being it sustains.
But the big decisions that lie ahead are not just for world leaders and policy-makers. Today, on Mother Earth Day, I ask each one of us to be mindful of the impacts our choices have on this planet, and what those impacts will mean for future generations. Not everyone is able to make sustainable choices, but for those who can, simple decisions such as switching to energy-efficient lighting or buying only what you will consume – when accumulated across billions of people – can transform our world. The power to change begins with you.
As a global community, we have the opportunity to make 2015 a turning point in human history. This can be the year our children and grandchildren will remember as when we chose to build a sustainable and resilient future – both for Mother Earth and all those that development has until now left behind. Let us seize this historic opportunity together.

Ban Ki-moon, UN Secretary-General





Earth Day Network 2015 :  It's our turn to lead - Earth Day's 45th anniversary - could be the most exciting year in environmental history Earth Day Network


 The year in which economic growth and sustainability join hands. The year in which world leaders finally pass a binding climate change treaty. The year in which citizens and organizations divest from fossil fuels and put their money into renewable energy solutions. These are tough issues but we know what’s at stake is the future of our planet and the survival of life on earth. On Earth Day we need you to take a stand so that together, we can show the world a new direction. It’s our turn to lead. So our world leaders can follow by example.

In 2015, let's redefine what progress looks like. It’s Our Turn to Lead.

  2015is the year for ‪‎Climate Action‬ and its ‪#‎ourturntolead‬ -  Earth Day Network

Does what we eat affect climate change? Join us 4/24 at 2pmET for the April ‪#‎FoodDayChat‬ about food & the environment.
NASA - National Aeronautics and Space Administration
This Earth Day, April 22, NASA is asking people around the world to share pictures and videos on social media that show there is no place like home
For more information on the ‪ "No Place Like Home‬ project ".


#‎NoPlaceLikeHome‬ project


 Public Events, Online Activities

NASA will celebrate the 45th annual Earth Day April 17-22 with a variety of live and online activities to engage the public in the agency’s mission to better understand and protect our home planet.
NASA uses the vantage point of space to increase our understanding of our home planet, improve lives and safeguard our future. The agency develops new ways to observe and study Earth's interconnected natural systems with long-term data records, shares this unique knowledge, and works with institutions around the world to gain new insights into how our planet is changing.
Earth Day in the Nation’s Capital
  • Friday, April 17 (10 a.m. to 2 p.m. EDT) and Saturday, April 18 (noon to 5 p.m.) -- Washington Monument grounds in Washington -- Public Earth Day celebration sponsored by the Earth Day Network featuring NASA exhibits, hands-on activities, demonstrations, and views of Earth from space. NASA Administrator Charles Bolden will appear on stage at 3 p.m. on April 18 during the Global Citizen 2015 Earth Day event.
  • Tuesday, April 21 and Wednesday, April 22 (10 a.m. to 5 p.m.) -- Union Station main hall, 40 Massachusetts Ave., NE, Washington -- NASA Hyperwall and Science Gallery exhibits, hands-on activities and demonstrations. NASA scientists will give talks April 22 at the Hyperwall stage following the opening ceremony at 11 a.m., featuring NASA Chief Scientist Ellen Stofan and John Grunsfeld, associate administrator for NASA’s Science Mission Directorate in Washington.
‘Our Planet Earth’ Exhibition
  • Thursday, April 16 through May -- Dulles International Airport, Dulles, Virginia, A Gate AeroTrain Station -- Display of striking large-format satellite images that reveal Earth’s natural beauty and demonstrate how NASA uses data from its fleet of Earth-observing satellites to study our home planet.
NASA #NoPlaceLikeHome Social Media Event
  • Wednesday, April 22 – online -- NASA encourages people all over the world to step outside and celebrate environmental awareness through social media. Share photos or videos of your favorite places or sights on Earth. Post your images to Twitter, Instagram, Vine or Google+ using the hashtag #NoPlaceLikeHome, or to the event groups on Facebook and Flickr. Check in on Earth Day to see what people around the world are sharing. For details on how to participate, visit:
Google+ Hangout: Global Environmental Education
  • Wednesday, April 22 (10 to 11 a.m.) -- online -- The Global Learning and Observations to Benefit the Environment (GLOBE) program celebrates its 20th anniversary on Earth Day with an online conversation with GLOBE scientists and educators around the world. GLOBE, supported by NASA and the National Science Foundation, engages students and the public worldwide in collecting scientific data to advance our understanding of the Earth system and global environment. To join the hangout, visit:
NASA Center Activities
  • April 18-19 (10 a.m. to 6 p.m.) -- 43063 North 10th St. West, City Park, Lancaster, California -- NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center will provide an exhibit at the Poppy Festival featuring the #NoPlaceLikeHome social media activity, displays on NASA aeronautics and scientific research, and pilot autographs.
  • April 22 (10 a.m. to 2 p.m.) -- 230 R.T. Jones Road, Mountain View, California – NASA’s Ames Research Center will provide an exhibit on Earth science research at the U.S. Army Reserve’s 63rd Regional Support Command Earth Day Fair free family event.
For more information about NASA's Earth science activities, visit:
-end-
Steve Cole
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-0918
stephen.e.cole@nasa.gov



 Forum : International Mother Earth Day - April 22


Links :

              

Sunday 26 April 2015

International Day of Human Space Flight 2015, April 12

 载人空间飞行国际日, 4月12日.
اليوم الدولي للرحلة البشرية إلى الفضاء- 12 نيسان/أبريل



12 April 1961 was the date of the first human space flight, carried out by Yuri Gagarin, a Soviet citizen. This historic event opened the way for space exploration for the benefit of all humanity.
The General Assembly expressed its deep conviction of the common interest of mankind in promoting and expanding the exploration and use of outer space, as the province of all mankind, for peaceful purposes and in continuing efforts to extend to all States the benefits derived there from.

Forum : April 12 - International Day of Human Space Flight


The beginning of a new era in Space exploration in which we will build the capabilities to send humans deeper into space than ever before.


Human Space Flight

Exhibits : Cosmonauts‬: Birth of the Space Age at the Science Museum, London Uk

Resources :
UN System
Links : 
 Windows to the Universe : Chronology of Manned Space Missions.

Wednesday 8 April 2015

World Health Day 2015, April 7

 年世界卫生日‬, ‪4月7日.‬  ‪
Día Mundial de la Salud‬ , ‪‎7 de Abril‬.
World Health Day‬, 7 April‬.
 ‪‎Всемирный день здоровья‬, ‪‎7 апрел‬. ‪
 ‪Journée mondiale de la Santé‬,‪ 7 avril‬.
 يوم الصحة العالمي، 7 أبريل




 Journée mondiale de la Santé 2015 - la sécurité sanitaire des aliments.
 Всемирный день здоровья 2015 года: Безопасность пищевых продуктов.
 يوم الصحة العالمي 2015: السلامة الغذائية

From farm to plate, make food safe



United Nations Secretary-General message for the World Health Day, 7 April 2015 

“From farm to plate: make food safe”

Food contaminated with bacteria, viruses, parasites or chemicals is responsible for more than 200 diseases, ranging from diarrhoea to cancers. Potential new threats to food safety are emerging all the time. Changes to the way food is produced, distributed and consumed, the emergence of resistant bacteria, and increases in travel and trade make it difficult to manage pathogens and contaminants once they are in our food supply.
Unsafe food is a largely under-reported and often overlooked global problem. With the food supply chain stretch ing around the world, the need to strengthen food safety systems within and
among countries is becoming more critical.
That is why, on World Health Day, the World Health Organization (WHO) is calling on countries and all actors to improve food safety from farm to plate and everywhere in between.
The production of safe food is important for economies–it fosters trade and tourism and supports food security and sustainable development.Food safety is also important for education–sick children miss school, and it is at school that the next generation of consumers can learn basic food safety practices.
WHO and the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) work together to set international standards for safe food. They assess the safety of new food technologies, and help countries to prevent, detect and respond to outbreaks of food-borne disease.
These agencies also help countries build their own capacity to predict and manage food-borne disease risks.All people involved in the production, distribution, and preparation of food must play their part to make food safe.
Governments must communicate the importance of food safety to their citizens. The health, agriculture, trade, and environment sectors need to work together.
On World Health Day, let us all ask: how safe is our food?
We all have a role to play in keeping food safe–from farm to plate

Ban Ki Moon

How Safe is Your Food?


Statements : 

On 7 April 2015, the World Health Organization joins the rest of the international community to commemorate World Health Day. This year’s theme is “How safe is your food? From farm to plate, make food safe”.

This theme highlights the urgent need for government organizations, food businesses and consumers to put measures in place that will improve food safety from the point of production to consumption.

Unsafe food is linked to the deaths of an estimated 2 million people annually and the African Region is without exception. Infants, young children, pregnant women, the elderly and those with an underlying illness are particularly vulnerable. For example, in 2014, there were more than 100, 000 cases of cholera in 22 countries resulting in over 1700 deaths. So far this year, cholera outbreaks in 13 countries have led to over 200 deaths out of more than 13,000 cases. Food contaminated by harmful bacteria, viruses, parasites or chemical substances can lead to a wide range of health problems. This is responsible for more than 200 diseases, including typhoid fever, diarrhea and cancers, among others.

Food can become contaminated at any point of production and distribution, and food producers play a critical role in preventing this. Equally a large proportion of incidents of foodborne disease are caused by foods improperly prepared or mishandled at home, in restaurants, or markets. There is an urgent need for all food handlers and consumers to understand the importance of adopting basic hygienic practices when buying, selling and preparing food to protect their health and that of the wider community.

In Africa, women who primarily prepare food at home are also key participants in small and medium sized enterprises, as owners, managers and workers in food businesses such as cafes, restaurants, small manufacturers, and street vendors. Improving the safety of food and securing the effective management of businesses operated by women is a key concern in public health for the economic, social status and overall standing of women in their communities.

There is also a growing concern over the increase of resistant microorganisms entering the food chain.  Food safety serves as a good platform to bring stakeholders together to address antimicrobial resistance. In combating antimicrobial resistance, prudent use of antimicrobials in agriculture, aquaculture, and animal husbandry is critical, as is the case in human medicine. Production of safe food facilitates access to wider markets and improves overseas earnings.

As we commemorate World Health Day, I call upon African governments to prioritise food safety, align policies in agriculture, trade, health, education, social protection and mobilize adequate financial resources to make food safe for all. Setting food guidelines in line with codex standards, operating regional alert mechanisms and early warning systems as well as building and maintaining adequate food systems and infrastructures will contribute enormously towards improving food safety.

Everyone has a role to play in making food safe and I urge food handlers and consumers to be familiar with common food hazards and handle and prepare food safely.

WHO will continue to collaborate with the Food and Agriculture Organization, the World Organization for Animal Health, and other partners to ensure food is safe “from farm to plate” in African Region.

Thank you.

Other Statements : 
 


"Major foodborne illnesses and causes" WHD 2015 Campaign Toolkit - World Health Organization (WHO)
Foodborne illnesses are usually infectious or toxic in nature and caused by bacteria, viruses, parasites or chemical substances entering the body through contaminated food or water.

How is food quality evaluated?

Traditionally, qualities of foods are evaluated by our sensory organs – our eyes, nose or mouth or, more recently, by the use of instruments. Sensory evaluation is commonly practiced by food regulatory authorities which consists of judging the quality of food by a panel of judges. The evaluation deals with measuring, evaluating, analyzing and interpreting the qualities of food as they are perceived by the senses of sight, taste, touch and hearing.



Advancing Plan for Food Safety - Strategic Plan Food Safety (2013-2022)
Advancing Plan for Food Safety - Strategic Plan Food Safety (2013-2022).

Strategic direction 1: Provide the science base for measures along the entire foodchain to decrease foodborne health risks
Strategic direction 2: Improve international and national cross-sectoral collaboration, enhance communication and advocacy
Strategic direction 3: Provide leadership and assist in the development and strengthening of risk-based, integrated national systems for food safety
 
 

Forum : World Health DAY - 7 April
Safe Food = Healthy Lives.
 Events : 

Food Safety: from farm to plate make food safe
7 Apr 2015 - Special event on the occasion of World Health Day 2015 (7 April) on the theme “Food safety: from farm to plate, make food safe”co-organized by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)




Dr. Jacob Kumaresan (WHO) on Food Safety: from farm to plate, make food safe - Press Conference
7 Apr 2015 - Dr. Jacob Kumaresan, Executive Director World Health Organization (WHO) Office in New York, on “Food Safety: from farm to plate, make food safe”, the theme for this year’s World Health Day
2015

International Day of Reflection on the Genocide in Rwanda 2015, April 7th.



Journée internationale de réflexion sur le génocide au Rwanda, Avril 7.
International Day of Reflection on the Genocide in Rwanda, 7 April.
Día Internacional de Reflexión sobre el Genocidio en Ruanda, 07 de abril.
 反思盧旺達大屠殺國際日, 4月7日.
Международный день памяти о геноциде в Руанде, 7 апреля.
 اليوم العالمي للتفكر في الإبادة الجماعية في رواندا، 7 أبريل




The International Day of Reflection on the Genocide in Rwanda offers an opportunity to honour the memory of the more than 800,000 people – overwhelmingly Tutsi, and also moderate Hutu, Twa and others – who were systematically killed across Rwanda in less than three months just over two decades ago. It is also an occasion to recognize the pain and the courage of those who survived.
Our annual sombre observance is all the more meaningful this year as we mark the 70th anniversary of the founding of the United Nations. We must use this occasion to look back on the past – and to squarely confront the challenges of the present, renewing our collective resolve to prevent such atrocities from happening again.
Many countries now face grave security threats. People are being subjected to the brutality of violent conflicts and the indignities of poverty. Discrimination persists in societies torn apart by war, as well as in democracies that largely enjoy peace. Hatred may manifest as institutionalized racism, ethnic strife, or episodes of intolerance or exclusion. In other instances, discrimination reflects the official, national version of history that denies the identity of some segments of the population.
I deplore the conflicts and atrocity crimes in many parts of the world that continue to divide communities, killing and displacing people, undermining economies and destroying cultural heritage.
Our first duty is always to prevent these situations and to protect vulnerable human beings in distress. My Human Rights Up Front initiative seeks to prevent serious human rights violations by acting on early warning signs before they become more serious. My Special Advisers on the Prevention of Genocide and on the Responsibility to Protect work to advance national and international efforts to protect populations from atrocity crimes. We aim to ensure swift and decisive action to save lives and stop abuses.
On this Day, I appeal to the international community to do more than just speak about atrocity crimes and then fail to take timely action to prevent them. I call on all to summon the courage to act before situations deteriorate based on our collective moral responsibility. This is critical for the maintenance of international peace and security.
As I said at last year’s commemoration in Kigali, we must exercise “Umuganda” – coming together in common purpose – to avert what can be prevented and counter the cruelty taking place before our eyes.

Ban Ki-moon
Forum : Timeline of the Genocide in Rwanda UN Outreach Programme on the Rwanda Genocide.
 

Events : Memorial Ceremony, 7 April 2015, 6:00 p.m. UN Headquarters, New York
21st Commemoration of the Rwanda Genocide
Memorial Ceremony
7 April 2015, 6:00pm – 7:00pm (United Nations Headquarters, Conference Room 4)
Organized by the UN Department of Public Information, in cooperation with the Permanent Mission of the Republic of Rwanda to the United Nations

Programme



Annual Commemoration of the Rwanda Genocide
7 Apr 2015 - Special event on the occasion of the twenty-first commemoration of the Rwanda genocide (7 April)
co-organized by the Permanent Mission of Rwanda and the Department of Public Information


Press Releases :

International Day of Sport for Development and Peace 2015, April 6

 

Theme 2015 :  " United action towards sustainable development for all through sport"



The International Day of Sport for Development and Peace highlights the role sport can play in achieving sustainable progress and change.
Sport has the power to help develop the potential of individuals, communities and nations. It encourages personal growth, is a major force in eliminating gender barriers and can build bridges across lines that might otherwise divide.
Sport nurtures society by creating a culture in which fundamental values such as equality, the acceptance of rules, mutual respect and fairness are appreciated.
It helps the more vulnerable groups in society, especially young people and persons with disabilities, to enjoy their human rights, including safe opportunities to engage in physical education programmes and sporting activities. This contributes to their inclusion in society and increases their motivation to attend school.
The sporting industry, for its part, has a significant role to play in promoting environmental awareness and sustainable practices. 
I commend athletes across the world for supporting the United Nations in our efforts to achieve the Millennium Development Goals.  There have been many remarkable gains, but there remains much to do.
As we prepare a new development agenda for the period beyond the year 2015, including a set of Sustainable Development Goals, I will continue to look to sportsmen and women to be advocates for building a better world for all.
On this International Day, let us pledge to strengthen the role that sport plays in communities around the world. We need to have everyone on the team: governments, international organizations, NGOs and many others.
Let us use sport to help create a healthier, happier and more prosperous world for all.
Ban Ki-moon


Forum : Day of Sport for Development and Peace - April 6




Resources :

AUDIO

United Nations Radio:
International Paralympic Committee:


Press Releases : 








  • The World Anti-doping Agency  in consultation with signatories and governments, shall establish a monitoring program regarding substances which are not on the Prohibited List, but which WADA wishes to monitor in order to detect patterns of misuse in sport.
    WADA shall publish, in advance of any testing, the substances that will be monitored. Laboratories will report the instances of reported use or detected presence of these substances to WADA periodically on an aggregate basis by sport and whether the samples were collected in-competition or out–of-competition. Such reports shall not contain additional information regarding specific samples.

    WADA shall make available to International Federations and National Anti-Doping Organizations, on at least an annual basis, aggregate statistical information by sport regarding the additional substances. WADA shall implement measures to ensure that strict anonymity of individual Athletes is maintained with respect to such reports. The reported use or detected presence of a monitored substance shall not constitute an anti-doping rule violation.
    Play True