After hitting the island nation on November 9 with winds of around 185 kilometers per hour (or 115 miles per hour) killing at least six people, Super Typhoon Fung-wong battered homes, schools and access to health services in 16 areas. UNICEF reported Thursday.
The archipelago has already been exhausted this year by multiple climatic and geophysical shocks. Just a few days ago, more than 200 people died in the Typhoon Kalmaegi disaster.
From one crisis to another
“Children and their families barely emerge from one crisis before another hits, bringing them back to square one,” said Kyungsun Kim, UNICEF representative in the Philippines.
The agency conducts joint assessments with authorities and partners to determine the greatest needs.
In addition to providing lifesaving support, UNICEF prioritizes child-centered climate policies, climate-resilient social services and mobilizing climate finance to protect communities from natural shocks.
UN launches first refugee-led green fund to restore land and reduce carbon emissions
The United Nations refugee agency, UNHCRlaunched the Environmental Protection Fund for Refugeesthe first major refugee-led initiative using carbon finance to combat deforestation, promote clean energy and create green jobs.
The new fund will launch projects in Uganda and Rwanda, aiming to restore more than 100,000 hectares of land and provide access to clean energy to 1 million people over the next decade.
Sown in Uganda and Rwanda
In the Bidibidi and Kyangwali settlements in Uganda, activities will include reforestation, seedling production and the deployment of cleaner cooking technologies, which are expected to reduce more than 200,000 tonnes of CO₂ each year and create thousands of jobs for refugees and host communities.
In Kigeme camp in Rwanda, the project will rehabilitate degraded hillsides, promote safer cooking for 15,000 people, and support sustainable livelihoods through nursery management and soil conservation.
Revenue from verified carbon credits will be reinvested in local environmental projects, ensuring that communities share in the benefits.
“Refugees often live on the front lines of extreme weather,” said Siddhartha Sinha, UNHCR’s head of innovative financing. “This fund helps them protect the land they depend on. »
Expansion is already under consideration in Brazil and Bangladesh, linking environmental recovery to long-term community resilience.
Daily struggle for survival of people with disabilities in Myanmar
Soldiers loyal to Myanmar’s military junta have allegedly executed, tortured and sexually assaulted people with disabilities, trapping them in a daily struggle for survival, according to a report. new report published by the independent United Nations human rights expert for Myanmar.
Since taking power in 2021, Myanmar’s military has ruled by force, violently targeting the opposition, protests, ethnic minorities and particularly people with disabilities, said Special Rapporteur Tom Andrews THURSDAY.
Burned alive
“Dozens of disabled people were burned alive in their own homes as junta forces carried out massive arson campaigns across the country,” he added.
Deep-rooted religious and cultural beliefs continue to perpetuate the isolation and disenfranchisement of people with disabilities in Myanmar, leaving them trapped in a vicious cycle of repression and discrimination, the report said.
“The widely held belief that impairments result from wrongdoing in a past life not only fuels discrimination, but is also internalized by people with disabilities, leading many to withdraw from community life out of shame and erosion of personal dignity,” Andrews said.
Nevertheless, a remarkable network of organizations, many led by people with disabilities, continue to work against all odds to provide essential services and advocate for the rights of people with disabilities.
“As a distracted world focuses its attention on other crises and conflicts, the situation of people with disabilities in Myanmar has truly become a hidden crisis within a forgotten humanitarian catastrophe,” the independent expert said.
“It is essential that the world pays attention to this. »
Independent experts and special rapporteurs are appointed by the UN Human Rights Council report on specific human rights issues. They serve in their personal capacity and are not UN personnel.
Originally published at Almouwatin.com
