Changes in financial markets now influence global trade almost as strongly as real economic activity, shaping the prospects of developing countries in particular.

“Trade is not just a chain of suppliers. It is also a chain of credit lines, payment systems, currency markets and capital flows,” said Rebeca Grynspan, UNCTAD Secretary General.

Developing economies face growing pressures

Developing economies are growing faster than advanced economies, but high borrowing costs, financial market volatility and climate risks limit their ability to invest and support growth, the report said.

Climate vulnerability adds to financial pressures. Countries repeatedly exposed to extreme weather now pay about $20 billion more each year in interest because lenders perceive them as riskier, according to UNCTAD.

Dollar dominance

At the same time, the US dollar remains central to global finance, even if some diversification is underway.

Its share of cross-border payments via the SWIFT electronic transfer system has increased sharply – from 39 percent to around 50 percent in five years – and the United States continues to dominate global stock and bond markets.

While this may provide some stability in the event of financial shocks, it also means developing countries are increasingly exposed to US financial cycles that they have little power to shape, UNCTAD said.

Modern slavery worldwide rises to 50 million

“Slavery is a horror from the history books – and an unrelenting contemporary crisis,” said Secretary-General António Guterres as the UN commemorated the International Day for the Abolition of Slaverymarked every year on December 2.

More than 15 million men, women and children captured, chained and enslaved across oceans, UN chief says; Many lost their lives during this arduous journey.

Today, an estimated 50 million people are trapped in contemporary forms of slavery, many of them women and children.

This day is dedicated to raising awareness and mobilizing to end slavery and its modern manifestations, including human trafficking, sexual exploitation, child labor, forced marriage and the recruitment of children into armed conflict.

Millions of exploited workers around the world

According to the UN, forced labor generates an estimated $236 billion in annual profits globally, representing wages effectively stolen from workers, particularly affecting those already struggling to provide for their families.

“Contemporary forms of slavery are perpetuated by criminal networks that prey on people struggling to cope with extreme poverty, discrimination or environmental degradation – and by traffickers who exploit people fleeing armed conflict or migrating in search of safety and opportunity. This deprives people of their rights and their humanity,” said Secretary-General António Guterres.

No region is immune to this problem, with Asia and the Pacific having the highest figure (15.1 million), followed by Europe and Central Asia (4.1 million), Africa (3.8 million), the Americas (3.6 million) and the Arab States (0.9 million).

80 percent of agricultural jobs in Latin America operate in the informal sector

More than 80 percent of agricultural jobs in Latin America continue to operate under informal employment contracts – where workers lack formal protection and social security.

Women, young people and older people in rural areas continue to be disproportionately affected, according to a new report from the International Labor Organization (ILO) and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).

The report reveals that 86.4 percent of women are in informal jobs, compared to 78 percent of men.

The informal sector also accounts for 46 percent of all child labor in the region, while more than half of the workforce has a low level of education.

Slow progress

Although some progress has been made in Latin America, between 2019 and 2023, almost half of all young workers in the sector – as well as the vast majority of women – continue to be employed informally, UN agencies noted.

The ILO and FAO continue to work with governments, employers and workers to design and implement integrated policies aimed at transforming the agricultural sector into a real engine of decent employment, food security and sustainability across the region.

THE agency reports that nearly 100,000 people have been displaced in the past two weeks alone, following intensifying attacks on villages and a rapid spread of violence in previously safe districts.

Speaking from Erati, a conflict-ridden region in northern Mozambique, Xavier Creach expressed concern over the attacks and his failure to respond adequately.

“These simultaneous attacks in several districts generate an enormous challenge for humanitarian actors who must increase emergency interventions in different areas of the country,” he said.

“Unfortunately, we lack resources“, he added.

Houses burned, villages attacked

The violence, which began in 2017 in the country’s northernmost province, Cabo Delgado, has already displaced more than 1.3 million people.

According to the United Nations refugee agency, it has spread beyond the province and into Nampula this year, threatening communities that had previously hosted displaced families.

Those who reached safety say they fled in fear as armed groups stormed their villages – often at night – burning homes, attacking civilians and forcing their families to flee without their belongings or documents.

“Civilians were killed, some were even beheaded,” Mr Creach said. “People had to flee at night in the most chaotic way. »

The sudden influx of displaced people into Nampula province is putting pressure on already fragile host communities, which also face insecurity. Schools, churches and open spaces are filled with newly arrived families.

Short on resources

This is the fourth massive influx that northern Mozambique has faced in recent months, Mr. Creach said.

“The response is insufficient,” he said. “People need help. They need food, shelter, water, support and they arrive traumatized.»

UNHCR $38.2 million will be needed in 2026 to meet growing needs in northern Mozambique. This comes at a deeply worrying time, when funding for 2025 stands at only 50 percent of the required amount.

Mr. Creach said that on Tuesday morning, agency staff saw people returning to very dangerous areas – not to restart their lives, but due to lack of response and overcrowded shelters.

“They felt they could no longer stay and had no choice but to return..”

The Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Iraq, Mohammed Al Hassan, made a final briefing to members of the United Nations Assistance Mission in Iraq (MANUI) is preparing to conclude his term on December 31 after more than two decades of service.

“Today, indeed, is a great day for the international community and the United Nations to witness the honorable and dignified closure of a UN mission,” he said.

Victory and sacrifice

UNAMI was established by the Council in 2003. At the time, the country “was grappling with the effects of decades of dictatorship, regional wars, internal conflicts, foreign occupation and Daesh terror,” he recalled.

“The path to peace, security and stability has been long and difficult. However, with the support of the international community, Iraq emerged victorious, but at the cost of countless sacrifices,” he said.

He took the opportunity to honor the memory of all those who have lost their lives since the start of UNAMI operations, including the 22 UN personnel killed in the Canal Hotel bombing in August 2003 – one of the darkest days in the organization’s history.

Hard-earned gains

Mr Al Hassan said he and his predecessors had been struck by the resilience and determination of Iraq and its people as they worked to build a more secure and prosperous future.

“From adopting a new Constitution to strengthening and consolidating democracy through 13 successful electoral processes, Iraq has been able to gradually consolidate hard-won gains, against all odds,” he said.

Last month, Iraq held its sixth parliamentary elections and the process was marked by a notable increase in the turnout of registered voters, to 56 percent. The vote was also one of the freest, most orderly and most credible polls ever held to date.

He commended the Iraqi people, the Independent High Electoral Commission and UNAMI, which provided electoral assistance.

“I can hardly think of a more fitting final chapter to UNAMI’s activities than the scenes I and my team witnessed at polling stations across the country, as Iraqis from diverse backgrounds lined up in orderly lines, eager to vote,” he said.

“While I express confidence that Iraq will continue to build on this strong electoral base, I fervently hope that a new government will be formed without delay. »

He also noted that the formation of a new government in the semi-autonomous Kurdistan region “remains on hold” after more than a year of lengthy negotiations.

Internal displacements, repatriations from Syria

Furthermore, although Iraq has overcome successive conflicts on the path to stability, the lasting effects have given rise to urgent and persistent humanitarian needs. Around a million people remain internally displaced, including more than 100,000, the majority Yazidis from Sinjar.

The minority community has endured immense suffering at the hands of the terrorist group Daesh, also known as ISIL, and its members still live in internally displaced persons camps.

Mr. Hassan highlighted Iraq’s commendable leadership in launching a concerted effort earlier this year to accelerate the repatriation of nationals from northeast Syria.

Tens of thousands of people from various countries with suspected or real links to Daesh remain detained in camps across the region.

He said that to date, approximately 20,800 people have returned to Iraq.

“As returns continue, with the latest taking place yesterday, it remains essential that adequate resources are dedicated to ensuring dignified and sustainable reintegration, including reliable access to basic services, livelihoods and community-level support,” he said.

Human rights challenges

The envoy also congratulated Iraq on its election as a UN member. Human Rights Councilwhich, he said, comes with a corresponding responsibility to uphold the highest standards in the promotion and protection of human rights.

In this regard, he highlighted the many challenges that remain to be addressed, “in particular to guarantee the full protection and exercise of the rights of minorities, women and young people, and to continue to defend freedom of expression as a cornerstone of open public dialogue in a strong democratic society.”

Concluding his speech, Mr. Hassan affirmed that “the departure of UNAMI does not mark the end of the Iraq-UN partnership. Rather, it represents the beginning of a new chapter rooted in Iraq’s leadership over its own future.”

The United Nations will continue to support Iraq in building on its hard-won gains, providing technical expertise, advice and support, he said.

“I wish to reaffirm my full confidence in the resilience of the Iraqi people and in the determination of their leaders to meet all the challenges that lie ahead, as they have done so commendably over the past 20 years,” he added.

“I call on them to strive to build bridges of trust and friendship, promote common interests with all neighboring countries and regain the glory of Iraq as the cradle of civilization.”

Just like industrialization in the 19^th If the century “divides the world between the rich few and the poor,” the AI ​​revolution could do the same.

“Countries that invest in skills, computing power and strong governance systems will benefit, others risk being left far behind.“, warned Philip Schellekens, chief economist of the United Nations Development Program for the Asia-Pacific region.

In a new reportThe agency stressed that women and young adults face the greatest threat from AI in the workplace, with broader improvements in health, education and income potentially being left behind.

In the meantime, the tech giant is expected to inject nearly $1 trillion in economic gains over the next decade in Asia alone, the data indicates.

The UN agency said that while China, Singapore and South Korea have invested heavily in – and benefited from – AI, entry-level workers in many South Asian countries face “significant exposure” to changes already underway, including automation.

“Limited infrastructure, skills, computing power and governance capacity limit the potential benefits of AI while amplifying the risksincluding job displacement, data exclusion, and indirect impacts such as increasing global demand for energy and water due to AI-intensive systems. » UNDP said.

Job protection

To avoid a looming jobs shortage, UNDP is urging governments to think about the ethics of AI before deploying it further – and to ensure this is done as inclusively as possible.

“AI is racing and many countries are still at the starting line,” said Kanni Wignaraja, UN Assistant Secretary-General and UNDP Regional Director for Asia and the Pacific.

“The experience of Asia and the Pacific highlights how quickly gaps can emerge between those who shape AI and those who are shaped by it. »

Basic needs to be met

For countries like Cambodia, Papua New Guinea and Vietnam, the priority is not so much developing AI as using existing, relatively simple voice tools that frontline health workers and farmers can use, even when the internet is down.

The Asia-Pacific region is home to more than 55% of the world’s population, placing it at the center of the AI ​​transition.

According to UNDP, the region is home to more than half of the world’s AI users and is rapidly expanding its innovation footprint; China alone holds nearly 70% of global AI patentswhile six countries host more than 3,100 newly funded AI companies.

“AI could increase annual GDP growth in the region by around two percentage points and increase productivity by up to 5 percent in sectors such as health and finance,” the UN agency said in its report. report.

He notes that Afghanistan’s average income is 200 times lower than Singapore’s, which partly explains why the use of AI is now concentrated in the hands of so few wealthy countries.

“We are not starting from a level playing field in this region,” Mr. Schellekens said… It is the most unequal region in the world.

Annalena Baerbock was speaking at a plenary meeting of the Assembly where countries debated a resolution affirming the responsibility of the UN on the question of Palestine.

“For 78 years, the Palestinian people have been denied their inalienable rights, in particular their right to self-determination,” she said. said.

“NOW, It is high time we took decisive action to end this decades-long stalemate.”

War in Gaza, violence in the West Bank

Baerbock said the atrocities committed by Hamas on October 7, 2023 “triggered one of the darkest chapters of this conflict.”

She described the immense devastation and suffering in Gaza after two years of war, with thousands dead, countless injured, communities starving, civilian infrastructure destroyed and almost the entire population displaced.

The hostages were freed and reunited with their loved ones, while other families mourn the returned bodies.

Even as the horrors of Gaza dominated the news, she warned that settlement expansion, demolitions and increased settler violence in the West Bank continue to undermine prospects for a sovereign, independent, contiguous and viable Palestinian state.

Two sovereign states

“Everything that has happened over the past two years has highlighted what we have known for decades. The Israeli-Palestinian conflict cannot be resolved through illegal occupation, de jure Or de facto annexation, forced displacement, recurring terror or permanent war“, she said.

“Israelis and Palestinians will only live in lasting peace, security and dignity if they live side by side in two sovereign, independent states, with mutually recognized borders and full regional integration. »

This is highlighted in the New York Declaration, endorsed by many Member States and the United Nations. Security Council Resolution 2803 (2025), which approved the “Comprehensive Plan to End the Conflict in Gaza” proposed by the United States.

“Unfortunately, we still see on a daily basis that it’s just words on paper if we don’t keep our word“, she said.

Ceasefire and humanitarian aid

“We must ensure that the ceasefire is consolidated and becomes a permanent end to hostilities,” she added, noting that at least 67 children have been killed since the start of this fragile truce.

Ms. Baerbock also stressed the need to ensure that aid is delivered throughout the Gaza Strip safely and unhindered, and in full compliance with international humanitarian law and humanitarian principles.

This includes delivery through the United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA.

She noted that “as indicated in the advisory opinion of the International Court of Justice on Israel’s obligations…enabling UNRWA to fulfill its mandate and continue its operations is not simply a gesture of goodwill, it is a legal obligation.

Ms. Baerbock said that “the quest for peace, stability and justice in the Middle East needs our United Nations” – and that the General Assembly plays a significant role.

Right to self-determination

“This requires every member state to lead by example: engage in this process, respect the Charter of the United Nations, adhere to international law and the promise that this institution made to all the people of the world 80 years ago,” she continued.

“Let us remember once again: self-determination and the right to live in one’s own State in peace, security and dignity, free from war, occupation and violence, are fundamental principles. not a privilege to be earned, but a right to be defended.”

World Meteorological Organization (WMOSpokeswoman Clare Nullis told reporters in Geneva that Indonesia, the Philippines, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Viet Nam were among the countries most affected by what she described as “a combination of monsoon-related rainfall and tropical cyclone activity.”

“Asia is very, very vulnerable to flooding,” Nullis said, explaining that flooding regularly tops the list of climate risks in the region, according to WMO’s annual climate status reports.

However, she said tropical cyclones such as Senyar, which last week brought “torrential rain, widespread flooding and landslides” to Indonesia’s North Sumatra, Peninsular Malaysia and southern Thailand, are rare so close to the equator.

“It’s not something we see very often and it means the impacts are amplified because local communities… don’t have any experience in this area,” she pointed out.

Hundreds of deaths

The spokesperson for the UN weather agency cited figures released Tuesday by the Indonesian National Disaster Office, showing 604 dead, 464 missing and 2,600 injured. In total, some 1.5 million people have been affected in Indonesia and more than 570,000 have been displaced.

As for Viet Nam, Nullis said the South Asian country has been “beaten for weeks” and “bracing for even heavier rains.”

“Exceptional rains in recent weeks have flooded historic sites and popular tourist resorts and caused enormous damage,” she said.

1.79 meters of rain per day

In late October, a weather station in central Viet Nam recorded a national 24-hour rainfall record of 1,739 millimeters, which Ms. Nullis called “really huge.”

“This is the second highest known total for 24-hour precipitation in the world,” she said.

This exceptionally high value is currently being submitted to a formal WMO extremes assessment committee. According to the agency, a value greater than 1,700 mm would constitute a record for the Northern Hemisphere and Asia.

Ricardo Pires, spokesperson for the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), described what he called a “rapid humanitarian emergency” in Sri Lanka, after Cyclone Ditwah made landfall last week on the country’s east coast, affecting some 1.4 million people, including 275,000 children.

“With communications cut and roads blocked, the real number of children affected is likely even higher,” warned Pires.. “Houses have been swept away, entire communities isolated and essential services that children depend on, such as water, healthcare and schooling, have been severely disrupted. »

The UNICEF spokesperson stressed that displacement has forced families to take refuge in dangerous and overcrowded shelters, while flooding and damaged water systems increase the risks of epidemics.

“The needs far exceed the resources available at present,” he insisted, calling for additional humanitarian funding and support for the most vulnerable.

Commenting on the intensity of devastating weather events, WMO’s Nullis explained that rising temperatures “increase the potential risk of more extreme precipitation because a warmer atmosphere retains more moisture.”

“It’s the law of physics… we are seeing more extreme precipitation and we will continue to do so in the future,” she concluded.