President António Costa attended the G20 summit in Johannesburg. He spoke at Session III: “A fair and just future for all”, on 23 November 2025.
From silence to strength: women leaders speak out in South Sudan
She knows what it’s like to be silenced.
Born into a family that did not believe in educating girls, she had to stay at home while her brothers went to school. It was only when she moved to Khartoum with her uncle that she had the chance to study, but not for long.
“I was forced into marriage at 14,” Awrelia said. “Even before that, some of my family members scolded me just for going to school. I struggled to finish primary school, but I couldn’t go any further.”
Despite everything, she never gave up on the value of education, especially for her daughters. “I hope they grow up to be responsible and successful women leaders. Something needs to change for girls.”
Awrelia at her home in Wau.
Widow, mother of eight children
In South Sudan, where conflict and deep-rooted gender norms have shaped life for generations, change comes slowly – but women like Awrelia are leading it with courage and determination.
A widow and mother of eight children, she spent years raising her children alone, often in difficult and uncertain conditions.
“Their father died when they were very young. My eldest was still in primary school,” says Awrelia. “Since then, I have raised them alone.”
In her daily life, Awrelia constantly faces complex family dynamics, scarcity and stigma, but she keeps going. “People expect us to endure in silence. Even when women try to ask for help, no one responds.”
In public spaces, the challenges are even greater. Speaking before the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women celebrated annually on November 25, Awrelia described how women are often dismissed or ignored. “They say we’re just women, like our voices don’t matter,” she said. “I stayed silent for years because I was afraid to speak.”
Nearly 1,400 women across South Sudan have benefited from leadership training.
Transformative training
But even before speaking out, Awrelia was leading in her own way: fighting for her children’s education and to keep her family together. This strength was strengthened when she joined a women’s leadership training organized by the International Organization for Migration (IOM) in Wau.
Training is included in IOMThe Gender Transformative Recovery Program – is part of a broader, locally-led effort to strengthen women’s leadership and ensure their participation in community decisions.
Across South Sudan, women’s groups and grassroots movements have long been paving the way for change. The five-day course builds on this dynamic, providing women with a safe space to reflect, learn and grow together.
I learned that being a leader means treating others fairly and resolving problems with patience. The training gave me the courage to defend myself. Now I know I can lead.
“I learned that being a leader means treating others fairly and resolving problems with patience,” she said. “The training gave me the courage to stand up for myself. Now I know I can lead.”
Back in her community, she put her newfound confidence into practice. Her local women’s group had nearly collapsed, but she put it back together. Now, they meet regularly to support each other and share their challenges.
Even though they lack funding for income-generating activities like sewing or catering, the group offers something just as powerful: solidarity.
Women run the household
In many areas of South Sudan affected by displacement, women head up to 80 percent of households.
In Wau, Bentiu, Malakal and other areas where IOM runs the program, more women are mobilizing. Those who once remained silent now speak up at meetings, support survivors of violence, and build networks to share experiences and grow together.
Awrelia has noticed a change in the way she is perceived. “People recognize me now,” she says. “In a meeting with chefs and women leaders, they mentioned my name and honored me in front of everyone. It made me proud. The women I lead respect me and I respect them.”
From homes to community halls, women like Awrelia are finding their voices and reshaping what the future can look like – for their daughters, their families and their country.
Originally published at Almouwatin.com
Nigeria: Schools should be ‘sanctuaries not targets,’ says UN deputy chief following latest mass kidnapping
It was initially reported that 215 students were kidnapped from St. Mary’s School in Papiri, Niger State, early Friday morning – but the figure was revised upwards to 303 students and 12 teachers, according to the Christian Association of Nigeria.
The association’s president, who reportedly visited the school on Friday, said more than 80 students were captured after trying to escape during the kidnapping by armed attackers. The students were men and women, aged 10 to 18 years old.
Second mass kidnapping this week
The number of girls kidnapped from a Catholic school in the center of the country exceeds the 276 girls kidnapped during the infamous 2014 Chibok incident and is the latest in a series of mass kidnappings – including earlier this week when 25 students were taken from a school in Kebbi State.
No group has yet claimed responsibility and authorities have deployed security forces to try to locate the students and their captors. Niger State has reportedly closed all schools until further notice.
Perpetrators must be held accountable
UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohamed – a former Nigeria environment minister – said in a social media post that schools should be “sanctuaries for education, not targets… We must protect schools and hold perpetrators accountable.”
The top UN official in the country, Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator Mohamed Fall, said the news of yet another mass kidnapping was heartbreaking, coming just days after the Kebbi kidnappings.
He conveyed his condolences to the families of those taken away and their communities, adding that all efforts must be made to ensure the safe return of students and staff.
“It is time to fully implement the principle of safe schools,” he said, launched at the first international conference on safe schools in Oslo, Norway, in 2015. Nigeria was among the countries that endorsed the Safe Schools Declaration that year.
Stand with the victims
United Nations Children’s Fund, UNICEFsaid this week that it continues to work closely with government partners, civil society and communities, to strengthen child protection systems, in line with the declaration that no child should be put at risk while pursuing their education.
The United Nations agency for culture, education and science (UNESCO) in Nigeria also condemned Friday’s latest mass kidnapping, saying schools should never be targets.
“We stand with the victims, their families and the government of Nigeria and call for the immediate release of all the abducted children,” the agency said.
Originally published at Almouwatin.com
COP30 in Belém gives a boost to climate finance and commits to planning the transition to fossil fuels
- Climate misinformation: Commitment to promoting information integrity and countering false narratives.
The final decision emphasizes solidarity and investment, setting ambitious financial targets while leaving the energy transition for later discussion. Burning fossil fuels emits greenhouse gases that are by far the biggest contributors to global warming, making the omission a concern for many countries, including negotiators from South America and the EU, as well as civil society groups.
It was widely expected that the final COP30 decision would explicitly refer to the phasing out of fossil fuels. More than 80 countries supported Brazil’s proposal for a formal “road map.”
A draft text had included it – until the last hours of the negotiations. The adopted outcome only refers to the “UAE Consensus”, with the COP28 decision calling for “abandon fossil fuels.”
Before the final plenary session, Brazilian scientist Carlos Nobre issued a stark warning: fossil fuel use must fall to zero by 2040 – 2045 at the latest to avoid a catastrophic rise in temperatures of up to 2.5°C by mid-century. This trajectory, he said, would lead to the near-total loss of coral reefs, the collapse of the Amazon rainforest and accelerated melting of the Greenland ice sheet.
A closer look
After two weeks of intense negotiations, the adopted text calls for mobilizing at least $1.3 trillion per year by 2035 for climate action, alongside tripling adaptation funding and operationalizing the loss and damage fund agreed at COP28.
It is also launching two major initiatives – the Global Implementation Accelerator and the Belém Mission to 1.5°C – to help countries meet their nationally determined contributions (NDCs), or national climate action plansand adaptation plans.
For the first time, the decision recognizes the need to tackle climate misinformationcommitting to promoting information integrity and countering narratives that undermine science-based action.
Last week, Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva opened the summit by declaring it would be known as “the COP of truth”, and this historic decision marks an important step toward safeguarding public trust in climate policy – even if the absence of language on the transition away from fossil fuels highlights the complexity of energy negotiations.
Two new roadmaps
At the closing meeting, COP30 President André Corrêa do Lago acknowledged what had been left out of the agreement:
“We know that some of you had greater ambitions on some of the issues at stake,” he said, adding: “I know that youth civil society will ask us to do more to combat climate change. I want to reiterate that I will try not to disappoint you during my presidency.”
Reflecting on President Lula’s call for ambition at COP30, Mr. do Lago announced his intention to create two roadmaps: one to stop and reverse deforestation; and another to transition away from fossil fuels in a fair, orderly and equitable manner, mobilizing resources for these purposes in a “fair and planned” manner.
COP30 President André Corrêa do Lago (center) speaks with his team at the close of the UN Climate Conference.
The path to consensus
The path to consensus at the last Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), as the annual COPs are officially called, went anything but smoothly.
Late last week, indigenous groups organized blockages demanding stronger protections for the Amazon, and on Thursday afternoon, a fire at the conference venue disrupted the talks during a critical phase.
Negotiators worked through Friday night to close gaps in funding and ambition, with the Brazilian presidency steering discussions toward a politically achievable outcome focused on supporting and implementing agreements from previous COPs.
“Multilateralism is alive”
From the G20 Summit in Johannesburg, UN Secretary-General António Guterres sent a clear message to COP30: at the gates of the Amazon, the Parties reached an agreement which shows nations can still come together to meet challenges no country can solve this problem alone.
The UN chief said COP30 delivered progress, such as the launch of the Global Implementation Accelerator to close ambition gaps, and reaffirmed the UAE consensus, including a just, orderly and equitable transition away from fossil fuels.
“But COPs are built on consensus – and in a time of geopolitical divisions, consensus is increasingly difficult to achieve. I cannot pretend that COP30 delivered everything that was needed.” Exceeding 1.5°C is a stark warning: deep and rapid emissions reductions and massive climate finance are essential. “COP30 is over, but the work is not,” he said.
Mr. Guterres pledged to continue pushing for greater ambition and solidarity, urging all those who marched, negotiated and mobilized: “Don’t give up. History – and the United Nations – are on your side.
Maintaining the line at 1.5 in “turbulent geopolitical waters”
UN climate chief Simon Stiell highlighted a series of major gains as COP30 closes in Belém: new strategies to accelerate Paris Agreement implementation, a desire to triple funding for adaptation and commitments to a just energy transition.
And despite what he called “turbulent geopolitical waters” – marked by polarization and climate denial – 194 nations united, “keeping humanity in the fight for a livable planet, determined to hold the line at 1.5°C”.
At the heart of this momentum is the flagship outcome of COP30: Text Mutirãoa wide-ranging agreement that consolidates four controversial negotiating tracks – from mitigation to financial and trade barriers – into a single consensus-based agreement. Seventeen additional decisions were adopted in parallel.
The outcome document declares that the global transition to low-emission, climate-resilient development is “irreversible and the trend of the future.” It reaffirms that the Paris Agreement is working – and must “go further and faster” – by strengthening the role of multilateral climate cooperation.
The text also recognizes the economic and social benefits of climate action, from growth and job creation to improved energy access, security and public health. Mr Stiell highlighted a decisive trend: investments in renewable energy now exceed those in fossil fuels by more than twice – “a political and commercial signal that cannot be ignored”, he said.
A solid action agenda beyond negotiations
The Brazilian presidency stressed that the success of COP30 extends beyond negotiated agreements, highlighting a wave of voluntary commitments under the Program of Action.
Among them:
- Rainforest Fund Forever: Raised $5.5 billion and now includes 53 participating countries; at least 20 percent of resources go directly to indigenous peoples and local communities.
- Belém Health Action Plan: The first global initiative targeting climate-related health threatslaunched with $300 million from 35 philanthropic organizations.
- UNEZA Alliance: Utility companies have pledged $66 billion a year for renewable energy and $82 billion for transmission and storage.
- Cities, regions and businesses: A coalition covering 25,000 buildings said it had reduced more than 850,000 tonnes of CO₂ in 2024.
Climate justice at the forefront
Countries also agreed to develop a just transition mechanism, strengthening cooperation, technical support and capacity building.
Originally published at Almouwatin.com
Industry at the heart of global solutions: a global summit opens in Riyadh
“Industrial development is essential for strengthening economies, fighting poverty and creating jobs and prosperity,” the UN said. Secretary-General António Guterres in his message on the occasion of the event, delivered by the senior UN official in Saudi Arabia, Mohamed El-Zarkani.
Ease the burden of poverty
Delegates from governments, the private sector and civil society arrived in the Saudi capital for the week-long event at a delicate time for struggling economies: several rich countries have cut their development aid spending. The COP30 climate conference, which concluded on Saturday, laid bare the scale of the climate crisis, which poses an existential threat to some countries, including small island developing states.
Mr. Guterres urged governments and businesses to join forces to ease these burdens by scaling up sustainable industrialization (adopting cleaner, resource-efficient technologies, upgrading infrastructure, and ensuring that industrial development does not result in excessive social or environmental costs), an important recommendation of the Pact for the futurethe UN plan for international cooperation, peace and development.
The summit serves as the 21st General Conference of the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), which is dedicated to promoting inclusive and sustainable industrial development that reduces poverty, improves economic competitiveness and supports environmental sustainability in developing countries.
Discussions at this year’s conference, UNIDO’s highest decision-making body, will focus on three main themes: how to reduce emissions and support renewable energy; eliminate hunger through agro-industrial innovation to improve food security; and sustainable supply chains that ensure trade benefits workers, communities and the environment.
It’s time for a “fair new global deal”
Addressing delegates on Sunday, UNIDO Director-General Gerd Müller, who was re-elected for a second four-year term, called on the developed world to do more to combat inequality: “The rich nations, the industrialized countries, the oil states, we have to live up to our global responsibilities,” he said, clearly asking why, 30 years after promising to devote 0.7 percent of their annual development aid budget to abroad, they have still not reached this figure.
It is time, Mr. Müller continued, to establish a “New Global Fair Deal”, in which developing countries would have better access to the global financial system and – with reference to recent US policies – tariff-free access to markets.
Budget cuts are ‘nothing less than a death sentence’
On the other side of the world, in South Africa, leaders of the world’s major economies are meeting at the annual G20 summit. Mr. Müller directly called on them to reverse significant funding cuts, of up to 40 percent, to UN aid agencies, including the World Food Program (PAM) and the World Health Organization (WHO).
“This is nothing short of a death sentence for millions of children, refugees and people living in crisis zones around the world who depend on humanitarian aid,” the UNIDO chief warned.
Originally published at Almouwatin.com
Press release – COP30 outcome: slow progress, but insufficient to meet climate crisis urgency
Following the end of the 2025 climate negotiations, the MEPs leading Parliament’s delegation reacted to the outcome of the COP30.Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety Source : © European Union, 2025 – EP
Pecking with power: How tiny woodpeckers deliver devastating strikes to drill into wood
A new study reveals how woodpeckers combine breathing and whole-body coordination to drill into trees with extraordinary force.
Remarks by President António Costa at G20 Session II: "A resilient world"
President António Costa attended the G20 summit in Johannesburg. He spoke at Session II: “A resilient world”, on 22 November 2025.
Ending violence against women ‘a matter of dignity, equality and human rights’
Instead, she found herself tied to a man who “changed from being kind to being a monster.” He would beat her “with his bare hands,” she said recently.
The young mother from Yemen is among the roughly 840 million women worldwide – nearly one in three – who have faced physical or sexual violence at the hands of an intimate partner, such as a former or current husband.
Even worse, this figure has barely changed since the year 2000, with a paltry 0.2 per cent annual decline over the past two decades.
In the last 12 months alone, 11 per cent of women aged 15 or older, some 316 million, were subjected to physical or sexual violence by an intimate partner.
A ‘pervasive’ injustice
“Violence against women is one of humanity’s oldest and most pervasive injustices, yet still one of the least acted upon,” said Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO).
The lack of progress is documented in a report published on Wednesday by WHO and other UN agencies.
It analyses data from 168 countries, covering the period from 2000 to 2023, revealing “a stark picture of a deeply neglected crisis and critically underfunded response.”
For the first time, national and regional estimates of sexual violence by someone other than a partner – a male relative or friend, for example – are included.
Findings show that 263 million women have experienced non-partner sexual violence since age 15, a figure experts caution is significantly under-reported due to stigma and fear.
Funding shortfall persists
WHO noted that despite mounting evidence of effective strategies for the prevention of violence against women, financial support continues to be slashed.
In 2022, only 0.2 per cent of global development aid went to these programmes, and funding has fallen further.
This is happening at a time when humanitarian emergencies, rising inequality and other challenges are putting millions of women and girls at risk.
Violence begins early
Women subjected to violence face unintended pregnancies, a higher risk of acquiring sexually transmitted infections and experiencing depression, according to the report.
Furthermore, violence against women begins early, and risks persist throughout life. In the past 12 months alone, 12.5 million young women aged 15-19 have experienced physical and/or sexual violence from an intimate partner.
“The data shows that many women first experience violence from a partner when they are adolescents. And many children grow up watching their mothers being pushed, hit or humiliated, with violence a part of daily life,” said Catherine Russell, Executive Director of the child rights agency UNICEF.
The key is to break this pattern, she added.
Action, support and investment
The report was released ahead of the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women and Girls, observed annually on 25 November.
It calls for decisive government action and funding to scale-up evidenced-based prevention programmes and to strengthen health, legal and social services for survivors.
Countries must also invest in data systems to track progress and reach those groups most at risk, in addition to enforcing laws and policies that empower women and girls.
“No society can call itself fair, safe or healthy while half its population lives in fear,” said Tedros.
“Ending this violence is not only a matter of policy; it is a matter of dignity, equality and human rights.”
Salma’s dream
Salma* is now back at school, after a judge eventually released her to her parents.
She was also referred to safe space supported by the UN reproductive agency, UNFPA, where she learned about her rights, and stands firm in her dream to become a doctor.
“We must act urgently together to end this violence and ensure that every woman and girl, in all her diversity, can exercise her rights, realize her potential and contribute fully to more just, equal and prosperous societies,” said Diene Keita, UNFPA Executive Director.
*Name changed for protection.
