"UNITED NATIONS EDUCATIONAL SCIENTIFIC AND CULTURAL ORGANIZATION - UNESCO"

Marking World Press Freedom Day, Secretary-General António Guterres said, “the global challenges we face during the COVID-19 pandemic underline the critical role of reliable, verified, and universally accessible information in saving lives and building strong, resilient societies.” UNIFEED

Secretary-General António Guterres said “the events of the past year have reminded us that access to reliable information is more than just a basic human right – it can also be a matter of life and death,” and added that misinformation and hate speech have proliferated during the COVID-19 pandemic “jeopardizing the health of millions of people worldwide, undermining confidence in vaccines and science, and dividing communities and countries.” UNIFEED

Briefing by Stephane Dujarric, Spokesperson for the Secretary-General.

Water is an “essential element of every aspect of development”, Qu Dongyu, Director-General of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) said during a large virtual celebration to mark World Water Day 2021. He called on all stakeholders to work together to safeguard water and widen access to this precious resource. FAO

Briefing by Stephane Dujarric, Spokesperson for the Secretary-General.

In comments to mark 10 years since the Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami on 11 March 2011, which left 18,400 people dead or missing, the head of the UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR) Mami Mizutori told journalists in Geneva that the event had taught harsh lessons about how to manage disaster risk. UNTV CH

Briefing by Brenden Varma, Spokesperson for the President of the 75th Session of the General Assembly.

The Holocaust memorial ceremony is organized jointly by the United Nations Department of Global Communications and UNESCO, in partnership with the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance. The online commemoration was followed by a panel discussion on Holocaust denial and distortion, with contributions of diverse experts in the field.

In an event to commemorate the victims of Holocaust, the Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called for “coordinated global action” in order to “make an alliance against the rise and spread of neo-Nazism and white supremacy and to combat propaganda and disinformation.” UNIFEED

Briefing by Brenden Varma, Spokesperson for the President of the 75th Session of the General Assembly.