The United Nations Office at Geneva
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Alessandra Vellucci, Director of the United Nations Information Service (UNIS), chaired the briefing, which was attended by the spokespersons for the World Food Programme (WFP), the World Health Organization (WHO), the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), and the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD).
The topics addressed were: situation in the Sahel; New coronavirus; the Illicit Trade Forum; the Geneva Humanitarian Network Week; and the WHO Executive Board meeting.
Situation in the Sahel
Elizabeth Byrs, for the World Food Programme (WFP), informed that the there was a staggering rise of hunger in the Sahel. At the moment, 3.3 million people had immediate humanitarian needs. If no action was taken rapidly, the number of food-insecure people with humanitarian needs between now and the June lean season would rise to almost 4.8 million people. For comparison, in 2019, 2.4 million people in the region had been hungry. The conflict was devastating agriculture and rural economies. WFP was increasing its activities: in September 2019, the WFP had assisted 900,000 people, and in December 2019, the WFP had helped 1.4 million people.
Over the next six months, the WFP would urgently need USD 227 million for operations across the Central Sahel nations of Mali (34 million), Niger (106 million) and Burkina Faso (87 million), under existing programmes that included both emergency activities and resilience-building programmes.
Alessandra Vellucci, for the United Nations Information Service (UNIS), reminded that the United Nations Secretary-General had recently spoken about Sahel, asking for the international community to step up and do whatever it could to support the countries in need. Development aspects would also need to be addressed in order to tackle the root causes of the current situation.
Responding to questions, Ms. Byrs said that people were looking for ways to deal with the food shortages, including by selling their assets and skipping meals. The droughts associated with the climate change, aggravated by the conflict, made the situation truly challenging.
More information about the spiraling violence in the Sahel can be found here.
New Coronavirus
Answering to questions on the New coronavirus, Christian Lindmeier, for the World Health Organization (WHO), said that the exact kind of support to countries in need would be decided individually by experts in the coming days. Not every health system was well equipped to respond to the arising cases; having strong health systems was definitely helpful in the current situation. Technical assistance and training of health care staff were options for helping countries which needed it. Assistance could involve sending countries necessary equipment and training customs and border control officials.
Mr. Lindmeier reiterated that the WHO was not recommending travel or trade restrictions. Official border crossing should be kept open and monitored in order to avoid clandestine crossings. WHO had country offices in over 150 countries; they were often located within national ministries of health, and were in regular communication with local authorities, and countries could easily request assistance if needed. Mr. Lindmeier could not speak in detail about weaknesses of individual country health systems.
Mr. Lindmeier confirmed that a so-called “mission briefing” by the WHO for the representatives of Permanent Missions had been held in Geneva on the previous day; that was a regular practice whenever there were major outbreaks.
As of this morning, there were 9,692 confirmed cases in China, and a total of 213 deaths. As of the previous night, there had been confirmed cases in 18 countries. More cases in more countries were expected. No information was available on confirmed asymptomatic cases outside of China. Some 200 people had recovered and had been discharged. Important factors for infected people to recover or not from the virus included having underlying conditions and an early request for medical help.
Mr. Lindmeier reiterated that the WHO recommendation was not to impose travel restrictions, but every sovereign nation or an airline company was, of course, free to decide on their own measures.
It was not yet clear if a person who had recovered from the virus would become immune and not be at risk of falling sick again. It would require longer monitoring and analysis.
More information regarding WHO’s declaration of a Public Health Emergency of International Concern can be found here.
Geneva announcements
Catherine Huissoud, for the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), informed that UNCTAD was organizing, together with the Transnational Alliance to Combat Illicit Trade (TRACIT), the first ever UN Illicit Trade Forum, in Room XXVI of the Palais des Nations, Geneva, on 3 and 4 February. UNCTAD Secretary-General Mukhisa Kituyi and TRACIT Director-General Jeffrey Hardy would open the Forum on Monday morning. Ms Huissoud explained that the global economy was losing an estimated USD 2 trillion annually because of this trade, which was holding back progress on the global development agenda.
Jens Laerke, for the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), informed that about 2,000 experts from 350 organizations and countries would be gathering in Geneva the following week, for the Humanitarian Networks and Partnerships Week (HNPW). More than 120 different sessions would take place at the International Conference Centre. It was an open and free event; participants would just need to register at the entrance. The event is a global gathering where humanitarian professionals meet, build new coalitions and collaborate in identifying solutions to common challenges in crisis preparedness and response. More information on the sessions, events and speakers could be found at the HNPW2020 website and the HNPW social media channels Facebook and Twitter.
Mr. Laerke also informed that on 3 February, at 2 pm in Press Room 1, Ute Kollies, head of the OCHA office in Mali, would provide an update on the situation in Mali.
Christian Lindmeier, for the World Health Organization (WHO), said that the 146th session of the WHO Executive Boardwould take place in Geneva on 3-6 February. Most sessions would be open to journalists, and webcast in broadcast quality. The first session at 9 am on Monday, 3 February would include Dr. Tedros’ opening remarks. During the meeting, the regional directors for Africa and Europe would be elected from the nominated candidates. Speeches of WHO officials would be made available and sent out to journalists, informed Mr. Lindmeier. A summary of the decisions would also be sent out at the end of the week. Primary health care, universal health coverage, and global vaccination efforts were some of the main topics on the agenda.
Responding to a question from a journalist, Alessandra Vellucci, for the United Nations Information Service in Geneva, explained that the UNOG management was aware of the Le Temps article on the financial losses connected to the Strategic Heritage Plan. The article was based on a report by the office of Internal Oversight, and the management was taking appropriate actions in that regard. Ms. Vellucci stressed that the SHP budget issues should not be confused with the current cash flow problems of the Organization.
Ms. Vellucci informed that a press conference by the United Nations Works Relief Agency (UNRWA) on UNRWA’s operational priorities and financial needs in 2020 would be held today at 12 noon in Press Room III. The speaker would be Christian Saunders, UNRWA Acting Commissioner-General. Webcast would be available on http://webtv.un.org.
On Monday 3, February at 10 a.m. in Press Room 1, the International Labour Organization would launch of the report “Implementing the ILO Indigenous and Tribal Peoples Convention No. 169: Towards an inclusive, sustainable and just future,” which would be under embargo until 9 p.m. that day.
On Wednesday 5, February at 10 a.m. in Press Room 1, UNHCR would release its 2019 refugee resettlement data. The speaker would be Grainne O’Hara, Director of the UNHCR Division of International Protection.
The full list of upcoming meetings and press conference at UN Geneva can be found here.
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The webcast for this briefing is available here: http://bit.ly/unog310120
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As world’s water reserves change, countries must prepare for a new reality: WMO
New data showing that rivers were at their lowest level for decades last year provides further evidence that the climate crisis is real and countries must act immediately to protect themselves from the increasing threat to communities and livelihoods, the UN World Meteorological Organization (WMO) said on Thursday.
The key findings from WMO’s State of Global Water Resources 2025 report covering the hydrological cycle and extreme events in the five-year period to last year:
- 2025 was one of driest years for river discharge in 35 years
- Past seven years have seen abnorfmal river flows
- Water storage on Earth’s land surface has decreased in past decade
- Widespread glacier loss across all regions for fourth consecutive year
- Asia and Africa are regions most affected by water-related disasters
- Water data availability has improved, but gaps remain in hard-hit areas
Highlighting the long-term decline in the Earth’s freshwater storage and glacier melt, WMO Secretary-General Celeste Saulo explained that the planet’s water reserves used to act as a planetary “savings account” that absorbed the occasional dry season, avoiding a water crisis. “One of the central stories of the 2025 report is what is happening to that savings account? And the simple answer is that we are depleting it,” she told journalists in Geneva.
Groundwater reserves are equally stretched and have been in decline since 2014, WMO’s report states, with nearly two-thirds of monitored wells worldwide showing levels lower than the historical norm and indicating a shift “further toward deficit…not recovery”.
“At the same time, we are seeing more water-related disasters,” Ms. Saulo said, while also stressing that the currently strengthening El Niño “will increase the risk of drought in some areas, and flooding in others”.
Glaciers disappearing
In 2025, for the fourth consecutive year, every major glaciated region on Earth lost ice mass, leading to short-term hazards including floods and long-term water insecurity, according to WMO.
Responding to a question about whether the changing global water cycle might have contributed to the deadly Nepal-China flooding disaster, Ms. Saulo explained that melting ice and rock was just one factor in the chain of events that ultimately sent a massive and deadly wall of water and debris downstream on 26 August, killing at least 1,367 people.
“You asked if it could happen again? Absolutely; the problem in this region is that there’s 63,700 glaciers at the last count,” she told a Press Conference in Geneva. “Even if you’re looking with remote sensing with satellites at these glaciers, you might see some faults, you might see some slight shifting, that does not mean necessarily catastrophic collapse. So, in order to plan for this, it’s very, very difficult. But the international community is looking very hard at ways in which we can bring people together to solve some of these monitoring issues.”
Data indicates that glaciers shrank between 2023 and 2025 with cumulative losses of 1,400 gigatonnes of water – or about one third of annual fresh water needs.
Every major glacier region on Earth lost ice for the fourth consecutive year.
“All 19 glacier regions around the globe lost ice; in Central Asia, Iceland, the Russian Arctic and western Canada and the United States, it was among the three worst years on record,” said Wayne Jenkinson, WMO’s Director of Hydrology and Cryosphere.
Some regions with smaller glaciers such as Central Europe, the Caucasus, the western Canada and the United States may already have reached “peak water”, Mr. Jenkinson warned.
“After this point, the glacier gives less meltwater each year simply because there is less ice left to melt. That matters for every community downstream that relies on water during hot, dry summers,” he explained.
Narelle van der Wel, WMO’s Head of Cryosphere Monitoring, Predictions and Services, stressed that while some further glacier loss is unavoidable, the eventual scale of the decline is not predetermined.
“Some glacier loss is inevitable, but total loss of glaciers is not yet inevitable,” she said, pointing to emissions reductions as central to limiting future losses.
Preparing for moving baselines
The report does not attribute every observed change to climate change alone. WMO says pressure on water resources and natural variability also contribute.
Mr. Jenkinson said governments need to prepare for “moving baselines” as historical patterns become less reliable.
“The situation 30 years ago is not where we are today,” he said. Countries, he added, need to prepare “for those changes that have really already arrived”.
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