World News in Brief: Ukraine rescue efforts, Libyan activist abducted, climate impacts on fish stocks, SDG ‘wake-up call’

Rescue operations

The airstrikes on Monday hit and damaged the Okhmatdyt Children’s Hospital, where rescue operations have ended.  

According to Government officials and partners on the ground, six children injured in the attack are receiving aid, and about 600 child patients have been transferred for care to various medical facilities in the city and surrounding areas. 

OCHA reported that relief organizations have supplied emergency medical and psychological support, and provided drinking water, hygiene kits and other items to civilians.  

It added that “aid workers have registered people for cash assistance, including families whose relatives were killed or injured, as well as those whose homes were damaged.” 

Other UN agencies, including the World Health Organization (WHO), are continuing to work with medical personnel to offer aid and medical equipment.   

Libya: Call for release of abducted political activist 

The UN Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) said on Wednesday that it is deeply concerned by reports of the recent abduction of a political activist whose whereabouts remain unknown. 

Al-Moatassim Al-Areebi, 29, was abducted on Monday in the northwestern city of Misrata, located roughly 187 kilometres east of the capital, Tripoli.   

In a statement, UNSMIL reiterated the call by members of the Misrata Municipal Council and community representatives urging the city’s security and law enforcement agencies to urgently investigate his abduction, to disclose his whereabouts, and secure his safe and immediate release.

The Mission has documented cases of at least 60 individuals who are currently detained across Libya for their actual or perceived political affiliation. 

“The Mission calls for the immediate and unconditional release of all people who are arbitrarily detained and accountability for those who are responsible for those arbitrary detentions,” the statement concluded.

Fishers in Thailand bring their catch ashore.

New report warns of climate’s effects on fish biomass 

A new report from the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) warns that climate change could seriously impact fish stocks in nearly every ocean region, affecting major fishing nations and countries that rely heavily on seafood. 

FAO’s report claims that global estimates of exploitable fish biomass show decreases of more than 10 per cent by mid-century for many regions, particularly under the high-emissions scenario. 

By the end of the century, in the high-emissions scenario, the planet is projected to warm by three to four degrees Celsius which would cause 48 countries and territories to see 30 per cent or more fish biomass declines. 

However, if emissions remain low, 178 countries and territories will experience little to no change, with fish populations decreasing by no more than 10 per cent. 

Adapting to change 

Manuel Barange, FAO Assistant Director-General, said understanding the possible effects of climate change on marine ecosystems is necessary for fostering adaption programmes at appropriate scales.

“Lower emissions significantly reduce end-of-century biomass losses for nearly all countries and territories compared to the high-emissions scenario,” he said. “This highlights the benefits of climate change mitigation measures for fisheries and aquatic foods.” 

Lowering emissions could benefit many countries and territories, including small island developing States (SIDS), where the ecological and socioeconomic concerns associated with climate change are the greatest and where people primarily depend on fisheries for food and income. 

Senior UN official calls for change in trajectory to achieve SDGs 

The world needs to change its trajectory to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030, said Assistant Executive Director of UN-Habitat, Michal Mlynár on Wednesday. 

The call was made at the Local2030 Coalition Special Event during the ongoing 2024 High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF) in New York.

Mr. Mlynár said the 2024 SDG report reveals that only 17 per cent of targets are on track to be achieved by 2030 and about 30 per cent have made minor progress. 

Further, progress for over 30 per cent of SDGs is “either stagnated or even regressing,” he added. 

“These disconcerting figures [are] indeed a wake-up call that urges us to accelerate the implementation of the SDGs,” he said, “one that shows us that we need to bolster impactful initiatives with multiplier effects and a multi-stakeholder nature.” 

Localisation key

Mr. Mlynár said impactful initiatives must start at the local level. 

He said tending to the SDGs locally involves adapting the objectives to specific local circumstances and ensuring that all relevant parties are actively involved in carrying out the 2030 Agenda. 

The UN official said the local 2030 coalition has made “significant transformative progress” towards the SDGs at a local level and this is being done to make a positive impact for the people they serve. 

“Because the people we serve are of course…the ones who need to benefit from the practical cooperation that we can streamline in this particular context,” Mr. Mlynár said.