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New York: The death toll from months of violent clashes between Syrian Government forces and pro-democracy protesters has now climbed to 2,900, the United Nations human rights office said today.

New York: Despite improved prospects for world cereal production and falling prices, food security is likely to remain precarious in some regions in 2011-2012, with the slowdown in global economic recovery and increased risks of recession casting a shadow, the United Nations warned today.

New York: Countries in the Asia-Pacific region should simplify their trade procedures to remain competitive during the current global economic uncertainty, according to experts at a United Nations-convened regional forum on trade policy that concluded yesterday.

An International Monetary Fund (IMF) mission, headed by Mr. Axel Schimmelpfennig, and the Afghan authorities have reached a staff-level agreement on a 3-year program under the Extended Credit Facility (ECF) in the amount of SDR 85 million (about US$129 million) to support the authorities’ economic program. Pending approval by IMF management and the completion of the program prior actions, the Afghan authorities’ request for an ECF arrangement is expected to be submitted for the IMF’s Executive Board’s consideration in November.

New York: Young men in Central and South America and southern and central Africa are most at risk of being killed in cases of intentional homicide, while women face increased likelihood of being murdered in domestic violence, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) said in a report unveiled today.

New York: Stronger partnerships and industry support are needed to meet the demand for life-saving nutrition products for children, which has reached an all time-high, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) reported yesterday.

New York: South Sudan has become the 193rd Member State of the United Nations International Telecommunication Union (ITU), the agency announced today.

Despite Latin America’s generally sound macroeconomic fundamentals, the latest global economic and financial crisis presents a range of challenges, according to the International Monetary Fund’s latest Regional Economic Outlook for the Western Hemisphere. Downside risks are significant, with some countries more vulnerable than others. But growth has so far held up reasonably well in Latin America and the Caribbean, the IMF notes in Shifting Winds, New Policy Challenges, which was launched today in Lima, Perú.

New York: The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) today called for urgent action and funding to prevent a looming crisis in Sudan’s Blue Nile and Southern Kordofan states, where the latest fighting combined with erratic rainfall has doomed next month’s harvest.

New York: The United Nations marked World Teachers’ Day today with a warning that 6.1 million more teachers are needed to meet the internationally agreed Millennium Development Goal (MDG) of attaining universal primary education by 2015.