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WASHINGTON – The World Bank warned today that heart disease, cancer, diabetes, chronic respiratory conditions, and other non-communicable diseases (NCDs) increasingly threaten the health and economic security of many lower- and middle-income countries, and that most countries lack the money and health services to be able to ‘treat their way out’ of the NCD crisis. On the eve of a special United Nations summit on NCDs in New York, the Bank said the rise of chronic diseases, especially among young working adults in these countries, was a danger that warranted immediate global attention.

New York: Trade and agricultural policies are at the core of development, three senior United Nations officials said today, calling for much more to be done towards bringing greater coherence to the issue and warning against protectionism.

WASHINGTON – Financial systems across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) proved resilient during the global financial crisis and subsequent political shocks but have failed to provide access to finance, contributing to the region’s relatively weak growth performance and inability to generate jobs. This in turn has contributed to the deep-seated frustrations of the region’s large youth populations, say the findings of a new World Bank report.

New York: The use of information and communication technologies (ICTs) continues to accelerate worldwide, spurred by a steady decrease in the price of telephone and broadband Internet services, the United Nations telecommunication agency reported today.

New York: The world is undergoing “a moment of uncommon turbulence,” facing enormous political, economic, humanitarian and environmental challenges, but the United Nations stands ready to help deal with all of them, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said today.

New York: The cultivation of coca bushes in Bolivia has remained stable over the past year with 31,000 hectares planted with the shrub, the raw material for the manufacture of cocaine, according to a new survey by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC).

New York: Millions of victims of humanitarian emergencies, particularly in West Africa, will benefit from a new life-saving partnership signed today between the United Nations and Luxembourg to provide a rapid response in food aid and communications needs.

New York: High levels of crime and insecurity continue to pose a challenge to social and economic development in Latin America and the Caribbean, despite steady improvements in governance over the past two decades, the head of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) has warned.

New York: This year’s dramatic popular support for political change in North Africa and the Middle East showed that democracy is a governance model that people of all cultures yearn for, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said today, noting, however, that it cannot be imposed from abroad.

An International Monetary Fund (IMF) mission led by Mr. David Cowen of the Asia and Pacific Department visited Dhaka and Chittagong during September 5–15 to conduct the 2011 Article IV Consultation discussions. The mission met with Minister of Finance Abul Maal Abdul Muhith, Economic Advisor to the Prime Minister Mashiur Rahman, Bangladesh Bank (BB) Governor Atiur Rahman, Finance Secretary Mohammad Tareque, National Board of Revenue Chairman (NBR) Nasiruddin Ahmed, BB deputy governors, and other senior officials. It also met representatives from civil society, development partners, and the private sector.