World News Summary: Soaring arrivals to South Sudan, rise of digital media, update on Haiti crisis
Last week alone, more than 20,000 people crossed the border into South Sudan, with daily arrivals tripling compared to previous weeks.
This includes South Sudanese refugees who have left camps in Sudan’s White Nile state, where fighting between the Government and opposition militias is continuing.
“The majority of those displaced are women and children,” UNHCR said, as it highlights the impact of the conflict on vulnerable populations.
‘Extremely worrying’
UNHCR spokeswoman Olga Sarrado said some people had left as a direct result of the continuing violence but others feared “how the situation could develop in the next few days. Our teams are on the ground – UNHCR and partners – but of course the situation is extremely worrying in terms of humanitarian assistance.”
The UN agency said people arrived at the main border crossing in Joda but also at unofficial border crossing points that are difficult to reach.
UNHCR said all new arrivals need life-saving humanitarian assistance, with water and health care being the most urgent needs, especially amid the cholera outbreak.
Demand for paper and wood decreased by 12% due to digital media
Global trade in wood and paper products has plummeted due to the rise of digital media, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), reported.
After reaching record production levels in 2021 and 2022, the paper trade continued to slow last year, FAO said.
Taken together, worldwide trade in paper and wood products is set to decline by a significant 12% in 2023, with exports falling by $64 billion, to $482 billion.
Cut paper
According to FAO global forest products information and data in 2023 reported, paper and board production fell 3% as print media was increasingly replaced by digital products. The UN agency said only panels made from wood recorded a slight growth in production.
Zhimin Wu, Director of FAO’s Forestry Division, said that in addition to increasing digitalization, other factors have contributed to the decline in global wood and paper trade, such as disruptions to global supply chains, Slowing consumer demand and trade restrictions.
Haiti: Gang violence displaced 4,500 people
Armed gangs are continuing to terrorize Haiti’s capital, forcing thousands more civilians to flee their homes, displacing more than 700,000 people, the United Nations reported today.
“The activities of armed gangs in the capital Port-au-Prince continue to disrupt the lives of people,” United Nations spokesman Stéphane Dujarric told reporters at a noon press conference in New York. people, especially the most vulnerable.”
“International Organization for Migration (IOM) reported that between December 6 and 8, more than 4,500 people were newly displaced due to continued unrest,” Dujarric said.
Distribute hot meals
Despite security challenges, humanitarian operations continue. “During the first week of December, the World Food Program (WFP) distributed more than 100,000 hot meals to 24,000 people across four displacement sites in the capital,” Mr. Dujarric noted.
IOM provided water to approximately 14,000 displaced people across six locations, and provided medical care and mental health support to more than 12,000 people forced to flee their homes.
In a breakthrough in maternal health care in one of the most dangerous districts of Port-au-Prince, “the Isaie Jeanty maternity ward, located in Cité Soleil, was able to reopen after a nine-month closure door due to insecurity,” Mr. Dujarric said.
United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) is currently supplying the facility with essential medicines and equipment, restoring essential services to expectant mothers in communities affected by the crisis.
