As the COVID-19 pandemic plagues the world, the head of the UN peacekeeping mission in Mali told the Security Council on Tuesday that the mission continues to fulfill its mandate while doing whatever it can to prevent the coronavirus outbreak from overrunning the country.

Nurses are on the frontline fighting COVID-19 but “an alarming failure” in the global supply of protective clothing and new coronavirus tests – together with “unprecedented” overwork linked to global staff shortages – have highlighted how vulnerable they are, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Tuesday. The development coincides with an impassioned personal message from UN Secretary-General António Guterres to the world’s medical professionals for World Health Day, marked on Tuesday 7 April.

Climate technology experts representing developed and developing countries met virtually last week and discussed how governments can more effectively green their economies and prepare for the inevitable impacts of climate change.

The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) is inviting young innovators, data scientists and designers throughout the world – especially those whose schools have closed due to COVID-19 – to join a month-long hackathon to come up with digital solutions to the global pandemic.

Fearing a needless increase in COVID-19 deaths due to discrimination, UN independent human rights experts on Monday called for Governments to commit to racial equity and equality in their response to the pandemic.