Interviews
635 episodes - English - Latest episode: 3 days ago - ★★★★ - 4 ratingsUN News interviews a wide range of people from senior news-making officials at Headquarters in New York, to advocates and beneficiaries from across the world who have a stake in helping the UN go about its often life-saving work in the field.
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Episodes
Reforming prisons is about leaving no one behind, says Nigerian musician Lambo
August 29, 2019 18:49 - 5 minutes - 4.48 MBNigerian musician Lambo raises money to bring music therapy programs to youth prisons, through his NGO SALT (Saving All lives Together). Conor Lennon from UN News met Yinka at the event, and asked him why he is so passionate about the subject.
Advancing women’s rights in Saudi Arabia, in line with the Sustainable Development Goals
August 29, 2019 16:21 - 6 minutes - 2.19 MBSaudi women will now be able to apply for passports. Those over 21 will be allowed to travel independently, without permission from their so-called guardians. UN News’s May Yaacoub spoke to UN Women’s Dr. Mouza Al Shehhi and started by asking her what those steps represent for the region.
Civil society is an important player in fighting corruption: senior UN official
August 28, 2019 23:47 - 5 minutes - 3.81 MBFighting corruption is particularly important in countries recovering from conflict, Mirella Dummar-Frahi, from the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), said in an interview with UN News. Speaking to Conor Lennon, at the UN Civil Society Conference, Ms. Dummar-Frahi,, said that, in these countries, corruption can be a driver of conflict.
Zimbabwe faces myriad humanitarian challenges as a result of climate and economic shocks
August 27, 2019 20:15 - 10 minutes - 7.12 MBWith Zimbabwe experiencing its worst-ever hunger crisis, the United Nations and its relief partners have revised their humanitarian appeal to scale up food assistance to people most affected by drought, flooding, and economic stagnation. The UN Resident Coordinator for Zimbabwe, Mr. Bishow Parajuli, was recently in New York and sat with UN News’s Assumpta Massoi and gave her a snapshot of the current humanitarian situation in the country.
UN ‘cannot solve challenges of humankind without civil society’
August 27, 2019 17:01 - 6 minutes - 4.82 MBWe cannot conceive of a United Nations that is talking about the challenges of humankind that relate to sustainability, without involving civil society, according to Maruxa Cardama, chairperson of the 68th UN Civil Society Conference, taking place in the Salt Lake City, Utah, between 26-28 August. Conor Lennon from UN News spoke to Ms. Cardama, who is also Secretary-General of the Partnership on Sustainable, Low Carbon Transport, at the Conference.
From horror in Iraq to a new dawn in Switzerland, how one Yazidi survivor picked up the pieces
August 25, 2019 05:00 - 5 minutes - 7.62 MBAdiba Qasim is an inspiration. After fleeing an ISIL terrorist massacre in northern Iraq that claimed dozens of family members in 2014, at just 19 years old, she became a humanitarian worker to help other women who’d endured unimaginable horrors at their hands. Today, Adiba is in Switzerland, where she’s studying hard to become a lawyer – and where she spoke to UN News’s Daniel Johnson at an event to celebrate World Humanitarian Day.
Slave trade remembrance ‘concerns all humanity’
August 23, 2019 17:15 - 11 minutes - 7.79 MBThe history of the global slave trade “concerns all humanity” as it impacts on modern societies, according to the Assistant Director-General for Social and Human Sciences at the UN cultural organization, UNESCO. Nada Al-Nashif was speaking to UN News ahead of The International Day for the Remembrance of the Slave Trade and its Abolition, celebrated annually on 23 August. Twenty-five years ago, UNESCO launched the ‘Slave Route Project: Resistance, Liberty, Heritage’, a landmark initiative tha...
Arms trade treaty talks at UN set to focus on gender impact of weapons exports
August 22, 2019 20:42 - 6 minutes - 8.49 MBThe arms trade involves almost every country in the world, but more action is needed to consider how the $100 billion a year industry impacts on gender-based violence, the head of a key treaty said on Thursday. In an interview with UN News’s Daniel Johnson, Ambassador Jānis Kārkliņš of Latvia, President of the 5th Arms Trade Treaty Conference of States Parties meeting in Geneva next week, explains how for the first time, the treaty’s signatories are expected to agree to look at gender as a ...
New UN plan will ensure that ‘worshippers can observe their rituals in peace’
August 22, 2019 20:33 - 5 minutes - 3.97 MBThe senior UN official tasked with overseeing a plan of action to ensure that religious sites are safe, has delivered a draft to the Secretary-General. Miguel Angel Moratinos, spoke to UN News on the first-ever International Day Commemorating the Victims of Acts of Violence Based on Religion or Belief. Mr. Moratinos explained that one of the new elements explored in the draft plan, is the role of social media, using, as an example, the Christchurch, New Zealand shootings.
‘Heroism and resilience’ of Somali people in face of ongoing attacks
August 21, 2019 14:49 - 11 minutes - 10.6 MBThe Somali people have demonstrated “heroism and resilience” in the face of ongoing insecurity caused by “senseless terrorist attacks”; that’s according to the UN’s most senior representative in the Horn of Africa country. James Swan, who is the UN Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Somalia was speaking at UN Headquarters in New York, ahead of briefing the Security Council on Wednesday.
Female humanitarians sacrifice a lot to help others, insists top UN official
August 20, 2019 15:07 - 3 minutes - 3.07 MBThe work of female humanitarians is hugely important and often comes at significant personal cost. That’s according to Melissa Fleming, currently the communications chief for refugee agency UNHCR, but soon to take up her new post as head of Global Communications at the UN, who’s been speaking to UN News’s Daniel Johnson at a special World Humanitarian Day event in Geneva. First, though, we’ll hear from Adiba Qasim, who was also at the event; she survived an ISIL massacre in Iraq in 2014 th...
Young Chadians join terrorist groups due to 'ignorance’
August 15, 2019 15:33 - 4 minutes - 6.13 MBYoussouf Mbodou Mbami is the chief of the Canton of Bol and presides over a large swathe of Lake Chad, an area where many young people have been recruited or forced to join terrorist groups, such as Boko Haram.
News in Brief 15 August 2019
August 15, 2019 14:41 - 3 minutes - 4.25 MBChildren’s lives’ in Mediterranean Sea must take priority over politics, says UNICEF UN steps up efforts against Dengue fever in Yemen WHO welcomes Switzerland’s decision to end tobacco deal at Dubai Expo
News in Brief 14 August 2019
August 14, 2019 17:11 - 3 minutes - 4.42 MBAfghanistan: grave concern at reports 11 civilians killed by pro-Government forces UN panel urges Paraguay to probe poisonings, contamination from agrochemical sprays Disarmament discussions must make urgent progress, says UN’s new top diplomat in Geneva
‘Most affected by climate change, the least responsible for it’, says UN Environment Assembly President
August 13, 2019 20:11 - 7 minutes - 2.42 MBTransformative change is needed to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) – mobilizing civil society and individuals - but also through securing “national and a global leadership”. That’s according to the President of the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA), Mr. Ola Elvestuen, who is also Norway’s Minister of Environment. In an interview with UN News’s Ben Malor, Mr. Elvestuen underscored the need to have environment challenges addressed urgently.
Land use ‘absolutely unsustainable’ but can be part of the solution, climate change expert insists
August 08, 2019 21:36 - 3 minutes - 5.35 MBMore than 100 leading scientists from all regions of the globe contributed to a major new UN report on the effects on climate change on land that was published on Thursday. One of those experts is Dr. Valérie Masson-Delmotte, and in an interview with UN News’s Daniel Johnson, she warns that although land use today is “absolutely unsustainable” for many reasons, it can also be part of the solution to reducing carbon dioxide emissions.
Judge me on my abilities, not my gender: Cyprus mission Force Commander on being part of first all-female leadership team
August 02, 2019 20:55 - 10 minutes - 8.07 MBThe UN’s peacekeeping mission in Cyprus is the first to be led solely by women Force Commander Major-General Pearce, of Australia, told May Yaccoub, from UN News, that the idea of ‘breaking a glass ceiling” is not something that she thinks about very often.
One Day, I Will: Aspirations of girls caught in crises revealed in stunning photographs
July 31, 2019 19:04 - 4 minutes - 3.87 MBFrom becoming a school teacher to training as a football player, 40 girls between the ages of 6 and 18 trapped in humanitarian crises shared their dreams with award-winning photographer Vincent Tremeau. A photographer for the UN office coordinating humanitarian affairs, known as OCHA, Mr. Tremeau explained that “it started as a game” in which the girls dressed up in clothes depicting what they would like to be as adults.
In conversation with FAO’s José Graziano da Silva
July 30, 2019 16:19 - 5 minutes - 6.67 MBFighting hunger and all forms of malnutrition has been the mandate of José Graziano da Silva, head of the UN Food and Agriculture Agency (FAO), during his eight years at the helm. As the UN agency enters a new leadership phase, Mr. Graziano da Silva reflects on his time as Director General of FAO.
Military chief of UN’s ‘most dangerous mission’, in Mali, confident progress can be made
July 26, 2019 17:32 - 7 minutes - 5.68 MBThe UN Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali, MINUSMA, is one of the toughest UN peacekeeping operations. The Force Commander of MINUSM A is General Dennis Gyllensporre. Ben Malor from UN News asked General Gyllenspore to outline why the UN must maintain its presence in Mali.
Language is key to a brighter future for region that ‘inspired’ Tolkien, says ethnic speaker at UN talks
July 23, 2019 14:06 - 6 minutes - 8.59 MBKarelia in the Russian Federation is a land of lakes, rivers and forests whose culture inspired Lord of the Rings author, J.R.R. Tolkien – the community proudly says - but it is at risk from climate change, big industry and a language that is in danger of dying out. In an interview with Daniel Johnson, Alexey Tsykarev, from the Centre for Support of Indigenous Peoples in Karelia, maintains that indigenous languages and centuries-old practices need far greater protection.
One in two Venezuelan families on the move face ‘drastic’ choices to survive
July 22, 2019 17:05 - 4 minutes - 6.74 MBA “continued flow” of Venezuelans out of their country is to be expected, UN humanitarians said on Friday, highlighting the many risks faced by families on the move, such as begging, child labour and even so-called survival sex. In an interview with UN News’s Samuel Mungai, UN refugee agency spokesperson Liz Throssell, explains that one in two families have encountered problems on their perilous journeys.
Ebola ‘not top of people’s agenda’ in DRC communities, says UN health agency
July 19, 2019 16:57 - 4 minutes - 3.7 MBAn Ebola virus outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo has already killed more than 1,700 people since last August, but communities there are more worried about measles and basic services, says the World Health Organization (WHO). In an interview with UN News’s Daniel Johnson, Dr. Margaret Harris explains how the added focus on DRC since the outbreak was declared an international emergency earlier this week, could be an opportunity to do much more to help people in the longer term.
Head of UN’s most populous region calls for more progress on Sustainable Development Goals
July 17, 2019 21:03 - 7 seconds - 5.07 MBProfessor Armida Salsiah Alisjahbana Executive Secretary of ESCAP) has warned that her region is set to miss all of the 17 SDGs which underpin the 2030 Agenda. Ms. Alisjahbana was speaking to Conor Lennon from UN News in New York, and she began by outlining the message that she wants to get across during her time at UN Headquarters.
Shadows of exclusion, social stigma, darken road to sustainable development
July 17, 2019 16:39 - 9 minutes - 8.29 MBDiscriminatory laws cast “long shadows” of exclusion, subordination and social stigma, and we must commit to breaking down the barriers these laws can create, to embrace “inclusivity”. That’s according to Justice Edwin Cameron, appointed by Nelson Mandela as the first openly gay Judge on South Africa’s Constitutional Court, and widely seen as a hero for his fight to end all forms of inequality and exclusion.
‘Exciting and potentially defining’ moment for Sudan, with people ‘taking power back’, says top UN Adviser
July 17, 2019 16:34 - 8 minutes - 7.89 MBWith Sudan so much at the centre of the whole “volatile” Horn of Africa region, its political fate will have major “implications for a number of other quite vulnerable” neighbouring countries, according to the UN’s Special Adviser on the country. Nicholas Haysom, was recently in New York, and in an interview with UN News, spoke about how “resolving the Sudanese crisis would generate stability” for the entire region.
UN agricultural development chief on 'State of Food Security and Nutrition' report
July 15, 2019 20:41 - 8 minutes - 7.63 MBThe newly launched "State of Food Security and Nutrition" report gives an updated estimate of the number of hungry people in the world. It also provides the latest data on child stunting and wasting as well as on adult and child obesity. Gilbert Houngbo, President of the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) spoke to Jérôme Longué of UN News, before the launch.
Meet the UN health worker coordinating a mass measles vaccination campaign in DRC
July 11, 2019 15:42 - 5 minutes - 4.77 MBThe UN is leading efforts to tackle a measles epidemic in DRC, despite ongoing violence, and the second-deadliest Ebola outbreak on record. Jerome Pfaffman from UN Children’s Fund, UNICEF, describes how the agency is ramping up support to those in need.
New life-prolonging cancer medicines added to list of essential treatments
July 09, 2019 16:00 - 7 minutes - 9.85 MBGroundbreaking cancer treatments and medicines used to help mothers who’ve just given birth, are just two of the essential health products that all countries around the world should be providing, UN experts said on Tuesday. In an interview with UN News’s Daniel Johnson, Dr Nicola Magrini from the World Health Organization explains how several newly-available medicines could transform people’s lives in rich and poor countries, thanks to their innovative qualities.
Heat stress set to cost world economy $2,400 billion a year: ILO
July 01, 2019 15:46 - 5 minutes - 7.88 MBTwo thousand four hundred billion dollars: that’s the expected cost of heat stress to the global economy every year from 2030, and it’s a conservative estimate, UN work experts said on Monday. In an interview with UN News’s Daniel Johnson, Catherine Saget, from the International Labour Organization, warns that developing West African States are likely to be worst-hit, as they’re facing a five per cent drop in working hours by the end of the next decade, caused by rising temperatures.
‘So freeing’ to come out as ‘a lesbian and a feminist’
June 30, 2019 18:03 - 3 minutes - 8.43 MBBack in 1976 Linda Tyson came out as “a lesbian and a feminist”, she told UN News on the sidelines of the 2019 New York City LGBT [lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender] Pride March on Fifth Avenue, long before the UN-GLOBE joined the World Pride parade. Pointing out that it was the same year the United States commemorated its bicentennial, she acknowledged that while the world’s consciousness was not very raised at that time, her experience was “so freeing”.
Daily security assessment needed in Ebola areas: WHO
June 28, 2019 19:42 - 3 minutes - 5.22 MBAmid reports of massacres in the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s Ebola-hit Ituri province, World Health Organization workers continue to risk their lives to prevent the disease from spreading deeper into rural areas. In an interview with UN News’s Daniel Johnson, Dr. Ibrahima Soce Fall, WHO’s Assistant Director-General for Emergency Response explains how the agency operates in this dangerous region.
South Sudan peace ‘hangs in the balance’
June 26, 2019 16:11 - 9 minutes - 8.59 MBPeace between government and opposition forces in South Sudan “hangs in the balance,” but there is an overwhelming desire from people in the eastern African country for an end to the five-year long conflict there; that’s according to David Shearer, the Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for South Sudan. Speaking to UN News in New York, Mr. Shearer said that it was up to the country’s leaders to ensure the people’s desire for peace is fulfilled. Daniel Dickinson spoke to Mr. S...
Sahara migration route: Many would die without us, migration agency warns
June 26, 2019 15:06 - 3 minutes - 3.27 MBEvery month, the UN rescues around 1,200 people from the vast Sahara Desert, near Niger, many after they’ve been abandoned by traffickers who promised to take them to Libya, Nigeria or Morocco. In an interview with Daniel Johnson from UN News, Joel Millman from the UN migration agency, IOM, says that without its help, “virtually all of them” would perish.
Leaving Gaza enclave for surgery still an ‘issue’, says UNRWA Director
June 22, 2019 04:35 - 12 minutes - 11.1 MBWith hundreds killed and more than 30,000 injured so far during the Gaza-Israel border protests, known as “The Great March of Return”, many Palestinians are now facing a future of life-long disability, unable to get the treatment they need. Referring to the “devastating impacts in human terms”, Matthias Schmale, director of the UN relief agency for Palestine refugees (UNRWA) has warned in an interview with UN News, that local hospitals do not have the capacity to deal with the most serious ...