World News in Brief: UN responds to Bangladesh floods, sports and human rights, polio vaccination in Angola

This article is published in association with United Nations.

The UN emergency food relief agency is providing vital assistance to communities affected by the severe flooding in northeast Bangladesh, the agency said on Monday.

About 1.4 million people are estimated to have been left in dire straits, as heavy rains lashed Sylhet and Sunamganj districts, as well as areas upstream, in India.

“Our priority is to ensure that the most vulnerable families, who were already facing hardships and are now having their lives and livelihoods upended again by the floods, can meet their essential food and nutritional needs,” said Simone Parchment, UN World Food Programme (WFP) Bangladesh Deputy Country Director.

The agency’s field office in Sylhet, is supporting Government-led relief efforts, distributing fortified biscuits to over 23,000 families to help them meet their immediate needs.

WFP also plans to provide cash assistance to these 23,000 and an additional 48,000 households it pre-identified as part of its preparedness efforts.

Further heavy rains are forecast in the affected regions and adjoining catchment areas over the coming days, which could worsen the flood situation, according to reports.

World of sports is not immune from human rights challenges: UN rights chief

Despite the sporting ideal of equality and fair opportunities, athletes encounter many forms of rights violations and abuses, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk warned on Monday.  

Speaking at the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva, just weeks from the beginning of the Paris 2024 Olympics, Mr. Türk insisted that “mega sporting events” with “enormous” reach such as the football World Cup, and the Olympic and Paralympic games should serve as platforms to advocate against inequalities.

“The world of sports is not immune from human rights challenges, including when mega events are organized. And some worrying issues are more visible than others,” Mr. Türk said.

Among these issues, Mr. Türk highlighted racist or sexist incidents, abuse, violence against women, corruption, discrimination on the basis of religion or religious attire, disability, nationality, or sexual orientation and gender identity.

Mr. Türk welcomed the decision of some businesses in the sports world to align their practices with the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights.

He said that human rights policies and grievance mechanisms are increasingly being included in large-scale sport events, referring to a case in Spain where football fans were punished for racially abusing the Brazilian forward Vinicius Junior.

WHO supports vaccination campaign in Angola

In health news, authorities in Angola, supported by UN agencies, have initiated a vaccination campaign to curb the spread of polio and protect children from childhood paralysis.

Polio is a highly infectious disease caused by a virus that invades the nervous system and can cause total paralysis within hours. While there is no cure for polio, it can be prevented through vaccination.

According to the UN World Health Organization (WHO), which is supporting the Government, the central objective of the campaign is to increase the immunity of children under five to quickly interrupt the virus’s transmission in the country.

The programme aims to achieve at least 95 percent vaccination coverage in all districts, identify suspected cases, and raise awareness of routine vaccination.

Vaccination teams will go from house to house to ensure that no child is left unvaccinated, and fixed posts will be available in highly populated areas.

The first round of the vaccination campaign in May 2024 successfully vaccinated over 5.5 million children across the country, covering the entire target group at risk.

In the second round of the vaccination campaign, as in previous initiatives, vaccination teams will continue their house-to-house efforts, and fixed posts will be available in health facilities, markets, churches, schools, nurseries, and other places of high population concentration, WHO said.