‘Around the world, we hear much talk of peace, but we see far too little of it,’ UN Secretary-General António Guterres said at a ceremony in Türkiye while accepting the Atatürk International Award for Peace.
The UN chief met President Erdogan of Türkiye to discuss developments in the Middle East and other key issues.
His visit to Türkiye is also the latest solidarity visit to a Muslim nation to mark the holy month of Ramadan in what has become an annual tradition.
Source: International Monetary Fund – IMF (video statements)
African economies began tapping into overseas markets for funding in the early 2000s, after debt burdens had been alleviated by the Highly Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) Initiative. However, surging interest rates on dollar- and euro-denominated loans in recent years have prompted countries to turn to domestic markets for their borrowing needs. Amadou Sy heads the IMF Regional Studies division. In this podcast, he says there are benefits to issuing debt in local markets and in local currency.
Source: International Monetary Fund – IMF (video statements)
How does a TV show like Seinfeld show up in the economy? In this episode of The Economy – How Do You Measure That, Jim Tebrake and Dave Wasshausen explain how artistic originals are classified as intellectual property products and treated as produced fixed assets. From production costs and sets to syndication and streaming royalties, discover how the value of the original and its copies is measured in GDP and national accounts.
Turning to the situation in the Middle East, our humanitarian colleagues remind us that the region is home to some of the largest numbers of people in need of humanitarian assistance globally. The recent escalation risks deepening civilian suffering and causing further damage to already fragile civilian infrastructure.
According to UNHCR, more than 4.1 million people have been internally displaced in Afghanistan, Iran, Lebanon and Pakistan since the beginning of the escalation. Additionally, some 117,000 people have sought refuge in another country. It’s important to note these numbers are based on data provided to us by authorities.
We and our humanitarian partners are continuing to provide humanitarian aid to people impacted across several countries and remain ready to ramp up our response in support of national authorities where needed.
IRAN
And just on Iran alone, our colleagues at UNHCR are telling us that between 600,000 and 1 million Iranian households are now temporarily displaced inside their country as a result of the ongoing conflict.
This is a preliminary assessments, and that adds up to about 3.2 million people.
UNHCR says that most of them are reportedly fleeing from Tehran and other major urban areas towards the north of the country and rural areas to seek safety.
They say this figure is likely to continue to rise as hostilities persist, adding that, as you can imagine, it will just add another level of humanitarian needs.
Also affected are refugee families hosted in Iran. Most of them are Afghans, who are particularly vulnerable, given their already precarious situation and limited support networks.
UNHCR is adapting its response to these growing needs, working with national authorities and partners to assess emerging needs and strengthening preparedness as population movement increases.
We join them in emphasizing the urgent need to protect civilians, to maintain humanitarian access, and ensure that borders remain open to those seeking safety, in line with country’s international obligations.
Full Highlights: https://www.un.org/sg/en/content/noon-briefing-highlight?date=2026-03-12
Source: United Kingdom UK House of Lords (video statements)
Mathematician and broadcaster Hannah Fry spoke to the Lords Numeracy for Life Committee recently about the detrimental effects of low numeracy skills throughout a person’s life
📺Watch the committee session https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bY5H5a12hcU
Catch-up on House of Lords business:
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Source: World Trade Organization – WTO (video statements)
Ahead of the WTO’s 14th Ministerial Conference (MC14), what is the state of play in the fisheries subsidies negotiations? Hear from Ambassador Leslie Ramsammy of Guyana, Chair of the Negotiating Group on Rules, on efforts to advance disciplines that support sustainable fisheries.
Download this video from the WTO website:
https://www.wto.org/english/res_e/webcas_e/webcas_e.htm
In his book Notes on Being a Man, entrepreneur Scott Galloway examines the "crisis of masculinity" and the threat it poses to gender equality.
He spoke to Radio Davos at the World Economic Forum’s Annual Meeting 2026.
Links:
Global Gender Gap Report 2025: https://www.weforum.org/publications/global-gender-gap-report-2025/
Related podcasts:
In the age of the ‘manosphere’, what’s the future for feminism? With Jude Kelly of the WOW Festival: https://www.weforum.org/podcasts/radio-davos/episodes/jude-kelly-wow-foundation/
How ‘positive masculinity’ can bridge gender gaps – and improve both men’s and women’s lives: https://www.weforum.org/podcasts/meet-the-leader/episodes/gary-barker-positive-masculinity-gender-gap/
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The Head of United Nations Peace Operations, Jean-Pierre Lacroix, for his part said both Hizbullah and the Israeli government are in violation of Council resolution 1701 and noted that peacekeepers with the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) “have remained in position in line with the mandate this Council has provided, while continuously reassessing the force’s posture against prevailing risk.”
Lacroix said, “many rockets have been launched from south of the Litani River, which demonstrates the presence of unauthorised armed personnel, assets and weapons south of the Litani River,” while the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) “have issued displacement orders for the entire UNIFIL area of operations and intensified daily strikes, impacting multiple locations in the UNIFIL area of operations.”
He said, “UNIFIL continues to maintain constant contact with the parties to avoid misunderstandings, de-conflict and de-escalate where possible.”
