Source: United Kingdom UK Parliament (video statements)
Before 1918 women had to sit separately to watch parliamentary proceedings in the House of Commons. Today there are more than 250 women MPs, while just over 100 years ago they weren’t allowed to stand as candidates.
This International Women’s Day, we explore the history of the Ladies Gallery grilles and suffragette protests in the Commons Chamber.
Source: Republic of South Africa (video statements)
Social Cluster led by Minister of health, Dr Aron Motsoaledi briefs media
Source: United Nations (video statements)
Video message by António Guterres, Secretary-General of the United Nations, for International Women’s Day 2026.
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António Guterres, UN Secretary-General: Women’s rights are human rights. And investing in women and girls is one of the surest ways to make the world a better place.
Michelle Yeoh, UNDP Goodwill Ambassador: When women are involved in negotiating peace, agreements last longer.
Muniba Mazari, UN SDG Advocate: Women in tech make digital tools more inclusive.
Dia Mirza, UN SDG Advocate and UNEP Goodwill Ambassador: Women in government are more likely to pass climate friendly policies.
Amina Mohammed, UN Deputy-Secretary-General: When women have access to decent jobs and fairer workplaces, our economies grow.
Muzoon Almellehan, UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador: And educating girls can unlock the brain power we need to tackle every challenge on Earth.
Angélique Kidjo, UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador: Girls can do anything, and they deserve the chance.
Sima Bahous, UN Women Executive Director: We need rights, equality and empowerment for all women and girls.
Michelle Yeoh, UNDP Goodwill Ambassador: And we need women everywhere to be free from violence and fear.
Marta Vieira da Silva, UN Women Goodwill Ambassador: In sports.
Rosemary DiCarlo, Under-Secretary-General for Political and Peacebuilding Affairs: In politics.
Maj. Nesrine Somai, UN Peacekeeper: In peace, and peace-making.
Frida Amani, UNEP Advocate: In healthcare.
Angélique Kidjo, UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador: In science.
Dia Mirza, UN SDG Advocate and UNEP Goodwill Ambassador: And in the stories we tell on screen.
Frida Amani, UNEP Advocate: Just look at the young women leading the climate movement across the globe.
Angélique Kidjo, UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador: Women and girls are claiming their power.
Marta Vieira da Silva, UN Women Goodwill Ambassador: When we invest in women, in girls, life gets better for men and boys too.
Kaliya, UNFPA Honorary Ambassador, Kazakhstan: Life gets better for people with disabilities.
Muzoon Almellehan, UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador: For care workers.
Dia Mirza, UN SDG Advocate and UNEP Goodwill Ambassador: For the planet.
Frida Amani, UNEP Advocate: For children.
Amina Mohammed, UN Deputy-Secretary-General: For parents.
Angélique Kidjo, UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador: For justice.
Kaliya, UNFPA Honorary Ambassador, Kazakhstan: For me.
Victoria Fernandez, UN Staff Member: For me.
Michelle Yeoh, UNDP Goodwill Ambassador: For me.
Angélique Kidjo, UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador: For me.
Sima Bahous, UN Women Executive Director: And for me too.
ALL: For me.
António Guterres, UN Secretary-General: Women and girls are changing the world. It’s time to change the world for women and girls.
Source: United Nations (video statements)
The major commercial shipping crisis caused by the war which has practically halted all vessel movement in the Strait of Hormuz south of Iran is already impacting UN agencies and partners seeking to dispatch lifesaving relief to Gaza and Sudan, among other emergencies. The narrow channel carries nearly one-fifth of global oil along with large volumes of commercial goods.
Secretary-General of International Maritime Organization (IMO), Arsenio Dominguez, provides an update on the current situation.
Source: Republic of South Africa (video statements)
President Cyril Ramaphosa delivers tribute at the Homegoing Service for Rev. Jesse Jackson
Source: United Nations (video statements)
Rural people are the backbone of food systems worldwide, yet they continue to face persistent challenges — from climate shocks to structural barriers that limit opportunity. Across Africa, investing in rural people — especially women — holds enormous potential to drive food security, reduce poverty, and advance gender equality. This conversation will highlight IFAD’s approach to investing in rural communities in Africa and beyond.
Speakers:
Alvaro Lario, President, International Fund of Agricultural Development (IFAD)
Moderator:
Monicah W. Ndung’u, Chief of Corporate Affairs, Marketing & Partnerships Office, Nation Media Group
Source: World Economic Forum (video statements)
This week’s top stories of the week include:
0:14 – – What Running Teaches Us All: Steady practice brings steady improvement. Some pain barriers are only mental. And sometimes, it’s important to know when to quit. These are just some of the lessons that Nicholas Thompson, CEO of The Atlantic, has picked up from his record-breaking amateur career as a distance #runner. In this video, Thompson discusses how to overcome mental blocks, how to handle limitations, and more.
03:28 – Turning Waste into Fuels of the Future: Farms and cities produce millions of tonnes of organic #waste every year, in the form of food waste, old cooking oils and agricultural refuse. But what if this potential pollution could be converted into clean fuels to power cars, planes and ships? Here, Repsol CEO Josu Jon Imaz talks us through the innovative facilities using hundreds of thousands of tonnes of unwanted waste to power a low-carbon future.
06:06 – Hidden Materials Drive the AI Revolution: Behind every AI data centre lies a vast quantity of #minerals such as copper, germanium, aluminum or lithium. And as AI scales up, so does the demand for the materials that make it possible. But preparing the ground for new mines – responsibly and sustainably – doesn’t happen overnight. Jonathan Price, President and CEO of Teck, explains how the difference between data centre and #mining timelines could shape the speed of AI growth.
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The World Economic Forum is the International Organization for Public-Private Cooperation. It provides a global, impartial and not-for-profit platform for meaningful connection between stakeholders to establish trust, and build initiatives for cooperation and progress.
Find out more below:
World Economic Forum Website ► http://www.weforum.org/
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Source: World Economic Forum (video statements)
Women in the economy means growth. Women in the economy means wealth. Women in the economy means jobs.
Despite decades of progress, men remain far more likely than women to hold positions of political, social and economic power. The World Economic Forum’s 2025 Global Gender Gap Report shows that full parity remains 123 years away. We spoke with three experts in government, diplomacy and economics on why the gender gap, even in the 21st century, persists. A key takeaway? Laws alone won’t work. Real equality must be lived.
In this new #ExpertsExplain, we spoke to Rania A. Al‑Mashat, François Valérian and Arancha González Laya, about why progress has stalled – and how equality is not a cultural battle, but an economic imperative.
Closing the gender gap could raise global GDP by 20%
Transparency and data are “the best disinfectant.”
Equality is the key to stronger economies and authentic leadership
Watch now: Why the Gender Gap Persists
#GenderParity #InclusiveGrowth #Equality #WEF #gendergap25
____________________________________________________________________
The World Economic Forum is the International Organization for Public-Private Cooperation. It provides a global, impartial and not-for-profit platform for meaningful connection between stakeholders to establish trust, and build initiatives for cooperation and progress.
Find out more below:
World Economic Forum Website ► http://www.weforum.org/
YouTube ► https://www.youtube.com/wef
LinkedIn ► https://www.linkedin.com/company/world-economic-forum
Facebook ► https://www.facebook.com/worldeconomicforum/
Instagram ► https://www.instagram.com/worldeconomicforum/
X ► https://twitter.com/wef
TikTok ► https://www.tiktok.com/@worldeconomicforum
WhatsApp ► https://www.whatsapp.com/channel/0029VaDcHBKGZNCihKxwiD0L
Threads ► https://www.threads.com/@worldeconomicforum
Flipboard ► https://flipboard.com/@WEF
#WorldEconomicForum #wef
Source: European Central Bank (video statements)
Turn on notifications to catch the drop 🔔
Source: United Nations (video statements)
The Middle East conflict has reached "a moment of grave peril," UN humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher warned, cautioning that crises are escalating beyond the control of those who started them.
Tom Fletcher, the UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs, told reporters in New York that the region’s overlapping emergencies were becoming dangerously interlinked, fueled by what he described as “staggering amounts of money, reportedly a billion dollars a day, funding this war spent on destruction.”
Fletcher called for immediate de-escalation and an end to hostilities, warning that “civilians are facing those consequences across the Middle East; homes, hospitals, and schools are being hit across the region.” UNICEF has reported more than 190 children killed since the escalation began, including over 180 in Iran, seven in Lebanon, three in Israel and one in Kuwait.
In Iran authorities report more than 1,000 deaths and damage to over 100 civilian sites. Around 100,000 people have been internally displaced in the past week. In Lebanon, more than 100 people have been killed and hundreds injured, with roughly 100,000 people sheltering across hundreds of sites, a country where, even before the current escalation, the World Food Programme reported 874,000 people already lacked adequate food.
In Gaza, Fletcher said aid delivery remains critically constrained. Israel closed all crossings a week ago, preventing humanitarian stocks from being replenished, and while the Abu Salem-Kerem Shalom crossing has since reopened, others including Rafah remain shut. “We’ve been able to bring in less than 1,000,000l of fuel this week,” he said "well below the more than 2,000,000l of fuel that we need as a bare minimum to keep services running.” Medical evacuations remain suspended, and he said key NGO partners continue to face “unacceptable restrictions on their work.”
On Afghanistan, Fletcher reported that fighting near the Pakistan border has killed dozens of civilians, including women and children, with more than 16,000 families fleeing their homes. Border closures have left over 160 aid containers stranded, and flight suspensions are further hampering access.
Fletcher outlined three knock-on risks he said he feared most. First, economic disruption: “when maritime corridors such as the Strait of Hormuz are disrupted, food prices will rise, health systems will be squeezed, and basic commodities, including our humanitarian supplies, will become much harder to access.”
Second, diminished global attention for other crises – in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Sudan, South Sudan and Ukraine – where, he stressed, conflicts have not ended.
Third, further erosion of international humanitarian law, with resources flowing toward weapons rather than the diplomatic and financial tools needed to protect lives.
He closed by paying tribute to aid workers operating in active conflict zones. “Humanitarian action is always harder in times of war, but this is of course when it is most needed,” Fletcher said. “The humanitarian movement will once again meet this moment.”
