Khartoum, 17 February 2019 – The Government of Japan has pledged USD 700,000 for the Emergency Support to IDP Return in Alsalam Locality, South Darfur State project for a period of one year starting from March 2019. The UN-Habitat project will benefit 17,100 Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) and members of host communities in Dagariss village, located 22 km Southwest of Nyala, the capital city of South Darfur.

Yangon City, Myanmar, 18 February 2019 - A grant aid agreement signed between Mr. Ichiro Maruyama, Japan’s Ambassador to Myanmar and Mr. Bijay Bahadur Karmacharya, Country Programme Manager in Myanmar for UN-Habitat aims to improve management of rubbish in Yangon City.

The USD 5.5 million project will support the introduction of the Fukuoka method to the Htein Bin dumpsite, where a large fire took place in April last year. The Fukuoka Method is a semi-aerobic landfil

Marawi City, Mindanao, Philippines, February 2019 – From early morning, families whose homes were destroyed in the heavy fighting in Marawi in the southern Philippines almost two years ago, gathered in the Barangay Dulay Proper district of Marawi for the groundbreaking ceremony for their new houses.

Garowe, Puntland, Somalia, February 2019 –  In Somalia, it is extremely rare to see a woman working in the construction industry. However nearly two thirds of the young people who have just graduated from a UN-Habitat training course in Puntland State of Somalia are young women. “Project Rajo” (Rajo is Somali for hope) was launched in three Somali cities - the capital Mogadishu, Garowe and Kismayo in the south -  in November 2018 to provide youth with construction, entrepreneurship, ICT and life skills training.

Nairobi, 19 December 2018 – UN-Habitat and the County Government of Vihiga in Kenya have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to support capacity and skills development for women and youth through youth empowerment and economic opportunity. It provides a framework for UN-Habitat and the County Government of Vihiga to promote sustainable human settlements development in Vihiga County.

KATOWICE, POLAND, December 12, 2018 – The UN-Habitat guide to Addressing Urban and Human Settlement Issues in National Adaptation Plans was launched at the UN Climate Change Conference (COP-24) in Katowice, Poland last week. The guide highlights the crucial role of scaling up climate action by integrating human settlements into national adaptation planning and processes.

Throughout history, people have migrated from one place to another. People migrate in search of a better life. They leave their homes due to many reasons, including poverty, social and political oppression, natural and man-made disasters, conflict, in search of a higher education, and professional opportunities.

Today marks the seventieth anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which recognises, among other things, the universal right to adequate housing. UN-Habitat is mandated to promote socially and environmentally sustainable human settlements for all.

Tomsk, Siberia, Russia-, November 2018 – UN-Habitat presented the preliminary results of its UN-Habitat’s City Prosperity Initiative (CPI) for Tomsk, the first Russian city to implement the urban diagnosis framework. The presentation was made during a panel discussion on “The City of the Future, the Role of the University” at Tomsk University’s Third University City Forum.