Education is a powerful development multiplier that plays a pivotal role in accelerating progress across all the 17 global goals. Yet today, the world is facing a learning crisis. “Education today should combine knowledge, life skills and critical thinking”, said UN Secretary-General António Guterres, in his message for International Youth Day celebrated on 12 August 2019. “It should include information on sustainability and climate change. And it should advance gender equality, human rights and a culture of peace”.

This year marks the 30th anniversary of the adoption of the Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) on 20 November 1989. This landmark human rights treaty sets out the civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights of every child, regardless of their race, religion or abilities.

The SDG Action Zone is a space inside the United Nations grounds, during the 74th Session of the General Assembly, that will seek to promote and accelerate transformative SDG action in innovative ways. Various events and exhibits, programmed throughout the High-level week from 23 to 27 September, will focus on five themes: Sustainable Development Goals, Climate Action, Universal Health Coverage, Financing for Development, and Small Island States.

On 23 December 1994, the United Nations General Assembly decided, in its resolution 49/214, that the International Day of the World’s Indigenous People shall be observed on 9 August every year. The date marks the first meeting, in 1982, of the UN Working Group on Indigenous Populations.

​Confronting Ageism and Empowering Older People was discussed at a side event following the opening of the high-level political forum under the auspices of ECOSOC. The event was organized by the Stakeholder Group on Ageing and sponsored by UN DESA.

On 8 July, at the 27th plenary meeting of the ECOSOC: Integration Segment 2019, the Council elected eight members to the Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues nominated by Indigenous peoples’ organizations for a 3-year term beginning 1 January 2020. They are:

Ms. Hindou Oumarou Ibrahim (Chad)

Ms. Anne Nuorgam* (Finland)

Mr. Phoolman Chaudhary* (Nepal)

Mr. Geoffrey Scott Roth (USA)

According to UN DESA's Population Division, G20 member countries are home to more than 70 per cent of the world's older population. The number of persons aged 65 or over in G20 countries is expected to grow from 501 million in 2019 to 705 million in 2030, and further to about 1 billion in 2050. The number of persons aged 80 or over in G20 countries is expected to triple during that period, from 102 million in 2019 to 307 million in 2050. In 2019, persons aged 65 or over accounted for 10 per cent of the population living in G20 countries; by 2050, they will represent more than a quarter.

In its resolution 72/233, the General Assembly proclaimed the Third United Nations Decade for the Eradication of Poverty (2018–2027). It also considered that the theme of the Third Decade, to be reviewed at its seventy-third sessions, should be “Accelerating global actions for a world without poverty”, in line with the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

Acting unanimously today, the Security Council adopted its first-ever resolution calling upon Member States and parties to armed conflict to protect persons with disabilities in conflict situations and to ensure they have access to justice, basic services and unimpeded humanitarian assistance.

The 2019 International Day of Cooperatives will be celebrated at the United Nations on Monday 8^th July 2019 (the actual day falls on the first Saturday of July, and this year it is on 6 July).

The theme for this year’s celebration is COOPS 4 DECENT WORK.