UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said on Friday that the essential work of the world body remains largely unaffected by the novel coronavirus (COIVD-19) pandemic
UNITED NATIONS (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 27th March, 2020) UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said on Friday that the essential work of the world body remains largely unaffected by the novel coronavirus (COIVD-19) pandemic.
"I can report that our critical work is continuing largely uninterrupted," Guterres said in a briefing to UN member states on the challenge posed by COVID-19. "Our business continuity plans are working."
Guterres said that the UN employees in New York City are committed to fulfilling their functions and are fully working remotely with the exception of "absolutely essential" staff who continue to come to the headquarters building.
The UN chief also said that outside of New York, 93 percent of UN country teams are engaged with national authorities in preparedness and response efforts.
UN economists in resident coordinators' offices cooperate with local institutions to assess the socio-economic impact of COVID-19, Guterres noted.
In the light of the current circumstances, the moving of UN peacekeepers had been postponed, but the United Nations continues to engage with troop-contributing countries to determine when rotations could take place amid the pandemic, he added.
Guterres called on the international community to support his earlier call for a global ceasefire and support the United Nations' appeal for $2 billion to aid the most vulnerable countries affected by COVID-19 crisis.
