TO HOME

Feb 20, 2024The Korea TimesBan Ki-moon, right, former U.N. secretary-general, gifts his memoir \"Resolved: Uniting Nations in a Divided World\" to an audience member during the world premiere of a documentary film on his life at the Allianz Forum in Berlin, Sunday (local time).\"The Quiet Diplomat,\" which follows the journey of Ban from his childhood during the 1950-53 Korean War and his meeting with former U.S. President John F. Kennedy as a teenager to his 10-year tenure as the first Korean to serve as U.N. secretary-general, was unveiled during the World Forum hosted by the Cinema for Peace Foundation.U.S. President Joe Biden sent a congratulatory letter, describing Ban and Hillary Clinton\'s receiving of the Cinema for Peace Award as \"a testament to (their) lifelong commitment to democracy and peace throughout the world.\" Yonhap

Ban Ki-moon, Deputy Chair of The Elders and former UN Secretary-General, said:   \"The killing of Israeli citizens and hostage taking by Hamas are shocking war crimes. But any military operation by Israel must be limited in scope, compliant with the laws of war, and take all possible measures to protect civilians. Israel responding to the atrocities committed by Hamas with more war crimes will generate more hatred and violence against Israelis. At this terrible time, I urge all parties to remember their common humanity. Palestinian and Israeli lives are of equal worth.\"

 Countries forced to choose between climate resilience, fighting poverty and paying debts, says Ban Ki-moon.  Former UN Secretary-General and current chair of the Global Center on Adaptation (GCA), Ban Ki-moon, stressed the pressing need to augment climate adaptation finance to Africa by up to ten times by 2035, during the ongoing Africa Climate Summit in Nairobi. This escalation is deemed essential to address the rapidly worsening impacts of the climate crisis in the region. Ban Ki-moon emphasized that no country should be in a position where they have to choose between combating poverty, fostering climate resilience, and fulfilling their debt obligations, a predicament that many African countries are currently facing.   According to GCA\'s recent research, without an investment surge of around £80m annually until 2035, Africa stands to forfeit approximately £4.8tn in economic benefits over the next decade. Ban Ki-moon noted that earlier assessments of Africa\'s contributions to climate resilience were gross underestimates, conceived during a time when the impending climate repercussions were not anticipated to manifest as swiftly and severely as they are unfolding presently.   Ban Ki-moon\'s comments come in the backdrop of an array of extreme weather phenomena exacerbating the continent\'s vulnerability, with several regions grappling with lethal cyclones, catastrophic floods, and extended periods of drought, escalating food insecurity amongst millions. These adversities are attributed to heightened likelihoods due to climate change.   The summit also saw discussions surrounding the shifting focus from the historical liability regarding carbon emissions to exploring other avenues for funding and innovative solutions. Kenyan President, William Ruto, advocated for exploring business solutions to the climate dilemma, including the implementation of global carbon taxes and financial reforms to avail more climate funding, alongside advocating for debt alleviation for African nations.   While concerns remain about the reliance on private financing for addressing climate issues, the consensus underscores the dire necessity for amplified climate financing in Africa to prevent further hardships and a potential cascade of societal issues stemming from climate impacts. Activists and agricultural organizations are also tirelessly working on the ground to assist communities in adapting to the changing climate conditions.Ban Ki-moon, chair of the Global Center on Adaptation, at the Africa Climate Summit in Nairobi

March 4, 2023Daily Excelsior(Photo taken at the World Cultural Festival in New Delhi in 2016)Washington, Mar 4: The fourth World Cultural Festival will be held in the American capital here this fall, organiser Art of Living has announced.Several world leaders and hundreds and thousands of people from across the globe are expected to attend the three-day mega event from September 29 to October 1 at the historic National Mall.The previous three editions of the World Culture Festival were held in Bengaluru (2006), Berlin (2011) and New Delhi (2016).“In a world which is so polarised, divided and despondent, it is time for us to come together in celebration, where we appreciate the rich diversity on this planet,” Art of Living founder Sri Sri Ravi Shankar said. “It is high time we recognise we are a one world family,” he added.The event’s reception committee is being led by Ban Ki-moon, who served as the eighth secretary-general of the United Nations, and includes multiple current and former heads of states, members of the United States Congress and a range of spiritual and faith leaders, according to a media release.“We are incredibly excited and proud to announce that Washington DC will host the fourth World Culture Festival in 2023. From September 29 to October 1, we will come together on the National Mall for a celebration of culture, diversity and unity,” District of Columbia Mayor Muriel Bowser said in a video message.“We will come together on the National Mall for a celebration of culture, diversity and unity. As Washington DC welcomes the world, we invite all global citizens to join us in honour of Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar’s message that diversity is the beauty of creation,” she added.“We certainly know that to be true in Washington DC. It is the foundation of our DC values and the reason we are so excited to host the World Culture Festival,” Bowser said.In a statement, Art of Living said visitors from every corner of the globe will travel to the US capital to be a part of the festival, honouring the rich human diversity expressed through music, art, food, dance, meditation and inspirational talks.The landmark event will bring the world together in celebration to uplift the human spirit and reaffirm a collective commitment to peace and unity, it said.Thousands of diverse artistes have already committed to participate and announcements about the festival’s programming schedule will be made later this spring, it added.

Nobember 29, 2022Arab NewsRIYADH: UN goals on ending poverty and eradicating hunger by 2030 are set to be missed as governments, businesses, and civil societies are not working properly together, according to the organization’s former secretary-general.Speaking at the World Travel and Tourism Council Global Summit in Riyadh on Nov. 29, Ban Ki-moon said that it is extremely unlikely the world will achieve all 17 sustainable development goals within the next eight years.Other targets include quality education, gender equality, clean water and sanitation, and affordable and clean energy.“It is almost impossible to achieve our 17 sustainable development goals by 2030, instead it may go beyond 2053. For African countries, it may go up to 2060,” said Ki-moon.He added: “The 17 SDG goals demand global partnerships between governments, business companies and civil societies. When this trilateral partnership starts working, then I think we can do it.”During his talk, he also highlighted the importance of having global collaboration and cooperation between governments to achieve sustainability goals.“Geopolitical tensions including the illegal ongoing Russian aggression on Ukraine represent one of the most dangerous moments for global security in decades. I am deeply concerned that world leaders are not united,” he added.Ki-moon further noted that the travel and tourism sector can play a crucial role in uniting the world.“The travel and tourism sector has a crucial role to play in ensuring cross-border collaboration, which will result in a peaceful and sustainable future, underpinned by justice, solidarity and prosperity,” Ki-moon added.Citing a UN World Food Program report, the former Secretary General warned that there will be at least 1.9 billion people who will be suffering from poverty, famine, and starvation by 2023.He went on and said that climate change is burning the earth, and humans will witness a sixth mass extinction in the next 100 years if sufficient climate actions are not taken.“Our planet is on fire, both literally and figuratively as the climate crisis is deepening with surging temperatures, raging floods, and rising sea levels. Climate change is approaching much faster than one may think,” said Ki-moon.He pointed out that business communities, with the help of governments, can play a pivotal part in changing the future of planet Earth.“Business communities can change the world in a better manner by investing wisely, thus achieving sustainable development goals and also helping implement the Paris climate agreement,” he said.

November 7, 2022Korean Joongang DailyJill Tiefenthaler, CEO of the National Geographic Society, stressed the need to empower “change makers” on the front lines of the climate crisis, including scientists, educators and the media to deal with the “planetary emergency.” “Both climate change and biodiversity loss are the two biggest threats that we face in our world,” said Tiefenthaler in an interview with the Korea JoongAng Daily and JoongAng Ilbo at the Westin Josun Hotel in central Seoul on Oct. 17.   Earlier that day, Tiefenthaler had a luncheon meeting with former UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, president of the Seoul-based Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI) and chairman of Ban Ki-moon Foundation for a Better Future.  “We need to treat the climate and ecological emergencies as one planetary emergency”During their talks, Ban and Tiefenthaler focused on challenges facing the world including combatting climate change, achieving the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and supporting women in science. “We need to treat the climate and ecological emergencies as one planetary emergency,” said Tiefenthaler. “They are two sides of the same coin. Global leaders, businesses and individuals can no longer address the climate and biodiversity crises separately.” Ban pointed to extreme weather events occurring in many parts of the world.   He noted that Britain was a country that does not need air conditioning even in summer, but temperatures there exceeded 40 degrees Celsius this summer. In China, a drought caused water levels to drop in the Yangtze River, while in Pakistan, a third of the country was submerged in historic flooding this summer.   “If we do not overcome the climate crisis, the frequency and intensity of natural disasters will increase,” said Ban. “In the face of such natural disasters, there are also apocalyptic predictions that the time of the sixth mass extinction will come about, when humans will become extinct.” The importance of addressing climate change should not get lostThe National Geographic Society is a non-profit scientific and educational organization founded in 1888 to increase geographic knowledge. It has a joint venture with the Walt Disney Company, the National Geographic Partners, which oversees commercial activities related to National Geographic, such as magazines and television channels.   Tiefenthaler, an economist, comes from academia and previously served as the president of Colorado College and provost of Wake Forest University. She became the first woman CEO of the National Geographic Society in 2020. She said in her talks with Ban, they discussed “making sure that climate change and the importance of addressing it doesn’t get lost” amid other challenges that the world is facing including “geopolitical issues.”   The National Geographic Society Asia Foundation was established in Korea 2015 to support Asian explorers and their research.  During her visit to Seoul, Tiefenthaler met with 25 explorers from across the Asia-Pacific at the National Geographic Society Women’s Convening event.Original article: https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/2022/11/06/national/environment/National-Geographic-Society-CEO-Jill-Tiefenthaler/20221106200827128.html

October 25, 2022VanguardPresident Muhammadu Buhari has said that the recent flooding, desert encroachment and drought being experienced in various parts of the country are all negative fallouts of climate change.In a statement signed by the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, Buhari made this known while during an audience he granted the former United Nations Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon, on the sidelines of the First World Bio Summit 2022 in Seoul, South Korea.According to the statement which is titled ‘Nigeria facing climate change challenges, President Buhari declares during meeting with Ban Ki-Moon in Seoul’, the president appreciated the existing cooperation between Nigeria and the Republic of Korea, especially in the aspect of gas exports to the Asian country.Buhari also highlighted education as a critical investment in addressing unemployment and underdevelopment, calling for a closer focus on health challenges.In his remarks, the former UN Chief who advocates Climate Change remediation and chairs the Ban Ki-moon Foundation for Better Future sympathised with the President over the flooding.Ki-moon called for more investment to improve education and avert environmental degradation and preventive diseases to meet the core Sustainable Development Goals.He appreciated Buhari for attending the World Bio Summit, adding that his presence would highlight the importance of global action and cooperation in developing vaccines and technology to meet the huge threat and challenges of pandemics.Ki-moon also noted that Nigeria is “a very important country,” having prominent citizens occupying sensitive positions in global organizations.Therefore, he called for more people-to-people engagements and cultural cooperation between both countries even as he sought Nigeria’s support in Korea’s bid to host an EXPO in 2030.Explaining his pet project, the ex-UN Scribe said his Global Centre on Adaptation is trying to mobilize resources to help developing countries fight climate change.He urged donor countries to fulfill their financial commitments to the Global Climate Fund.Buhari and his guest also discussed the role of gender equality in attaining a prosperous society while calling for an end to the war in Ukraine.

October 21, 2022Yeonhap NewsSEOUL, Oct. 21 (Yonhap) — South Korea and the World Health Organization (WHO) will co-host the inaugural World Bio Summit next week to share the latest technological improvements in vaccines and the bio-health industry and discuss ways to increase preparedness for future pandemics, Seoul’s health ministry said Friday.Under the theme of “The Future of Vaccine and Bio-health,” the World Bio-Summit 2022 will take place next Thursday and Friday in Seoul, with hundreds of leaders from international health organizations and global enterprises, according to the Ministry of Health and Welfare.Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, director-general of the WHO, will give opening remarks online, while former U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and Jerome Kim, director general of the International Vaccine Institute, will deliver speeches in person.In the CEO’s sessions on the first day, officials of vaccine and bio companies, including SK bioscience, Moderna and Pfizer, will gather their expertise in developing COVID-19 vaccines and seek solutions to tackle potential challenges.On the second day, health ministers from six countries, including South Korea, the United States, Nigeria and Germany, will adopt the Seoul Declaration, committing to getting fully ready for future pandemics based on international cooperation.“During the COVID-19 pandemic, South Korea has been emerging as a hub in the bio health industry,” said Kim Hyun-sook of the health ministry. “The inaugural World Bio Summit will help Korea take the international initiative in shaping ideas of the future of vaccine and biologics.”

October 12, 2022StanfordThe Walter H. Shorenstein Asia-Pacific Research Center (APARC) at Stanford University and the Ban Ki-moon Foundation For a Better Future announced today the launch of an annual Trans-Pacific Sustainability Dialogue in Asia to accelerate progress on achieving the United Nations-adopted 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The joint project will spur new research and policy partnerships between experts from the United States and Asia to expedite the implementation of the Agenda’s underlying 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by governments and non-state actors. The two-day inaugural Dialogue will be held in Seoul, Republic of Korea, on October 27 and 28, 2022, and will be free and open to the public.The Dialogue’s co-organizers include the Natural Capital Project (NatCap) of Stanford University, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Korea, Korea Environmental Industry and Technology Institute (KEITI), Korea Environment Corporation (K-eco), and Korea Water Resources Corporation (K-water). The Ministry of Environment of the Republic of Korea is the event’s sponsor. The first day will take place at The Plaza Seoul and will be co-hosted by the Korea Environment Institute. It will include a series of public sessions headlined by Ban Ki-moon, the eighth secretary-general of the UN, who will join a lineup of world leaders including Kevin Rudd, former prime minister of Australia and chief executive officer and president of the Asia Society; Iván Duque, former president of the Republic of Colombia; and Gombojav Zandanshatar, chairman of the State Great Hural (Parliament) of Mongolia.“This Dialogue is very timely and relevant as the climate crisis is deepening in the aftermath of the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the Sustainable Development Goals are becoming more difficult to achieve in the midst of the Coronavirus pandemic,” says Mr. Ban Ki-moon. “Asia-Pacific countries should be more aggressive in the fight against climate change and more audacious in the role they play toward achieving the SDGs,” he noted.In this spirit, expert discussions on the second day will bring together social science researchers and scientists from across the Asia-Pacific region, alongside policymakers and practitioners, to share local and global nature-positive solutions and new pathways of meaningful SDG acceleration actions. Co-hosted by and held at Ewha Womans University, the panel discussions will explore the making of livable, sustainable cities, such as Busan Metropolitan City, and the threats to them by climate change, disasters, and human security issues. To achieve systems transformation and sustainable development, discussions will turn to the need to value and invest in nature.“Climate and sustainability solutions span disciplines and sectors and require collaboration with partners worldwide,” says Gi-Wook Shin, the William J. Perry Professor of Contemporary Korea at Stanford and director of APARC. “The launch of the Stanford Doerr School of Sustainability marks an opportune moment to scale up SDGs implementation by leveraging knowledge and expertise from across Stanford and the Asia-Pacific and engaging the next generation of scholars and experts,” Shin adds. “We are honored to join in this effort with Mr. Ban and his team, with whom APARC has an established relationship.”Highlighting the role of youth in achieving the SDGs, the Dialogue includes student panels that feature young leaders from Stanford University, Ewha Womans University, Osaka University, and De La Salle University, among other Asian universities. Students’ research, applied work, and entrepreneurial endeavors across the region showcase innovations and transformations in green financing and sustainable investments, gender mainstreaming and climate governance, development cooperation for sustainable governance, and scaling environmental solutions through a business and social justice lens.The Seoul Trans-Pacific Sustainability Dialogue is the inaugural event in APARC and the Ban Ki-moon Foundation’s joint effort to stimulate ambitious action to deliver the 2030 Agenda and SDGs. The annual Dialogue may rotate among different host cities in Asia to address different themes selected from the SDGs framework spearheaded by Mr. Ban Ki-moon during his term as the UN Secretary-General.About the Walter H. Shorenstein Asia-Pacific Research CenterThe Walter H. Shorenstein Asia-Pacific Research Center (Shorenstein APARC) addresses critical issues affecting the countries of Asia, their regional and global affairs, and U.S.-Asia relations. As Stanford University’s hub for the interdisciplinary study of contemporary Asia, APARC produces policy-relevant research, provides education and training to students, scholars, and practitioners, and strengthens dialogue and cooperation between counterparts in the Asia-Pacific and the United States. Founded in 1983, APARC today is home to a scholar community of distinguished academics and practitioners in government, business, and civil society, who specialize in trends that cut across the entire Asia-Pacific region. For more, visit aparc.stanford.edu.About the Ban Ki-moon Foundation For a Better FutureThe Ban Ki-moon Foundation For a Better Future follows and further develops the achievement and philosophy of Ban Ki-moon, the 8th Secretary General of the United Nations through upholding the values of unification, communication and co-existence, and dedication. It promotes three pillars of the UN including peace and security, development, and human rights and contributes to making a better future devoid of conflict and deficiency. In particular, the Ban Ki-moon Foundation actively collaborates with the UN, international organizations, and stakeholders toward achieving the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals and realizing the 2050 carbon net-zero of all state parties of the Paris Climate Accord of 2015. For more, visit http://eng.bf4bf.or.kr/.

August 17, 2022The EldersStatement: The Elders call for increased international support for Ukraine and stress that neutrality is not a moral option in the face of continued Russian aggression. Upon their return from Kyiv, Elders Ban Ki-moon and Juan Manuel Santos urged the Ukrainian government to make its case for support in capitals all around the world. Public solidarity from governments, particularly in Africa, Asia and Latin America, is essential to keep the world’s attention on Ukraine’s struggle and bring about an eventual end to Russia’s war.The Elders met President Volodymr Zelenskyy and other senior government figures in Kyiv on Tuesday, 16 August, after visiting the sites of atrocities committed by Russian forces.Ban Ki-moon, Deputy Chair of The Elders and former Secretary-General of the United Nations, said:“Our visit to Bucha and Irpin left us in no doubt as to the appalling suffering Russia is inflicting on the Ukrainian people, and we condemn in the strongest terms the actions of Russian forces at these sites and elsewhere.”The Elders reiterate their belief that Russia’s war on Ukraine is a moral outrage. They call on the world to strongly resist the normalisation of the war’s horror and injustice and do everything possible to help end Russian aggression.The Ukrainian government’s request for security guarantees that go beyond the failed assurances of the past deserves serious consideration.The Elders also emphasise the central role of the UN itself, pointing to the initial success of the Black Sea Grain Initiative and the possibility of UN engagement on nuclear safety concerns at the Zaporizhzhia power plant.Juan Manuel Santos, former President of Colombia and Nobel Peace Laureate, said:“It is vital that the 16 million Ukrainian people in need get access to humanitarian assistance, particularly those living in areas not controlled by the Government. The victims of this terrible aggression cannot be ignored. Ukraine also needs sustained financial support to aid reconstruction and recovery.As Elders we are focused on ending and preventing wars, not winning them - our priority is to keep the flame of peace alive. I know from my own experience in Colombia that conflicts and their resolution are unpredictable, but the principle of a just and enduring peace cannot be forgotten. Ukrainians must know people all over the world stand shoulder to shoulder with them in their struggle to determine their own future.”Ban Ki-moon added:“The case for international solidarity with Ukraine needs to be made beyond NATO countries. As Elders from Latin America and Asia, Juan Manuel Santos and I visited Kyiv to emphasise that support for Ukraine comes from all over the world. Ukraine’s fight matters to every country that values its own sovereignty. Neutrality in the face of aggression cannot be an option.”Mary Robinson, former President of Ireland and Chair of The EldersBan Ki-moon, former UN Secretary-General and Deputy Chair of The EldersGraça Machel, Founder of the Graça Machel Trust, co-founder and Deputy Chair of The Elders Gro Harlem Brundtland, former Prime Minister of Norway and former Director-General of the WHOZeid Raad Al Hussein, former UN High Commissioner for Human RightsHina Jilani, Advocate of the Supreme Court of Pakistan and co-chair of the Taskforce on JusticeEllen Johnson Sirleaf, former President of Liberia and Nobel Peace LaureateRicardo Lagos, former President of ChileJuan Manuel Santos, former President of Colombia and Nobel Peace LaureateErnesto Zedillo, former President of Mexico

July 15, 2022PR NewswireLONDON, July 15, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- The agenda of Sustainable Development Goal 16, which talks of resolving the challenge around \'Conflict, insecurity, weak institutions and limited access to justice,\' seeks to promote a peaceful society and provide equal access to justice to all.RELX, a global provider of information and analytics for professional and business customers across industries, hosted their \'Free Virtual SDG Inspiration Day\' on May 9, 2022. The topics discussed during the session was the role of businesses in furthering the agenda of SDG 16.Sir Bob Geldof, Ban Ki-moon and many prominent key thought leaders discussed how to effectively achieve Sustainable Development Goal 16: “Peace, justice and strong institutions” Credit: RELX groupOrganizations that partnered the event included the Ban Ki-moon Centre for Global Citizens; UN Global Compact Network UK; Global Citizen, the World Humanitarian Forum; the Responsible Media Forum; Schneider Electric; The Elsevier Foundation, and the LexisNexis Rule of Law Foundation.The keynote speakers included Ban Ki-moon, Former Secretary General of the United Nations and Sir Bob Geldof, legendary musician and political activist. Other speakers included Dr. Heinz Fischer, former President of Austria; Irina Bokova, former Director-General of UNESCO; and Michael Sheldrick, Co-Founder of Global Citizen. The event was moderated by lawyer and activist Dr. Shola Mos-Shogbamimu.\"All around the world, armed conflicts are causing humanitarian emergencies in countries such as Yemen, Syria, Afghanistan, Ethiopia, and Ukraine. We are at a turning point, and we must choose peace,\" encapsulated Secretary Ban Ki-Moon in his keynote address.Several speakers touched upon the Russia-Ukraine conflict. Dr. Heinz Fischer commented, \"The significance and relevance of the SDGs will survive the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine and will thrive after the war – particularly SDG 16.\" Former Director-General of UNESCO Irina Bokova, during her keynote speech, said that the COVID-19 pandemic, the war in Ukraine, and impact of food production due to climate change have impacted the 2030 SDGs, and SDG 16 in particular.Sir Bob Geldof said that the biggest challenges facing the SDGs were human cynicism and extreme nationalism. \"However, it is in our self-interest to make the SDGs work. It is in the self-interest of the world; the self-interest of business and politics, and the self-interest of the global economy – all of them will begin by embracing and working to achieve the 2030 SDG goals,\" he said.Several panel discussions were held as part of the event. The first, \'SDG 16 and Defence,\' was moderated by BBC journalist Justin Webb, and had Monika Froehler, CEO, Ban Ki-moon Centre for Global Citizens; Dr. Imogen Parsons, Senior Research Fellow, Terrorism and Conflict, The Royal United Services Institute; and Sir Mark Moody-Stuart, Chairman, Global Compact Foundation, as the panellists.The second discussion, \'Operating in a Conflict Zone,\' was moderated by Teresa Jennings, Head of Rule of Law Development, LexisNexis Rule of Law Foundation. The panellists included Mark Waddington, CEO, Hope and Homes for Children; Kimberly Parker, Hinari Programme Manager, World Health Organization; Alison Tweed, CEO, Book Aid International; and Geraldine Anup-Willcocks, Emergency Specialist, UNICEF UK.The final discussion was \'Women and SDG 16\', which was moderated by Amanda Ellis, Former UN Ambassador, Executive Director Asia-Pacific, Global Institute of Sustainability and Innovation. Zoya Lytvyn, Ukrainian entrepreneur, expert in impact investment and education, founder of NGO Osvitoria, Global Teacher Prize Ukraine Award; Martin Chungong, eighth Secretary-General of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU); and Tea Trumbic, WE Empower Lead Partner and Program Manager for the Women, Business and the Law Project, World Bank, were the speakers.

Business DayFrom Daegu, South Korea24th of May, 2022(Photo: Business Day)Ban Ki-moon, a former Secretary-General of the United Nations has accused Western countries of prioritising military assistance to Ukraine over their obligations to finance efforts to reverse climate change, largely caused by them.In a keynote address at the 28th edition of the World Gas Conference in Daegu, Republic of Korea, Ban Ki-moon, delivering an address themed “A Sustainable Energy Transition Towards Carbon Neutrality”, said a lack of political will was largely responsible for the non-commitment of western countries.Developed countries like the United States, the European Union and Japan committed to contributing $100bn every year as a way of encouraging climate adaptation action by developing countries in Copenhagen, Denmark 2009 to contribute.However, from 2009 to 2020, they contributed only $80bn said Ban Ki-moon, “the promise was to provide $100bn annually, the institutions set up to manage it, the Global Climate Fund (GCF) now located in Korea, last year, they were not able to do anything, and with all these crises happening in Ukraine the developed countries have put more priority on the Ukraine situation.”Russian President Vladimir Putin on February 24 ordered an invasion of Ukraine in what he called a ‘Special Military Operation” to purportedly rid its neighbour of Nazi sympathizers and prevent a drift towards the West.Read also: Climate change: Seplat Energy to plant five million treesBanki Moon said the attack was “unprovoked” and has seriously impacted the energy market sending oil and gas prices to levels last seen over a decade ago triggering energy supply crises in Europe and a looming food crisis across the world.“The people and country of Ukraine certainly deserve our strong, political and economic, and moral support but that does not mean that all this money earmarked for climate financing should be diverted to this current political issues,” said Ki-moon.At the United Nations COP 26 discussions held in Glasgow last year, member countries dithered on committing to fully funding adaptation activities in vulnerable parts of the world.“I don’t think it is a question of lack of finance, rich countries have the money, they have the financial capacity, but it’s a matter of political will,” said the former UN boss.The goal of adaptation finance is to reduce vulnerability to the harmful effects of climate change caused by highly industrialised nations. Governments, multilateral agencies, and private donors contribute to the funds aimed at financing adaptation around the world.Africa and other developing countries especially in coastal areas are particularly vulnerable to the impact of climate change even though their activities contribute little to climate change.The world’s poorest and most vulnerable communities are already struggling to cope with the impact of human activities on the environment as rising seas result in flooding and fertile lands morph into arid deserts.An Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development OECD report released last year stated that over $20bn, about 25 percent of total climate finance goes to adaptation.“This is a fraction of the expected $300bn needed by 2030,” said Amina Mohammed, deputy secretary-general of the United Nations. “This is why the Secretary-General continues to call on all donors to allocate at least 50 percent of their climate finance on adaptation,” she said at COP 26.Now the modest contribution looks to cease entirely as the focus shifts on arming Ukraine to fend off Russian aggression.Six months after COP 26, the financing has all but paused. Ki-moon who is now a co-chair of the Global Center on Adaption, an institution that works on adaption financing said nothing was contributed at all last year as the crises in Ukraine now serve as a pretext for rich nations to mask their lack of political will.Ban Ki-moon, urged world leaders to take action now as time is running out, citing the recent Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report which says it’s “now or never” if the world is to stave off climate disaster.The chance of temporarily exceeding 1.5°C has risen steadily since 2015 when it was close to zero. For the years between 2017 and 2021, there was a 10 percent chance of exceedance. That probability has increased to nearly 50 percent for the 2022-2026 period.

Date: October 18, 2021 Media: The Guardian▲ Ban Ki-moon made the plea on behalf of the Elders group of former world statespeople and prominent community and business leaders. Photograph: Rex/ShutterstockUS president Joe Biden and the president of China, Xi Jinping, have been urged to meet before the UN Cop26 climate talks to search for common ground by the former UN secretary-general Ban Ki-moon and other prominent global voices.“We are appealing to the leaders of the US and China to see their common interest and find a way to work together. We need an ambitious 2030 [carbon] target from China and the US to deliver what they have pledged,” said Ban, speaking on behalf of the Elders group of former world statespeople and prominent community and business leaders.Xi met the former US president, Barack Obama, weeks ahead of the Paris climate summit in 2015, to forge a deal between the world’s biggest emitters.“Biden and Xi need to do what they used to do with Obama – the Paris agreement might not have been possible without those two countries,” said Ban. “We must do everything possible … Cop26 will be one of the most important in history.”Ban warned that current pledges on cutting emissions – known as nationally determined contributions, or NDCs – from major economies were insufficient to hold global heating to 1.5C, the aim of the Cop26 conference. “We need these NDCs to be ambitious enough. We need the right signals to strengthen the NDCs,” he said.Xi is unlikely to come to Glasgow for Cop26, which opens on 31 October, or to the G20 leaders’ meeting in Rome, which will take place the same weekend. He has not left China since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic.There are no current plans for a summit between the presidents, who lead the world’s two biggest emitters, and biggest economies. However, Xi and Biden recently had a long phone call in which the climate was discussed, and the US climate envoy John Kerry has held meetings with Chinese representatives.Ban is part of the Elders group of former world statespeople and prominent community and business leaders, which has written to the leaders of the G20 nations to ask them to strengthen their commitments on cutting greenhouse gas emissions before the Cop26 summit in Glasgow which begins in just under two weeks.“We are asking these countries to think again and be ambitious. All G20 countries need to take further actions to stay within 1.5C. Wealthy countries need to put more finance on the table [to help the developing world],” he said.The aim of Cop26 is to “keep 1.5C alive”, which means setting out a pathway to ensuring the world cuts emissions sufficiently to hold global heating within 1.5C of pre-industrial levels, the upper ambition of the 2015 Paris agreement. Scientific advice is that this will take emissions cuts globally of about 45% by 2030, compared with 2010 levels.Mary Robinson, chair of the Elders, said: “We are not going to close the gap at Glasgow, but we have to align with 1.5C – there has to be a political commitment to 1.5C. There has to be a process devised as to how to put pressure on the target countries who are not stepping up.”She said countries without adequate plans must return to the table with new plans every year, not every five years as envisaged under the Paris agreement.She also warned against people judging Cop26 a failure because the highest ambition – of fully fledged plans from 196 countries that would cut emissions by 45% – had not been met. “It’s extremely important that we do not have fatalism on Cop26, but keep hope alive,” she said. “We will see positive developments at Cop26.”  

Date: October 15, 2021Media: Gulf TodayBan Ki-Moon, The IndependentI grew up during the Korean War. Often, we had just enough to eat, but rarely enough to fill our stomachs. I was hungry all the time. Everyone was. This has given me a deep appreciation of where food comes from. Food and the food systems are paramount to all the challenges we face, especially for the people who work tirelessly to make sure we can feed ourselves and our loved ones — smallholder farmers. Around the world, there are more than 500 million smallholder farms, where the land is less than two hectares. Moreover, smallholder farmers produce 80 per cent of food while the agriculture sector provides 15 per cent of GDP and 40 per cent of jobs on average in Sub-Saharan Africa and Asia.Yet smallholder farmers, particularly women, often lack secure land tenure and access to markets and finance. They are also bearing the brunt of multiple crises of climate change, conflict, and economic downturn, as well as the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, while at the same time being overlooked in global and national policy debates on these issues. In addition, they and their children are among those most likely to experience hunger and malnutrition, trapping yet another generation in poverty.If we want a world free of hunger and poverty while adapting to and mitigating the climate crisis, we need to put smallholder farmers right at the centre of our efforts to tackle these issues and to “build back better”. Governments and international aid groups can support a new generation of climate resilient farmers by increasing financial assistance for smallholder-focused climate adaptation.With less than 10 years left to meet the targets set in the Paris Climate Agreement and to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), two of the legacies from my time as UN Secretary-General, I am calling for a new consensus with smallholder farmers that would drive a radical increase in financial aid, coherent policies, inclusive planning, technologies, and capacity-building for agricultural adaptation.A new consensus with smallholder farmers to align policies, investments, and research across a wide range of stakeholders — governments, donors, civil society, private sector, and the farmers themselves — will ensure food security, protect biodiversity, and mitigate climate emissions at the same time. The Ceres2030 report which came out last year has laid out a roadmap on how we can achieve global goals to tackle the climate crisis and end hunger by 2030. It provides new evidence on what works to empower and support small farmers grow more nutritious and climate resilient crops, access irrigation and tap into social safety nets.In addition, the recommendations from the international organisation Global Centre on Adaptation’s flagship report, “Adapt Now: A Global Call for Leadership on Climate Resilience”, are key in this regard: improving smallholder productivity, supporting farmers in managing risks from increased variability and climate shocks, addressing challenges of the most vulnerable and achieving policy coherence.Data will also be a key tool for targeting interventions among smallholder farmers. Demand driven research and innovation are essential to address these specific needs. Only 10 per cent of countries have the capacity to collect or publish sufficiently disaggregated data on food systems. To channel resources efficiently we strongly rely on organisations like CGIAR to gather and translate data on the specific needs of smallholder farmers as environmental conditions continue to evolve. According to a 2020 report by the UN International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) and the Climate Policy Initiative (CPI), smallholder farmers only receive 1.7 per cent of total global climate finance. Their actual financial need is estimated at $240bn (£175.2bn) per year globally, but the existing climate finance for them only reached $10bn (£7.3bn) in 2018. So, there is a huge gap.Channeling more funding to agricultural research and innovation through global networks such as CGIAR, and through joint initiatives such as the Africa Adaptation Acceleration Program (AAAP) and Agriculture Innovation Mission for Climate (AIM4C) will accelerate the development of technologies and crops that can be adopted by even the poorest farmers.More funding for smallholder farmers would ensure access to climate-resilient crops that can better cope with stresses such as drought, heat, flooding, salinity, and changes to the growing season. It will empower the excluded and the marginalized — women, indigenous peoples, pastoralists, fisherfolk, just to name a few — so they can produce the food we consume and the healthy diets we need with dignity and in a manner that is environmentally friendly and sustainable.The world has done much to reduce hunger but figures over the last few years show hunger levels are on the rise again globally — the latest UN annual hunger report showed one in 10 people went to bed hungry in 2020, a jump of around 118 million from the previous year — and the climate crisis poses a mounting threat to food production and distribution.

Date: September 01, 2021Media: IntradoWhen: Monday 6th SeptemberWhere: Floating Office Rotterdam, Rotterdam Rijnhaven and virtual accessA group of global leaders composed of the heads of key international organizations – including the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, International Monetary Fund, World Trade Organization, European Bank for Reconstruction and Development and African Development Bank – will gather in Rotterdam on Monday 6th September following an invitation from Ban Ki-moon, 8th Secretary-General and Chair of the Global Center on Adaptation (GCA) and Patrick Verkooijen CEO of GCA to participate in a High-Level Dialogue on Climate Adaptation. The Dialogue, taking place just weeks before the COP26 UN climate change conference in Glasgow, will hammer out a clear call to action for governments, policy-makers and the public on what COP26 must deliver if communities are to be kept safe from the accelerating climate impacts in the coming decade. Felix-Antoine Tshisekedi Tshilombo, President of the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Chair of the African Union will deliver a keynote address during the Dialogue.Announcing the Global Center on Adaptation (GCA) High-Level Dialogue on COP26, Professor Patrick Verkooijen, CEO of GCA commented:“The IPCC’s new finding that warming is accelerating faster than we thought leading to earth reaching the crucial 1.5℃ warming limit in the early 2030s, a decade earlier than expected, puts Hurricane Ida in a painful new light. It’s clear that we are now living in the eye of the storm -. adapting the world to our climate emergency is essential for our safety even as we continue to tackle a global pandemic. COP26 in Glasgow will fail if it does not put adaptation on an equal footing with emission reductions.”Following the Dialogue, the Global Center on Adaptation’s new floating office in Rotterdam moored at Rijnhaven, a historical port on the south bank of Rotterdam’s Nieuwe Maas River will be inaugurated by His Majesty King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands. This will be followed by a press conference where the GCA will issue a communique endorsed by Ban Ki-moon, 8th Secretary-General and Chair of the GCA, Kristalina Georgieva, Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund and Professor Patrick Verkooijen, CEO of the GCA. Global leaders including Patricia Espinosa, Executive Secretary of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change; Akinwumi Adesina, President of the African Development Bank; Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Director-General of the World Trade Organizations and Feike Sijbesma, UN High-Level Climate Champion on Private Sector for COP26 will also speak during the press conference.The GCA’s new floating global center is emblematic of the future solutions that will need to be implemented to cope with the climate crisis. Off grid and carbon-neutral, the building is designed to showcase innovative architectural solutions to urban planning that accommodates rising sea levels. With its own solar energy source and water-based heat-exchange system, it’s completely self-sufficient. It is also an outstanding example of circular design with all the materials used in its construction completely reusable and recyclable.Schedule1030 CET - Opening remarks during the High-Level Dialogue. A communique will be released to the media following the High Level Dialogue.1645 CET - Inauguration of the world’s largest floating office, the new headquarters of the Global Center on Adaptation, by His Majesty King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands (for more information about Floating Office Rotterdam please download the factsheet https://we.tl/t-KNOY0L3WUC)1800 CET - Physical and virtual press conference with the following individuals who participated in the High Level Dialogue on Climate Adaptation:Patrick Verkooijen, CEO, Global Center on AdaptationBan Ki-moon, 8th Secretary-General of the United Nations and Chair of the Global Center on AdaptationKristalina Georgieva, Managing Director of the International Monetary FundPatricia Espinosa, Executive Secretary of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate ChangeAkinwumi Adesina, President of the African Development BankNgozi Okonjo-Iweala, Director-General of the World Trade OrganizationsFeike Sijbesma, UN High-Level Climate Champion on Private Sector for COP26Media accreditationFor media accreditation to attend the press conference you are invited to apply to the Global Center on Adaptation no later than Thursday 2nd September. Please send accreditation and interview requests to alex.gee@gca.org.You may also tune into the press conference virtually – please specify if this is your preference in your accreditation request so we can provide you with the link.If the number of accreditation requests exceeds the available spaces for media representatives, a selection will be made. Media will be informed about their application request no later than Friday September 3rd.Media representatives are informed that a security check will take place and security personnel will examine equipment and personal effects carried onto the site.Notes to EditorsAbout the Global Center on AdaptationThe Global Center on Adaptation (GCA) is an international organization which works as a solutions broker to accelerate action and support for adaptation solutions, from the international to the local, in partnership with the public and private sector, to ensure we learn from each other and work together for a climate resilient future. Founded in 2018, the GCA is hosted by the Netherlands, working from its headquarters in Rotterdam with a knowledge and research hub based in Groningen. The GCA has a worldwide network of regional offices in Abidjan, Ivory Coast; Dhaka, Bangladesh and Beijing, China. Through this evolving network of offices and global and regional GCA teams, the organization engages in high-level policy activities, new research contributions, communications, and technical assistance to governments and the private sector.

Ban Ki-moon led the United Nations from 2007 to 2016, an era that saw the rise of multilateral climate action culminating in the Paris Climate Agreement.Since leaving the U.N., he has used his leadership positions at civil society groups to continue his campaign against climate change. He founded the Ban Ki-moon Centre for Global Citizens in 2018 and is a deputy chair at The Elders, a multilateral convention of senior political and civic leaders brought together by Nelson Mandela. One of his driving messages is that the U.S. and other rich nations need to do more individually and collectively through the World Bank and other international institutions.His message is resonating. On July 22, U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen convened multilateral development banks to discuss how to align their portfolios with the goals of the Paris agreement and mobilize more private capital to combat climate change.Ban spoke with POLITICO. This interview has been edited for length and clarity.In your new book, you called climate activism one of your proudest moments. Why is that?Climate change has been approaching much, much faster than what we might have thought. Before I became the secretary-general, there were some science and climate skeptics from European countries like the United Kingdom. That really was a cold shower on our efforts. I really worked very hard to erase that kind of misperception. These days, nobody believes in climate skeptics because there have been so many unexpected natural disasters.Yet the skeptics remain.Particularly your President Trump, he was following the skeptics. His withdrawal from this hard-fought, hard-negotiated international agreement, the Paris Agreement, was very much irresponsible. I left the United Nations before his administration began, but I have been very critical that his decision was politically very short-sighted, economically irresponsible, scientifically very wrong. I warned that he will be standing on the cold side of history.I am very encouraged that President Biden has taken as his first presidential action to rejoin the Paris climate change agreement. People are now waking up. I was also encouraged by the G-7 countries, their meetings in the United Kingdom recently.You began this conversation in 2006, 2007. Did you think we\'d be further along by now?We are much better now than 2007. It was very difficult to [have a] dialogue with President Bush.I first met him in the White House, it was Jan. 16, 2007, if my memory serves me correct. I was warned by my staff, please don’t raise this issue. He’s not believing in climate change.I raised the subject and his immediate reaction was the U.S. is ready to do as much as China. He was pointing fingers at China.I invited him to a summit meeting. Of course, he agreed. Then he would not deliver his statement in the general assembly. That was embarrassing, very embarrassing. The president was in New York, participating in the United Nations General Assembly meeting but would not say anything.Bush later changed his position. He invited you to lunch just before he left the White House.Later on, after my retirement, I met him briefly on occasion and I really thanked him for his leadership on climate. It is a very interesting story. In the end, I got President Bush in this climate agreement.Fast forward to today. Is it time to ban financing and subsidies of fossil fuels, especially where the World Bank and IMF are concerned?I think it is necessary. There are many countries who have been financing [fossil fuels] through public financial organizations. Unfortunately, my own country, Korea, was one of them. I raised this issue very strongly with the office of the president of Korea and other ministers. Now Korea has decided not to provide any public financial support, except those which are now going on.I made a strong case that Korea must phase out all its 16 coal-fired power stations by 2045. That’s a policy now. I also recommended strongly that the old internal combustion engine cars must not be produced by 2035. It is now government policy.How do you assess the current situation globally?Unfortunately or fortunately, the Covid-19 crisis has made people realize much more seriously the importance of the interrelationship between climate and all these pandemics. Nature has its own way.Let\'s talk about the World Bank, the largest source of climate finance to developing countries. Are rich member nations stepping up? What should bank President David Malpass be doing?Mr. Malpass was critical of the World Bank before he was appointed as president and also because of his alignment with his boss, former President Trump. So there was some concern of how much the World Bank would be doing.Is the World Bank mobilizing enough money?Of course the World Bank is not printing money. I think they need to reach out to rich countries to contribute much more money. Without money, the World Bank has no power.What should Malpass do next?There\'s a lot of talk that we have to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, but you\'re not investing for the future wisely, investing in wise ways, in adaptive activities like infrastructure for small farmers, for water, green energy. For small island developing countries, even planting mangroves. It’s very small, but that will help.$100 billion was committed by the United States and Japan and European Union, and that has not been kept.You think the U.S. is not doing enough to help?That’s right. They must make up for the loss over the last four years. President Obama in 2014 promised $3 billion and paid $1 billion, and $2 billion is still pending. This is an outstanding $2 billion. The U.S. must, should lead this campaign, otherwise the European Union and other countries will not do it. I’m counting on your support.I’ll pass on that message.This is part of your responsibility, working together. I\'m a lone soldier now.Let\'s talk about the private sector. In the U.S. during the Trump administration, a lot of private companies made a lot of promises. Are they delivering?In fact, the private sectors are doing better and more than government. Government has their restrictions and laws and opposition parties. But corporations, when the owners, presidents or chairmen have conviction, they can do more.Business says it needs government leadership. In the U.S. for example, there’s resistance to massive spending and carbon pricing.We have to do twofold, threefold, tenfold investing in green energy, and make sure that the OECD countries raise their ambition by announcing a nationally determined contribution of 45 percent by 2030.Europeans are trying to lead this campaign, but my own country, Korea has not been able to do that. I’ve been in the process of trying to convince business sectors in Korea: Look, whatever you may do, if the European Union imposes a carbon tax by 2035, then whatever you manufacture, you will not be able to sell there. So it’s no use. You have to change.You’ve talked about your concern for your children.I have three children, two girls and one boy, but more important is I have four grandchildren, three granddaughters and one grandson. I am worried for them.It is us and our forefathers who have been abusing the privileges given by nature. I am also blaming political leaders. This is a sort of a presidential campaign period in Korea. I\'ve been watching the conversation today and no one is talking about it.Really? No one’s talking about climate change in the campaign?They’re talking, you know, housing prices. This is really disappointing.Has the world become more divided since you were secretary-general?On climate change they are more united. Because they have been hit, they are experiencing it by themselves. They know that climate change is now happening. At that time I was a lone voice speaking out. Convincing leaders was very difficult. One European leader I won’t name, he gave me a book about climate skeptics. He said he wrote it. Then when I was convening a summit meeting on climate, one environment minister of that country came to me and said, look, Mr. secretary-general, please do not invite my president. He will spoil your summit.I think most of the climate skeptics, they’re gone. Now people understand climate change is happening much, much faster. Pope Francis is a strong supporter. He issued his own decree.Yes, the encyclical. What did he tell you when you met him?He told me, \"God always forgives. Human beings sometimes forgive. But nature never forgives.\"

How the world treats refugees is a litmus test of our common humanity. I say that as a refugee myself, having experienced the trauma and wrenching displacement of fleeing my home during the Korean War, when I was a child. The human suffering that I witnessed as I fled my burning village with my parents has stayed with me throughout my life.It’s something that our leaders acknowledged 70 years ago this month, when the 1951 UN Refugee Convention was signed — a landmark treaty that has formed the backbone of international protection for people fleeing persecution in their own country, and should remain the lodestar guiding all national and international policies.The treaty is just as essential today as it was seven decades ago. The UNHCR’s latest Global Trends report found that a record 82 million people were forcibly displaced from their homes in 2020, including 26 million refugees who have fled their own country. These numbers are not going to decline as long as conflict and instability persist.Yet the guarantees in the 1951 Convention are being ignored. As forced displacement reaches unprecedented levels, the reaction in many prosperous countries in the Global North continues to be driven by fear and self-interest. Populist, nationalist and sometimes openly racist politicians have manipulated people’s fear and ignorance of refugees for electoral gain, leaving refugees and migrants even more marginalized and vulnerable to abuse, including physical attacks.Instead of offering protection, some of those in power want to shut down asylum routes, introduce punitive measures against those exercising their right to seek asylum through irregular routes, and forcibly return people to situations of uncertainty.Over the last five years, Afghan refugees whose asylum claims have been rejected have been forcibly returned to Kabul from the Netherlands, Sweden, Germany, Austria and Finland, during periods of acute insecurity and war. The threat of a renewed takeover of Afghanistan by the Taliban will create a further surge of refugees, including women and girls who face the brutality of that regime.Denmark is currently reassessing the temporary residency permits for Syrian refugees who originate from Damascus and its environs, stating it is now safe to return to those areas despite the repressive nature of the Assad regime.Other countries don’t even let displaced people stay within their borders while they seek asylum. Australia maintains its longstanding discriminatory policy towards refugees and asylum seekers who arrive irregularly by boat, forcibly transferring and detaining them in Papua New Guinea and on Nauru island. It has had a devastating impact on the physical and mental health of those individuals and families. This type of policy is an affront to human dignity.The U.K.’s new Nationality and Borders Bill also provides for off-shoring of asylum-seekers, following the damaging path set by Australia. It further proposes a two-tier system which would discriminate against those who arrive through irregular routes, even if their asylum claim is successful, effectively condemning them to a life of limbo with reduced rights. If implemented, the proposals would set a dangerous precedent in Europe – one which other European states should firmly reject.Such measures, designed to avoid or shift responsibility, are contrary to the 1951 Convention, the Global Refugee Compact and core principles of global responsibility-sharing and solidarity.The Global North’s regressive asylum policies stand in stark contrast to the generosity of developing countries, who continue to host 86% of the world’s refugees. For example, in February 2021, Colombia granted a 10-year protection status to 2 million Venezuelan refugees and migrants in the country, enabling them to integrate and plan for their future. Such examples put wealthier countries to shame.It is incumbent on these countries to step up and deliver a global resettlement programme on a meaningful scale. President Biden’s decision to restore U.S. resettlement levels with a goal of 125,000 in the next fiscal year is a welcome development. The Elders support UNHCR’s call for the E.U. to commit to meet at least 40% of the global target to resettle 1 million refugees by 2028, equalling a pledge of 36,000 for 2022. This should be followed by setting ambitious multi-year targets in line with this commitment.When I was U.N. Secretary-General, I met so many children around the world, particularly in Africa and the Middle East, who reminded me of my own painful experiences as a child displaced by war. For them, and for so many others, I remain determined to keep the plight of refugees high on the global agenda.

Published On:  February 5, 2020 02:02 PM NPT By: RepublicaSOUTH KOREA, Feb 5: Former United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki Moon has bagged the Sunhak Peace Prize during the World Summit 2020 General Assembly held in Seoul on Wednesday.The assembly was organized to celebrate the 100th birthday of Dr. Sun Myung Moon on Tuesday.Around 6,000 distinguished guests from home and abroad, including Dr. Hak Ja Han Moon, co-founder of the Universal Peace Federation (UPF), Hun Sen, Prime Minister of Cambodia, Brigi Rafini, prime minister of Niger, and around 150 former and current heads of state from 120 countries participated in the program.In his speech during the assembly, the former UN Secretary General said \"I can feel the passion for world peace at World Summit 2020. I firmly believe that this summit will serve as a great springboard for gathering the board, substantial support of the international community in achieving this vision for the sake of a unified Korea, and for the sake of the international community more largely.”Ban said in his welcoming speech “Among the world’s thorny issues such as exclusive nationalism, peaceful unification of the Korean Peninsula and environmental issues, the World Summit 2020 is indeed a timely conference.”Furthermore, he emphasized that “As the natural environment is becoming the silent harbinger of the world’s end, I concluded the Paris Agreement as the first agenda to be done during my tenure at the U.N. We need more worldwide efforts to make this realization. Therefore, this summit will be a significant opportunity to bring substantive support for the peaceful reunification on the Korean Peninsula and world peace centered on co-existence, cooperation, and prosperity.”Moon also said that he would continue to work for international peace and humanity till his last breath. 

NAGOYA, Japan — President Macky Sall of Senegal and Lutheran pastor Munib Younan were awarded the Sunhak Peace Prize Saturday for their work promoting peace and prosperity in Africa and the Middle East.The Sunhak Peace Prize Committee also chose former U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon for its Founders Award, citing his service with the international body and his commitment to addressing climate change.The fourth peace prize awards were announced by Hak Ja Han Moon, widow of the Rev. Sun Myung Moon and leader of the Unification movement that arose from the Unification Church he founded in 1954. She is the head of the Universal Peace Federation, which held its leadership summit and conference this weekend in Nagoya, Japan. The peace prize committee honored Mr. Sall for “spreading mature democracy to neighboring countries in the African continent, where dictatorship and poverty are still rampant, by successfully shortening the presidential term [from seven years to five] and leading an economic revival through transparent policy.”The committee noted that Mr. Sall’s two-phase economic program has stabilized Senegal’s growth at around 6%.Bishop Younan, an Arab Christian born in Jerusalem, served as president of the Lutheran World Federation from 2010 to 2017, where he “led efforts toward religious harmony on a global scale,” the committee said. He is credited with helping to foster a closer dialogue with the Catholic Church and devoting his life to promoting harmony among Jews, Christians and Muslims.They will share the $1 million prize.Mr. Ban will receive $500,000 as the winner of the Founders Award at a ceremony in Seoul in February, to mark the 100th anniversary of the birth of Rev. Moon, whose ministry grew from a tiny, embattled church in his native South Korea to a global spiritual movement and an affiliated commercial empire comprising real estate, manufacturing and agricultural operations, and media properties including The Washington Times.He was chosen for “his devotion in leading the U.N. toward a sustainable world in the face of unprecedented global challenges and crises, such as the global economic crisis, climate change, terrorism and refugee issues during his term,” the committee said.The laureates were selected from a total of more than 80 nominees worldwide.Original article is available in the link below:https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2019/oct/5/senegal-president-lutheran-pastor-win-peace-prizes/