Governments around the world have been at the forefront in the fight against global crises, including the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. However, the disruptive nature of the COVID-19 crisis has exposed a deeper level of vulnerability in our communities, by creating unprecedented socio-economic and cultural implications. During the crisis, public servants have been faced with the unparalleled urgency to formulate new ways of thinking, adapt to new realities and prepare for the unknown future.

Due to this urgent need to support Government officials, UNITAR’s Division for People and Social Inclusion is launching its new course on Monday the 2nd of November 2020, entitled: ‘Crisis Management for Public Officials: The Skills Necessary to Effectively Manage a Crisis and Continually Deliver to the People you Serve’ (also known as: ‘Crisis Management for Public Officials: Basic Skills’).

19 October 2020, New York, USA. – In parallel with the environmental objectives set forth by the United Nations as it celebrates its historic 75th Anniversary, the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) New York Office and the Yale Center for Environmental Law & Policy hosted a training workshop for UN delegates and interested participants, entitled “Achieving Sustainability Through Metrics” on 15 October 2020. As with the other workshops, this session took place in an online format attracting over 60 participants from all over the world.

19 October 2020, New York, USA (Virtual) – The United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) New York office launched a series of training on Monday, 19 October catered for the members of the Ministry of foreign Affairs of Ireland. The purpose of the training is to prepare the delegates for the work and the responsibilities of the Security Council. Ireland was elected as a member of the Council in June 2020 by the members of the General Assembly along with India, Norway, Mexico and Kenya. Ireland will serve a two-year term in the Security Council, starting 1 January 2021.

16 October 2020, Geneva, Switzerland – UNOSAT and UNDP, longstanding partners, are cooperating on a new satellite imagery analysis application, through the production of maps used in the validation of the civil and electoral registries in Vanuatu’s 83 islands.

October 2020, Geneva, Switzerland - New digital innovations have the potential to transform the way policing is delivered. This conference will bring together industry, government, and academic experts from the technological, security, and investigations industry to discuss and present the new technological innovations that have applications in the areas of crime prevention and control.

14 October 2020, Geneva, Switzerland – The United Nation’s Operational Programme for Satellite Analysis and Applied Research (UNOSAT) remotely joined the training on Information Management led by UNITAR Division for Peace. This training was delivered for the Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF) in September 2020 in Chad.

13 October 2020, Costa Rica, New York, and Geneva – The United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) and the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA) represented by the Executive Director, Mr. Nikhil Seth, and the Director-General, Mr. Manuel Otero, respectively, participated in the first virtual signature of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) together with the Head of UNITAR New York Office, Mr. Marco Suazo.

5-12 October 2020, New York, USA (Virtual) – The United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) delivered a six-day training for Mexico, the newly elected member of the Security Council. Mexico was elected as a member of the Security Council in June 2020 by the members of the General Assembly along with India, Norway, Ireland and Kenya. Mexico will serve a two-year term in the Security Council, starting 1 January 2021.

28 September – 2 October 2020, New York, USA (Virtual) – The United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) continued its training series for the newly elected members of the Security Council. On October 2020, UNITAR successfully completed its five-day virtual training for the delegates from the Permanent Mission of Kenya. Kenya was elected as a member of the Security Council in June 2020 by the members of the General Assembly along with India, Norway, Ireland and Mexico. Kenya will serve a two-year term in the Security Council starting 1 January 2021.

5 October 2020, Geneva, Switzerland – UNITAR, in partnership with the Geneva-Tsinghua Initiative, the University of Geneva and the Tsinghua University, launch the SDG Innovation Bootcamps, a series of short programmes (online or hybrid) aimed at a new generation of impact entrepreneurs, willing to collectively act in order to identify, delineate and address outstanding challenges for the SDGs, through open innovation.