4 May 2017 – Children in north-east Nigeria continue to be brutalized as a result of Boko Haram’s insurgency in the region and the ensuing conflict, a first-of-its-kind United Nations report has concluded.

“With tactics including widespread recruitment and use, abductions, sexual violence, attacks on schools and the increasing use of children in so-called ‘suicide’ attacks, Boko Haram has inflicted unspeakable horror upon the children of Nigeria’s north-east and neighbouring countries,” said Virginia Gamba, the UN Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Children and Armed Conflict, in a press release from her Office.

The report of the Secretary-General on children and armed conflict in Nigeria documents the impact on children of the severe deterioration of the security and humanitarian situation in the country between January 2013 and December 2016.

Violations committed by Boko Haram

During the reporting period, attacks by Boko Haram on communities and confrontations between the group and security forces resulted in at least 3,900 children killed and 7,300 more maimed.

Suicide attacks became the second leading cause of child casualties, accounting for over one thousand deaths and 2,100 injuries during the reporting period. The UN verified the use of 90 children for suicide bombings in Nigeria, Cameroon, Chad and Niger, the majority of whom were girls.

The UN verified the recruitment and use of 1,650 children. Testimonies from children separated from Boko Haram indicate that many were abducted, but that others joined the group due to financial incentives, peer pressure, familial ties and for ideological reasons. In some instances, parents gave up their children to obtain security guarantees or for economic gain.

The children were used in direct hostilities, for planting improvised explosive devices, to burn schools or houses and in a variety of support roles.

Schools have been targets of choice for Boko Haram and the UN estimates that 1,500 were destroyed since 2014, with at least 1,280 casualties among teachers and students.

Response to Boko Haram also raises concerns

The response to Boko Haram’s insurgency also generated protection concerns, including allegations of extra judicial killings.

The UN documented the recruitment and use of 228 children, including some as young as nine by the Civilian Joint Task Force (CJTF), created in Borno state to assist the Nigerian Security Forces.

Children were used mainly for intelligence-related purposes, in search operations, night patrols, for crowd control and to guard posts.

She urged all parties to abide by their obligations under international humanitarian, human rights and refugee law and to ensure civilians are protected during armed clashes.

4 May 2017 – Speaking to the press during his mission to Ethiopia, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights today highlighted the need for greater and freer civic space, with “broader latitude for the contributions of critical or dissenting views” to decision-making in the country.

“All governments need to be held to the mark by independent media and the vital action of civil society and human rights defenders,” High Commissioner Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein said at a press conference in the capital, Addis Ababa.

“I am convinced the Ethiopian Government will find its most important and productive investment will be in the rights of the people, which build strong and safe societies.”

In his remarks, the UN rights chief hailed the contributions of the Horn of Africa country ranging from its contributions to UN peacekeeping efforts as well as its commitment to protect the human rights of its people as illustrated by its accession to a number of human rights treaties and their reflection in the Ethiopian constitution.

He also expressed that the work of the Ethiopian Human Rights Commission was heartening and called on the Government to continue further steps to grant the body more independence.

However, speaking on the unrest in the country in November 2015 and August 2016, and the response of the security forces, Mr. Zeid urged the authorities to allow access to UN human rights officials to visit the affected region and establish the facts.

“The extremely large number of arrests – over 26,000 – suggests it is unlikely rule of law guarantees have been observed in every case. I believe my staff ought to be given access to the affected areas, and I renew my request,” he added, noting that he would continue to follow-up on the case.

The High Commissioner also spoke on the importance of economic, social and cultural rights and stressed that progress on these rights would translate into civil and political rights advances.

He also offered his support and that of his Office, OHCHR, to the Government and the people of Ethiopia in confronting the challenges posed by the drought plaguing large parts of the region.

SEE ALSO: As new drought hits Ethiopia, UN urges support for Government’s ‘remarkable’ efforts

During his visit, High Commissioner Zeid met with a number of senior Ethiopian officials, including the Prime Minister, Hailemariam Desalegn, Ministers, legislators, and human rights officials and defenders.

Also, while in Ethiopia, the UN top human rights official signed a Memorandum of Intent with the Government to strengthen OHCHR Regional Office in Addis Ababa programmes on capacity building for stakeholders across the region, including Ethiopia.

During his mission, Mr. Zeid also met with Chairperson of the African Union Commission, Moussa Faki Mahamat, and other senior African Union (AU) officials, with whom he discussed human rights priorities with the AU, as the regional bloc’s new leadership develops its vision and frameworks for impact across the continent.

4 May 2017 – As a step towards making some of the most expensive treatments for cancer more widely available in low- and middle-income countries, the World Health Organization (WHO) said today that it will launch a pilot project for prequalifying so-called “biosimilars,” or lower cost drugs.

Biotherapeutic medicines, which are produced from biological sources, such as cells rather than synthesised chemicals, are important treatments for some cancers and other non-communicable diseases. Like generic medicines, biosimilars, which are usually manufactured by other companies once the product’s original patent has expired, can be much less expensive versions of innovator biotherapeutics.

“Innovator biotherapeutic products are often too expensive for many countries, so biosimilars are a good opportunity to expand access and support countries to regulate and use these medicines,” said Dr. Marie-Paule Kieny, WHO Assistant Director General for Health Systems and Innovation, in a press statement.

In September, the UN health agency will invite manufacturers to submit applications for prequalification of biosimilar versions of two products in the WHO Essential Medicines List: rituximab (for non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma and chronic lymphocytic leukemia), and trastuzumab (to treat breast cancer).

The decision comes after a two-day meeting in Geneva between WHO, national regulators, pharmaceutical industry groups, patient and civil society groups, payers and policymakers to discuss ways to increase access to biotherapeutic medicines. WHO also plans to explore options for prequalifying insulin.

“Biosimilars could be game-changers for access to medicines for certain complex conditions,” said Dr. Suzanne Hill, WHO’s Director of Essential Medicines and Health Products. “But they need to be regulated appropriately to ensure therapeutic value and patient safety.”

According to WHO, if it finds that biosimilars submitted for prequalification are comparable in terms of quality, safety and efficacy to originator products, it will list the medications and become eligible for procurement by UN agencies. As many low- and middle-income countries rely on WHO prequalification before buying medicines, an additional benefit could be to increase competition and further reduce the price of medicines.

WHO will also review its 2009 Guidelines on the evaluation of similar biotherapeutic products to ensure that WHO’s guidance to national regulatory authorities reflects recent evidence and experience.

Increased use of biosimilars will also require patients and their physicians to understand and trust that the benefits of this type of medicine substantially outweigh any risks. WHO will be looking to countries with positive experience of biosimilars and partners for support in educating prescribers and patients on their benefits and in advocating for greater awareness of biosimilars.

In addition, WHO will advocate for fairer prices for all biotherapeutics to ensure that these treatments can truly benefit public health. This will include support to countries to develop price-setting strategies that foster sustainable markets to deliver treatments to patients, savings to payers and incentives to producers to keep manufacturing the medicines needed.