The dignity of a human being needs not to be compromised by any circumstance, this is the message that was brought to the Institute of South-South Cooperation and Development (ISSCAD) on Wednesday evening of 19th September, 2018 by the Secretary General for Humanitarian Affairs and Deputy Emergency Relief Coordinator in the United Nations Office for the coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) Ms. Ursula Mueller.

Left: Prof. FU Jun, Academic Dean, Institute of South-South Cooperation and Development

Right: Ms. Ursula Mueller, United Nations Assistant Secretary-General and Deputy Emergency Relief Coordinator

Speaking to students at Peking University, Ms. Mueller explained the role of the United Nations in ensuring that relief aid and all necessary provisions are given to people affected by conflicts or natural disasters.

The United Nations provides food and assistance to eighty million people in eighty countries, supplies vaccines to 45 per cent of the world’s children and works with 195 nations to keep the global temperature rise well below two degrees centigrade. In reference to OCHA, she explained that the organ of the UN was established in 1997 in order to respond to human crisis such as famine.

Among the success stories, she cited the severe famine that prevailed in some countries in Middle East and parts of Africa where over 20 million people were saved from hunger crisis due to UN immediate response.

In reacting to the world’s conflicts, Ms. Mueller highlighted that sometimes it is difficult to predict crisis like typhoons that affected part of China and act before the unthinkable occurs. She also cited wars that have rocked some countries that they need political intervention for the situations to normalize.

ISSCAD students

OCHA coordinates humanitarian action to ensure crisis-affected people receive the assistance and protection they need. It works to overcome obstacles that impede humanitarian assistance from reaching people affected by crises, and it provides leadership in mobilizing assistance and resources on behalf of the humanitarian system.

Speaking on behalf of ISSCAD was Academic Dean, Professor FU Jun welcomed Ms. Mueller to ISSCAD and thanked her making a historical visit to the institute.

On June 1, 2018, Mr. Jorge Chediek, Envoy of United Nations Secretary-General on South-South Cooperation and Director of United Nations Office for South-South Cooperation (UNOSSC), visited Peking University to speak on South-South Cooperation and the United Nations, and signed on behalf of UNOSSC a Memorandum of Understanding with ISSCAD. ISSCAD agreed to cooperate with UN to Support the establishment of Chairs on South-South Cooperation at Peking University and other academic institutions globally to promote frontier thinking on South-South cooperation, and provide opportunities for members of the parties to share their expertise. 

Prof. Justin Yifu Lin, on behalf of ISSCAD, and Mr. Chediek, on behalf of UNOSSC, signed a Memorandum of Understanding On June 1, 2018.

By Donasius Pathera