The US permanent Ambassador to the United Nations, Nikki Haley, visited Turkey and Jordan to see the humanitarian challenges both countries face and to hear possible solutions for the humanitarian situation in war-torn Syria. [...] Earlier on Tuesday, Haley visited a UNICEF treatment facility that was providing emotional support to refugee children from Syria. “Today we visited a health center that trains Syrian doctors and nurses to practice medicine in Turkey, helping their fellow refugees.” Haley wrote on Twitter.

Besides governments talking to each other in formal and informal settings, soft power is comprised of programs and policies that have an impact on people’s lives. Examples include PEPFAR (the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief), President George Bush’s signature initiative to combat the spread of HIV/AIDS; the prestigious Fulbright program, which for 71 years has brought scholars to the U.S. and sent American scholars abroad to teach and study; and our role in providing humanitarian assistance to countries in crisis. 

Nigeria’s northeast is facing a tightening hunger gap, say aid organisations, pointing to two years of missed crop harvests in what was once a breadbasket for the country, and the high likelihood of missing a third. [...] The UN says it needs $1.5 billion (€1.4 billion) in humanitarian aid this year for the Lake Chad region – which spreads across parts of Nigeria, Niger, Cameroon and Chad – and $457 million had been pledged for 2017 by late February.

The World Taekwondo Federation (WTF) has given a "wide-ranging" demonstration and seminar at the United Nations (UN) headquarters in New York City as part of celebrations for the upcoming International Day of Sport for Development and Peace. The event was jointly organised by the Permanent Mission of Monaco to the UN and Peace and Sport.

According to the Declaration, the European Union has provided more than €2.2 billion to water and sanitation projects in more than 62 countries worldwide and will continue supporting people affected by natural and man-made disasters by providing access to clean water.

Thursday, March 3, Montreal, Quebec—As the sixth anniversary of the Syrian conflict approaches, Development and Peace—Caritas Canada is pleased to announce the continued support of Global Affairs Canada for the organization’s humanitarian aid and sustainability efforts in the Middle East.

Refugees are pouring in. Bran keeps a list of why. Besides “killing and torturing” are “abduction of men, trading has stopped, no schools, looting of properties”. “It was preventive fleeing,” says Charlie Yaxley of the UN high commissioner for refugees. [...] Yet inside Uganda something extraordinary is happening. Refugees can move freely, work and own a business. “Uganda is incredibly switched on,” says Musarait Kashmiri from African Initiatives for Relief and Development, which has opened 343km of roads in Bidi Bidi. “Uganda is a showcase,” says Yaxley.