UN South Africa, Newsletter, December 2021

It has been seventy-six years since the United Nations Charter came into force as a vehicle of hope for a world emerging from the shadow of catastrophic conflict. The historical document called on all leaders to work together for peace, tolerance, justice, and human rights. The United Nations family in South Africa has carried this hope forward in recognition that the values that powered the UN Charter — peace, development, human rights, and opportunity for all — have no expiry date. As the year draws to a close, we take stock of our success, we heed the lessons from the challenges and opportunities we were presented, and we look forward to strengthening our work as one UN family in partnership with all stakeholders in 2022. This year has not been in without challenges, we have lost colleagues, friends and family members and many of our lives have been impacted by the pandemic. This year has been marred by a rise in gruesome cases of violence against women and children and the painful scenes that unfolded during the unrest in Gauteng and Kwa-Zulu Natal which resulted in 251 deaths and an estimated R50 billion impacts on GDP. The events that took place this year called on the UN to engage all of society to find both immediate and longer-term solutions to these issues.