Media Update: United Nations Pakistan, 18 October 2025

THE SECRETARY-GENERAL

MESSAGE FOR WORLD STATISTICS DAY

20 October 2025

World Statistics Day is an occasion marked once every five years to spotlight the vital role of statistics in helping to address the challenges of our time.

The Sustainable Development Goals have helped transform statistical systems and increase the availability of data.  In times of crisis, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, statistical systems proved their resilience, delivering the data that guided life-saving decisions as well as social and economic recovery. 

As we confront increasingly inter-connected global challenges – from climate change to rising inequalities – timely, accurate, disaggregated, and independent data has never been more essential. 

This year’s observance reaffirms our commitment to the Fundamental Principles of Official Statistics: impartiality, professionalism, and commitment to scientific principles and professional ethics.  Citizens everywhere deserve trustworthy data to inform public policy and strengthen accountability.

Let us use this day to champion the power of data in advancing sustainable development for all.

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FAO

PRESS RELEASE

FAO and the Government of Balochistan Celebrate World Food Day 2025 with the Inauguration of 400 FAO Constructed Animal Shelters

Quetta – Oct 17, 2025: The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations (UN), in collaboration with the Government of Balochistan, commemorated World Food Day (WFD) 2025 – “Hand in Hand for Better Food and a Better Future” by celebrating the construction of 99 Climate-Adaptive and 300 Emergency Animal Shelters across the province.

The inauguration underscored FAO’s collaboration with the European Union, the Government of Japan and the Government of Balochistan to promote climate-adaptive and sustainable livestock systems that improve productivity and strengthen rural livelihoods — echoing the spirit of World Food Day 2025 in building a more food-secure future.

To mark the occasion, the inauguration of the Climate-Adaptive Animal Shelter in Killi Gul Muhammad, Quetta was held, and was jointly led by Mr. Tayyab Lehri, Secretary, Livestock and Dairy Development Department, and Mr. Waleed Mahdi, Head of Office, FAO Balochistan, in the presence of Dr. Farooq Tareen, Director General Livestock, agriculture and livestock officers, and community members.

Mr. Tayyab Lehri, Secretary, Livestock and Dairy Development Department, and chief guest of the event, said, “Livestock is the backbone of Balochistan’s rural economy, and the Government greatly values the partnership with FAO and the European Union in building resilience at the community level. As we mark World Food Day 2025, these climate-adaptive shelters stand as a testament to our joint efforts to safeguard animal health and productivity while enhancing farmers’ capacity to cope with climate shocks.”

Mr. Waleed Mehdi, Head of Office, FAO Balochistan remarked, “As we commemorate World Food Day 2025, FAO reaffirms its dedication to building climate resilience, enhancing animal husbandry practices, and promoting inclusive and sustainable livestock systems. Together with the European Union and the Government of Balochistan, we are working toward a more secure and sustainable future for our livestock-dependent communities.”

Through the generous funding of the European Union (EU), FAO under the Revival of Balochistan Water Resources Programme (RBWRP) has provided livestock extension services to equip farmers with technical guidance on animal husbandry, nutrition, and health management. The programme has supported 490 farming households with high-quality fodder seeds covering 1,700 acres and distributed over 100,000 fruit and fodder plants across target districts to enhance feed security and promote ecosystem restoration. It has also introduced modern livestock and farm tools — including veterinary ultrasound machines, weighing scales, egg incubators, butter churners, electric shearing machines, weaving looms, and improved fodder varieties — enabling communities to protect their animals, boost productivity, and strengthen resilience against climate shocks.

FAO, the European Union, and the Government of Balochistan, under the recently concluded Growth for Rural Advancement and Sustainable Progress (GRASP) project, jointly facilitated large-scale deworming and vaccination campaigns for over 384,000 small ruminants, benefiting 4,000 farmers, including 1,000 women. The project also supported value addition and agribusiness development in the livestock and horticulture sectors by equipping farmers and entrepreneurs with modern technologies such as cabinet dryers for grapes, automatic date-pitting machines, and onion graders to enhance processing, reduce post-harvest losses, and improve rural incomes.

The RBWRP represents a transformative model for climate-resilient agriculture in Balochistan — restoring traditional water systems, improving rangeland and livestock productivity, and empowering rural communities to build sustainable, low water use economy for food-secure futures. Its interventions include the rehabilitation of traditional Karez and spate irrigation systems, construction of climate-adaptive and emergency animal shelters, promotion of sustainable rangeland and watershed management, and capacity building through Farmer Field Schools — collectively enhancing water availability, crop productivity, and animal health to help communities adapt to climate shocks.

UNDP

PRESS RELEASE

Pakistan’s first National Judicial Educators Conference convenes judicial academies & key stakeholders from across the country

Islamabad, 11 October 2025 – In a landmark step to advance judicial education in Pakistan, the Federal Judicial Academy (FJA), in partnership with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and funded by the European Union (EU) under the Deliver Justice Project, convened the country’s first-ever National Judicial Educators Conference in Islamabad.

The two-day conference brought together 37 judicial educators from across the country, creating Pakistan’s first dedicated platform that aims to promote excellence in judicial education at both national and provincial levels.

In the opening ceremony, the Honorable Chief Justice of the High Court of Balochistan, Justice Rozi Khan Barrech, emphasized the significance of this platform, “This National Judicial Educators Conference provides an important platform to strengthen coordination among the academies, share experiences, and devise a collective vision for the future of judicial training in Pakistan. I expect consensus from the learned participants to develop a plan for stronger, more effective, and more coordinated judicial academies across our country. Balochistan will be the first province to implement the same.”

Over two days of in-depth discussions, participants exchanged ideas, shared challenges, and explored innovative approaches to make judicial education more responsive to the country’s justice system and needs. The deliberations culminated in the adoption of a joint action plan to modernize training practices and strengthen institutions that deliver justice.

Speaking on the occasion, the Director General of the Federal Judicial Academy, Mr. Hayat Ali Shah, underscored the importance of judicial education, “Judicial education is not a leisure; it is a necessity. Supervision may secure compliance, but education inspires conviction. If we truly wish to transform perception into respect, and compliance into conscience, we must redefine, restructure, and recommit ourselves to the true spirit of judicial education — embracing its full scope, despite its limitations.”

Mr. Kaiser Ishaque, Assistant Resident Representative, UNDP Pakistan, highlighted the broader vision of the partnership. “At UNDP, we believe capacity building is as much about strengthening institutions as it is about empowering individuals. When institutions grow more resilient, their impact becomes more sustainable, and justice reaches the people who need it most.” He thanked the FJA, provincial judicial academies, high courts, and the EU for their partnership and funding to UNDP in advancing the rule of law through the Deliver Justice Project.

The conference was concluded by Honorable Mr. Justice Mian Gul Hassan Aurangzeb, Judge, Supreme Court of Pakistan, and Advisor to the Board of Governors, FJA of the Federal Judicial Academy. His Lordship highlighted, “Judicial education must evolve in tandem with the demands of justice. As educators and judges, we bear the responsibility to ensure that learning within our institutions translates into fairness, empathy, and excellence in our courts. This Conference marks not just a gathering of educators, but a reaffirmation of our shared commitment to justice that is informed, independent, and inclusive.” He also commended the collaborative efforts of FJA, provincial judicial academies, and development partners - UNDP and the EU - in elevating the standards of judicial learning nationwide.

The two-day conference ended with a Declaration on Judicial Education, a collective pledge by all judicial academies to work together, exchange knowledge, and build stronger, more inclusive justice institutions in Pakistan.

Contact Details: 

For additional information, please contact: Fizza Bangash at fizza.bangash@undp.org or +92 (51) 835 5631

About the Deliver Justice Project:

The 20 Million Euro  “Deliver Justice Programme”, is funded by the European Union and aims to support reform processes to ensure the delivery of people-centered justice, enhance access to justice for all, particularly women and less privileged groups, and improve service delivery of the security sector in line with constitutional safeguards and international standards in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa including the Merged Districts and Balochistan. The programme is funded by the EU and jointly implemented by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN Women), and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC).

The UNDP Rule of Law Programme is implementing a range of interventions to enhance security and justice sector governance in Pakistan.

About UNDP:

UNDP is the leading United Nations organization fighting to end the injustice of poverty, inequality, and climate change. Working with our broad network of experts and partners in 170 countries, we help nations to build integrated, lasting solutions for people and planet.

Learn more at undp.org.