29 September 2026
On 29 September 2026 the UN refugee agency UNHCR reported that 8.3 million refugees and forcibly displaced people are at risk of losing vital assistance because of funding cuts.
Available funding fell from $5.178 billion in 2024 to $3.932 billion in 2025.
By July 2026 the agency had received only 32 per cent of the $8.5 billion it needed for the year.
In Afghanistan cash grants for returnees were cut from $375 per person to $170 per household, and only 175 households received reintegration grants in 2026 against 5,300 in 2024.
In Chad registration delays affect 319,000 refugees, while in Ethiopia safe houses for survivors of gender-based violence fell from 29 to 13.
UNHCR cut its workforce by one third in 2025 and closed offices in 140 locations, and project-specific funding rose from 19 per cent in 2022 to 51 per cent in 2026.
Dominique Hyde, UNHCR's Director of External Relations, said that below a certain threshold the system does not shrink, it fails.
People at risk:
8.3 million
Funding received by July 2026:
32 per cent of $8.5 billion
Offices closed:
140 locations
Why it matters for exams: Humanitarian funding figures and UNHCR's mandate are recurring international-organisation questions.
Kerala PSCUPSC
29 September 2026
The International Day of Awareness of Food Loss and Waste was observed on 29 September 2026, led by the UN Environment Programme and the Food and Agriculture Organization.
The 2026 theme links food loss and waste to forest protection and sustainable agrifood systems.
More than one billion meals are left uneaten every day worldwide.
Food loss and waste accounts for 8-10 per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions, largely as methane released in landfills.
More than $1 trillion is lost globally every year through food loss and waste, while 2.6 billion people cannot afford a healthy diet rich in fruits and vegetables.
UNEP says every dollar invested in prevention saves cities $8 and households $84.
A cooperative of 179 farmers near Nairobi was losing up to 40 per cent of its crops after harvest until cold-storage equipment was provided.
Meals uneaten daily:
over one billion
Share of global emissions:
8-10%
Annual economic loss:
more than $1 trillion
Why it matters for exams: UN observance days, their lead agencies and food-waste figures are frequently asked.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSC
29 September 2026
The UN General Assembly held a high-level plenary meeting on 29 September 2026 to mark the International Day for the Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons.
About 12,400 nuclear weapons remain in existence despite decades of reduction efforts.
The meeting closed the General Assembly's High-Level Week.
The eleventh Review Conference of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons ended on 22 May 2026 without consensus on a final declaration.
Strikes on nuclear infrastructure in Iran and in Ukraine were cited as compounding present risks.
Nuclear weapons have been used in war only twice, on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August 1945.
Nuclear weapons remaining:
about 12,400
NPT Review Conference:
eleventh, ended 22 May 2026 without consensus
Why it matters for exams: Warhead counts, the NPT review cycle and UN disarmament observances are standard exam material.
Kerala PSCUPSC
29 September 2026
Speaking on 29 September 2026, WHO said early access to care and reliable oxygen are decisive for the survival of Ebola patients in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
The outbreak, declared in May 2026, is caused by Bundibugyo virus and has reached 8,067 confirmed cases and 3,901 deaths, a case fatality rate above 48 per cent.
It has spread to seven of the DRC's 26 provinces and 63 health zones, with Bunia, capital of Ituri province, as the epicentre.
Treatment capacity has been expanded to more than 1,600 beds across 50 treatment centres, with plans to exceed 2,000 beds.
Nearly 400 health workers have been trained, including through a training hub set up in Bunia.
20,000 doses of the Ervebo vaccine, which is effective against Ebola Zaire, have been allocated for a research vaccination programme in Ituri; there is no approved vaccine against Ebola Bundibugyo.
Dr Janet Diaz of WHO's Health Emergencies Programme said oxygen remains unavailable or unreliable in many health facilities, especially in emergency settings.
Confirmed cases:
8,067
Deaths:
3,901
Case fatality rate:
over 48 per cent
Treatment beds:
more than 1,600 in 50 centres
Why it matters for exams: Ebola virus species, case fatality rates and the Ervebo vaccine are frequently tested health-in-news topics.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSC
29 September 2026
United States forces left their last bases in Iraq under a withdrawal deadline of Wednesday 30 September 2026, ending the deployment of the US-led coalition whose operation against ISIL was first launched in 2015.
The withdrawal was agreed in 2024 under President Joe Biden and carried out by Donald Trump's administration.
Around 2,500 US troops had been stationed in Iraq in recent years, and 4,500 Americans died during more than two decades of war.
In the wake of the withdrawal the two countries appear to be reverting to the 2008 Strategic Framework and Security Agreement, signed under President George W Bush, which pledges continued, if non-binding, US security support for Iraq.
Iraq is set to hold four Sovereignty Days, a national holiday marking the complete withdrawal of US troops.
Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi said Iraq is striving to ensure that the state is the ultimate decision-maker in matters of peace and war and that weapons remain in the hands of its constitutional institutions, and that the relationship with strategic partners is moving from military cooperation to economic and development cooperation.
The government pushed back an initial 30 September 2026 deadline to June 2027 for bringing all weapons under state control.
Withdrawal deadline:
30 September 2026
Troops stationed recently:
around 2,500
Framework now governing ties:
2008 Strategic Framework and Security Agreement
Why it matters for exams: West Asian security arrangements and the end of long foreign military deployments are common international-relations questions.
Kerala PSCUPSC
25 September 2026
The second UN General Assembly High-Level Meeting on Pandemic Prevention, Preparedness and Response was held at UN Headquarters in New York on 25 September 2026.
Leaders pledged sustained and equitable investment in prevention, preparedness and response systems, calling for whole-of-government and whole-of-society approaches.
The WHO Pandemic Agreement was adopted at the World Health Assembly in May 2025.
Countries are negotiating a Pathogen Access and Benefit-Sharing (PABS) annex to the agreement; its adoption at the May 2027 World Health Assembly is needed before member states can ratify the agreement.
Amendments to the International Health Regulations (2005) have also been adopted to strengthen global health security.
COVID-19 caused more than 20 million excess deaths between 2020 and 2023 and removed more than $10 trillion from the global economy.
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed and General Assembly President Khalilur Rahman addressed the meeting.
Meeting:
Second UNGA High-Level Meeting on PPPR, 25 September 2026
COVID-19 excess deaths:
over 20 million (2020-2023)
Economic loss:
over $10 trillion
Why it matters for exams: The Pandemic Agreement, the PABS annex and the IHR amendments are core global-health-governance topics.
Kerala PSCUPSCBank
25 September 2026
On 25 September 2026 WHO announced its recommendations for the composition of influenza vaccines for the 2027 southern hemisphere season.
The advice came from a consultation of WHO Collaborating Centres and Essential Regulatory Laboratories that is held twice a year, using surveillance data from February to August 2026.
Egg-based vaccines should contain an A/Missouri/11/2025 (H1N1)pdm09-like virus, an A/Darwin/1454/2025 (H3N2)-like virus and a B/Tokyo/EIS13-175/2025 (B/Victoria lineage)-like virus.
Cell culture, recombinant protein or nucleic acid based vaccines should contain an A/Missouri/11/2025 (H1N1)pdm09-like virus, an A/Darwin/1415/2025 (H3N2)-like virus and a B/Pennsylvania/14/2025 (B/Victoria lineage)-like virus.
Influenza A viruses dominated in most regions, while influenza B dominated in Northern and Western Africa, North America and Eastern Asia.
WHO's Global Influenza Surveillance and Response System has been running for nearly 75 years.
Season covered:
2027 southern hemisphere
Surveillance period used:
February to August 2026
GISRS age:
nearly 75 years
Why it matters for exams: The twice-yearly WHO vaccine composition consultation and GISRS are standard public-health questions.
Kerala PSCUPSC
25 September 2026
WHO announced on 25 September 2026 that it is expanding its prequalification programme beyond in vitro diagnostics to cover more medical devices.
The categories added are male and female condoms, intrauterine devices, computer-aided detection (CAD) software for tuberculosis screening, and male circumcision devices.
Responsibility for prequalifying condoms and intrauterine devices moves from the UN Population Fund to WHO.
An estimated 70 per cent of countries report inadequate or weak regulatory systems for medicines and vaccines, with even greater gaps for other health products.
CAD software uses digital chest X-rays and artificial intelligence to flag possible tuberculosis cases for confirmatory testing.
WHO says voluntary medical male circumcision can reduce a man's risk of acquiring HIV through heterosexual exposure by about 60 per cent.
WHO Chief Scientist Sylvie Briand said everyone everywhere should be able to rely on medical devices that are safe, effective and meet high standards of quality.
New categories:
condoms, IUDs, TB CAD software, male circumcision devices
Countries with weak regulation:
about 70 per cent
Why it matters for exams: WHO prequalification is a recurring question on how global health products reach countries with weak regulators.
Kerala PSCUPSC
17 September 2026
The Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee kept Bank Rate at 3.75% at its September 2026 meeting, announced on 17 September 2026.
The vote was 6-3, with three members preferring an increase to 4.0%.
CPI inflation was 3.1% in August 2026 and is expected to rise to about 3.75% in the fourth quarter of 2026 and slightly above 4% in 2027 Q1.
The Committee noted that protracted conflict in the Middle East has contributed to further increases in crude and refined energy prices.
The MPC voted unanimously to reduce its gilt holdings to zero through a multi-year plan, with an annual average reduction of £46 billion to the end of 2034 and £20 billion of annual sales alongside maturing gilts.
A remaining stock of £368 billion is to be unwound, with £120 billion set aside to back banknote issuance.
Bank Rate:
3.75%
MPC vote:
6-3
CPI inflation, August 2026:
3.1%
Annual average gilt reduction:
£46 billion to end-2034
Why it matters for exams: Central bank rate decisions and quantitative tightening are standard banking and economy questions.
Kerala PSCUPSCBank
17 September 2026
The World Bank Group announced on 17 September 2026 that it mobilised $112 billion of private capital for developing countries in FY26, up from $35 billion in FY22.
Mobilisation in lower-middle-income countries rose to $37 billion from $14 billion in FY22, and in upper-middle-income countries to $50 billion from $12 billion; low-income countries stayed at about $3 billion.
Africa accounted for $22 billion, up from about $9 billion in FY22.
Guarantees issued crossed $25 billion, passing the target of $20 billion by 2030 four years early.
Combined public and private financing exceeded $200 billion in FY26.
President Ajay Banga said the result is $112 billion mobilized this year, more than three times where the Group started.
The Group notes that 1.2 billion young people in developing economies will reach working age in the next 10-15 years while only about 420 million jobs are projected, and that 55% of FY26 financing went to five job-rich sectors.
Private capital mobilised, FY26:
$112 billion
Same figure in FY22:
$35 billion
Guarantees issued:
over $25 billion
Africa's share:
$22 billion
Why it matters for exams: World Bank Group financing figures, guarantees and its private-capital mobilisation target are standard economy questions.
Kerala PSCUPSCBank