Briefly

UNDP

Xu Haoliang of China named deputy head

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Monday appointed Xu Haoliang of China as undersecretary-general and associate administrator of the UN Development Programme, said the press office of the UN chief. Xu will succeed Usha Rao-Monari of India. Xu has been serving as UN assistant secretary-general and director of the Bureau for Policy and Programme Support at the UNDP since 2019. Between 2013 and 2019, he was the UNDP's assistant administrator and director of the Regional Bureau for Asia and the Pacific. Xu brings to the position nearly three decades of experience in the field of international development.

UNITED STATES

Webb telescope detects crucial carbon molecule

A team of international scientists has used NASA's James Webb Space Telescope to detect a new carbon compound in space for the first time known as methyl cation. The molecule is important because it aids the formation of more complex carbon-based molecules, NASA said on Monday. Methyl cation was detected in a young star system, with a protoplanetary disk, known as d203-506, which is located about 1,350 light-years away in the Orion Nebula. Webb will solve mysteries in the solar system, look beyond to distant worlds around other stars, and probe the mysterious structures and origins of the universe in it, according to NASA.

UNODC

Illegal drug use hits new high globally

The number of individuals using illegal drugs worldwide is much higher than previously estimated, according to a United Nations study. The latest World Drug Report from the Vienna-based UN Office on Drugs and Crime, or UNODC, reveals an 18-percent higher rate of stimulant injection than previously thought. The study found that close to 300 million people used illegal drugs in 2021, indicating a 23-percent increase since 2011. Cannabis was the most commonly used addictive substance, with opiates, amphetamines, cocaine, and ecstasy following in order of prevalence.

Xinhua - Agencies - China Daily