LONDON/UNITED NATIONS, New York — Motherhood in childhood is a huge global problem, especially in developing countries, where every year 7.3 million girls under 18 give birth, according to The State of World Population 2013 , released today by UNFPA, the United Nations Population Fund. Of these 7.3 million births, 2 million are to girls 14 or younger, who suffer the gravest long-term health and social consequences from pregnancy, including high rates of maternal death and obstetric fistula, … [Read more...]
MDG 5 – HIGH LEVEL FORUM [Sept 23]
September 20, 2013 by
Follow the conversation on Twitter & Facebook #MDG5 With less than 900 days remaining to reach the Millennium Development Goals (MDG), the Forum brings together a High-Level Panel to discuss what needs to be done to rapidly accelerate the achievement ofMDG5 (improve maternal health). Although progress has been made, MDG5 falls far short of agreed targets. Reaching MDG5 requires focusing on proven interventions to reduce maternal death and achieve universal access to reproductive … [Read more...]
Born into crisis: Unwanted pregnancies in Syria
May 31, 2013 by
ZA’ATARI CAMP, JORDAN, 29 May 2013 (IRIN) - When aid workers with the UN Population Fund (UNFPA) speak to women inside Syria - many of them displaced from their homes and living in cramped collective shelters - they say they would rather do anything than get pregnant. “No one wants to be pregnant in the shelters… that’s universal wherever we go,” said Laila Baker, UNFPA representative in Syria. “There is no place to take care of the baby and it’s another mouth to feed.” In … [Read more...]
1st Annual International Day to End Obstretric Fistula, May 23
May 24, 2013 by
IMAGE The International Day to End Obstetric Fistula MAY 23 In December 2012, 167 countries from around the world co-sponsored a biannual resolution at the United Nations General Assembly that called on all Member States to support the activities of UNFPA and its partners in the Campaign to End Fistula. This year also marks the 10th anniversary of the Campaign to End Fistula, a collaborative initiative launched by UNFPA and its partners. Check out Friends of UNFPA’s new … [Read more...]
Fiji, UNFPA Chief Stresses Women’s Empowerment, Girls Education
May 14, 2013 by
Following the formal opening of the G77 High-Level Panel of Eminent Personalities of the South, UNFPA Executive Director, Dr. Babatunde Osotimehin posed along with other eminent figures, including Heads of State of the Pacific Island Nations. SUVA, Fiji — If alarming rates of Violence Against Women are to be effectively addressed, the status of women needs to be elevated. UNFPA Executive Director Dr. Babatunde Osotimehin emphasized the fundamental, often unacknowledged, contributions of … [Read more...]
Syrian Women Giving Birth in Exile
May 11, 2013 by
ZA'ATARI, Jordan — In a tent hospital bed, a Syrian woman who was four months pregnant when she fled her country's civil war cradles one of the newest residents of this dust-swept refugee camp: Her newborn son, just delivered by Caesarean. Around a dozen babies are born every day in Za'atari camp, which is home to 120,000 Syrians and counting – and there's only one, overworked Moroccan doctor performing C-sections. Still, the clinic where he operates and several other field hospitals here … [Read more...]
CSW – Violence Against Women, Sexual, Reproductive Health
February 22, 2013 by
CSW 2012 The fifty-sixth session of the Commission on the Status of Women took place at the United Nations Headquarters in New York from 27 February to 9 March 2012. The closing meeting was held on 15 March 2012. The 2012 session focused on the following key areas: Priority Theme: The empowerment of rural women and their role in poverty and hunger eradication, development and current challenges Review Theme: Financing for gender equality and the empowerment of women Emerging … [Read more...]
Bhutanese Midwife, Thailand’s Experience: A notebook of ideas
January 25, 2013 by
LOEI, Thailand — After four days of trekking from his village by foot, a two-day bus ride across Bhutan, an international flight to Bangkok and a long van ride, Sonam finally arrived at this mountainous province in northeastern Thailand. The midwife from Gelephu, a small village in eastern Bhutan, was one of more than 20 Bhutanese health professionals selected to participate in a technical training on reproductive health care services. The programme, supported by UNFPA, is part of a … [Read more...]
