The new year offers hope for peace, safety, and better futures, with 2024 teaching us lessons to create an improved reproductive health system in 2025.
UNFPA
Gender-based violence violates human rights, particularly for women and girls in situations of crisis, conflict, and displacement.
Thousands displaced amid climate crisis
The climate crisis is severely impacting Chad, where residents face devastating flooding. "Everything I own is under water," said one displaced individual. Since July 2024, the Chari River has overflowed, affecting all 23 provinces, displacing over 13,000 people. With more than 1 million women and girls in need of sexual and reproductive health services, UNFPA’s response is critical, but due to severe underfunding, many lack access to essential care and protection services amidst the crisis.
Tradition, chastity, and marriageability are some of the reasons often cited for the prevalence of female genital mutilation among women and girls in Egypt. However, the real driving forces behind this harmful practice are gender bias, misogyny, and inequality. Meet several individuals—including grandmothers, fathers, farmers, teachers, and shopkeepers—who have recognized female genital mutilation as a form of gender-based violence and have committed to putting an end to it. Read on to discover how these people have become catalysts for change within their communities.
Nearly 50 mothers and their children are killed every day in Gaza, and aid has drastically decreased, raising fears of famine. Parents tell the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) of their urgent need to give birth safely, find food, and keep their children warm amid ongoing violence. Jawaher went into labor while fleeing violence in Gaza City, enduring two days before reaching a hospital to give birth safely. With 80% of Gaza facing evacuation orders and 130 births expected daily, her situation is increasingly common. UN efforts to deliver aid have been severely hindered. Despite UNFPA's commitment to women and girls, essential aid is at its lowest level in 11 months, leaving many Palestinians without basic necessities.
Three women: from Sudan, from Ukraine, and from the Democratic Republic of the Congo share their stories of surviving wartime rape and domestic violence to find safety and support in clinics run by the UN Population Fund (UNFPA) and partners. A staggering 70 percent of women in conflict zones are subjected to gender-based violence. Maria, a Ukrainian woman, fled her home due to the war, but was forced to return to an abusive partner, enduring further trauma. Now on the road to healing, Maria says she is profoundly grateful to the people who listened, and cared. “They simply looked me in the eyes, extended a hand and said, ‘Hold on, hold my hand, and I’ll help you.” UNFPA's efforts are critical in addressing the urgent needs of these survivors, offering healthcare, counseling, and protection services to rebuild their lives.
The year 2023 was recorded as the hottest year on Earth, and 2024 is projected to break that unwelcome record. Extreme weather has become the "new abnormal," with droughts, storms, floods, and wildfires occurring more frequently, lasting longer, and increasing in intensity. New data released by the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and the Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre shows how extreme weather and disasters are severely impacting poor and vulnerable women and girls on the front lines of the climate crisis. Of the 14 countries most vulnerable to climate change, six are among the 10 countries with the highest maternal death rates: Afghanistan, Central African Republic, Chad, Nigeria, Somalia and South Sudan. Unless sufficient investments are made toward improving maternal health outcomes in these countries, severe weather events will only heighten the dangers of pregnancy and childbirth.
After undergoing a Caesarean section days before the strike, Samah fled to the Syrian border. When her car was blocked by a crater, she had to continue on foot with her children. “I wrapped my stomach with a clean cloth and carried my son and went down to the border,” she said. Luckily, Samah reached a clinic at the border where a United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) medical team examined her and confirmed she and her newborn were healthy. “I felt hope again,” she noted, as they provided antibiotics, nutrients, and a sense of safety. Samah was among the fortunate few to receive care amid the healthcare crisis in Lebanon, Gaza, and the West Bank, where conflict has severely impacted medical services.
The 600 million adolescent girls in the world have infinite potential, but they need support to realize it. To mark the International Day of the Girl Child, we go behind the scenes with six young women - a dancer, an educator, a future leader, an adviser and an advocate- who are working with the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) to make a difference or benefiting from those initiatives, inspiring hope for us all.
The consequences of crises disproportionately affect women. Even though most combatants are male, over two-thirds of civilians killed in conflict are women and children. Women and girls also make up the majority of survivors of conflict-related sexual violence. However, male-dominated fighting forces and majority-male policymakers often lead peacebuilding processes. What role do women and young people play in promoting peace, and how does the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) empower them to participate?
Sexual health is not just about being free of disease. Positive relationships grounded in mutual respect, empathy and understanding are a keystone of sexual health and well-being. This applies not only to relationships with partners but also to relationships with educators and providers of sexual health services. When these relationships are safe and respectful, people are more able to fulfill their rights and choices. As we celebrate World Sexual Health Day, here’s a look at some of the relationships and initiatives from around the world that contribute to empowering and protecting women and girls.
After months of being repeatedly displaced around Gaza, Malak, 22, faced an uncertain three hour drive to reach the hospital when she went into labor.
Positive relationships grounded in mutual respect, empathy and understanding are a cornerstone of sexual health and well-being. As we celebrate World Sexual Health Day (4 September) this year, positive relationships take the spotlight. Indeed, when partners prioritize each other’s sexual health – and understand that it is a shared responsibility – communication, trust and reproductive health outcomes improve. Comprehensive sexuality education empowers everyone, especially women and girls, to form good relationships and protect their sexual and reproductive health and rights.
If you ask people how they would define comprehensive sexuality education, you’ll probably get a range of responses, possibly peppered with misinformation and confusion. Here are the facts: Comprehensive sexuality education is a process of teaching the emotional, physical and social aspects of sexuality, with a goal of helping children stay safe and prepare for the future. It leads to fewer pregnancies, less disease and less abuse. It teaches young people about human development, reproduction and healthy relationships, and about how to recognize abuse, resist peer pressure and understand consent. It saves lives.
Pictured are young people at the Kibirizi youth space in Rwanda’s Rubengera sector.
Malak, 22, was pregnant when the war in Gaza started. Forced to flee the bombs and tanks, she spent months being repeatedly displaced and searching desperately for prenatal care. See the terrible reality for pregnant women like Malak of giving birth in Gaza.