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Return of Chibok girls highlights needs of women and girls
Nigeria
“We cannot underestimate the amount of support that each of these girls will need,” said Joy Michael, a UNFPA humanitarian analyst, in the weeks following the release of 21 schoolgirls captured by insurgent group Boko…
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Conflict, poverty, poor health conditions a deadly mix for mothers in South Sudan
South Sudan
Insecurity, poverty and poor health care continue to be a deadly mix in South Sudan. Tragedy struck the hospital in the eastern town of Torit after health workers went on strike. During the chaos, Justine Mangwi, the…
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Risks to women and girls soar in hurricane-slammed Haiti
Haiti
Hurricane Matthew roared through Haiti one month ago, destroying homes, hospitals, roads, crops and lives. With health and protection systems ravaged, risks to women and girls have soared. Urgent action is required to…
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Women’s health needs critical as battle for Mosul intensifies
Iraq
With military operations underway to retake Mosul from the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL, also known as ISIS or Daesh), thousands of civilians have fled and displacement is expected to rapidly escalate. The…
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With high child marriage rates among Syrian refugees, one girl takes a stand
Lebanon, Syrian Arab Republic
When Raneem Abras, 16, fled the devastation in Aleppo, Syria, three years ago, her family found safety in Lebanon’s Chouf Mountains. But some dangers have followed them – in the form of marriage proposals.
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Violence against women escalates under Yemen's brutal conflict
Yemen
The catastrophic conflict in Yemen has killed thousands and economic deprivations have pushed many into grinding poverty. Under these strains, women are more vulnerable than ever to violence and exploitation.
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In Myanmar, family planning empowers women to take charge of their health, futures
Myanmar
As Moe Moe Khaing, 30, listened to her doctor discuss family planning, she automatically reflected on the pressures building at home: Rent had been due a week ago, and her 3-year-old son had been sick for three straight…
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Health facilities devastated in Hurricane Matthew: “I couldn’t have left the women there to die”
Haiti
The night Hurricane Matthew struck Haiti, Marie-Lyrette Casimir, 46, was the only nurse-midwife on duty at the maternity unit of St. Antoine Hospital in Jérémie. It would be the only building at the hospital not reduced…
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Giving girls a voice in Zika-affected communities
Brazil
"I heard at school that Zika is sexually transmitted, and my mother has also mentioned it," Maria Eduarda told her friends, Barbara and Jocielly, all 14, after they had exited a reproductive health seminar.
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The power of 10: Ten astonishing facts about 10-year-old girls
The world’s future will be determined by the fate of its 10-year-old girls. Age 10 is the beginning of adolescence, when girls start to see possibilities expanding – or contracting. As these girls approach puberty, they…
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For busy garment workers in Lesotho, health care comes on wheels
Lesotho
When factory worker ’Mantina Mphohle, 31, was hit by a car recently, she took two days of sick leave. That time off was unpaid. “You can imagine how disappointed I was when I realized my salary had been cut for the two…
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Stunning plunge in maternal deaths recorded in Maldives
Maldives
The Maldives has seen a stunning 90 per cent plunge in its maternal death rate over the last 25 years, the largest such drop in the world over this time period, according to joint United Nations estimates.
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