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Reaching the last mile: Motorbike ambulances improve maternal and newborn health in rural Benin
Benin
HÊVIÉ, Benin – In rural communities of Benin, where rough roads and long distances often stand between patients and life-saving care, bike ambulances are transforming maternal and newborn health outcomes.
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Adolescent pregnancy in Latin America and the Caribbean: Seeking reproductive justice for Afrodescendent women and girls
BOCAS DEL TORO PROVINCE, Panama – “We don't have special care for women,” said Jakelyn Chiu, a single mother of three from the Bocas del Toro Province in Panama. “Here in the district, we don't have a…
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Famine confirmed in Gaza – pregnant women and newborns at acute risk
Palestine, State of
GAZA STRIP, Occupied Palestinian Territory – “Where is the world watching what’s happening to us, and to our children? All families in the world have children,” said Inas, who lives in a displacement camp with her three…
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Female genital mutilation in infancy still common, Gambian mothers say
The Gambia
BASSE, The Gambia – Hulay Damba, 55, spent years performing female genital mutilation on girls in her community. Her role as a practitioner was passed down from her grandmother. “It was what I was taught,” she…
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International humanitarian law flouted as health and aid workers are targeted in conflicts around the world
UNITED NATIONS, New York – Across the world, wars are being waged on the very systems set up to protect civilian populations: Health workers, hospitals, health centres and ambulances are being targeted in horrifying…
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“More educators, more access”: One woman’s dedication to delivering sexuality education to young people across Mexico City
Mexico
MEXICO CITY, Mexico – “I’m dedicated to bringing comprehensive sexuality education to as many people in Mexico City as possible,” said Rocío Ordóñez Pedraza, a 32-year-old psychologist and advocate working with the…
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Explainer: No, contraceptives don’t cause abortions
UNITED NATIONS, New York/NAROK COUNTY, Kenya – Misinformation about contraception is deadly. Just ask Evaline Chepkemol, a mother of three in Kenya’s rural Narok County – a place with one of the country’s highest…
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In Paraguay, nurse Mariel Díaz delivers culturally-sensitive healthcare to indigenous communities
Paraguay
LAGUNA NEGRA, Paraguay – Nurse Mariel Díaz Flores, 37, regularly travelled more than 70 kilometres by motorcycle to complete her studies – all while working full time and taking care of her three sons.
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The scars of gender-based violence run deep in South Sudan – but so does the will to heal
South Sudan
BAHR EL GHAZAL REGION, South Sudan – Tucked between mango trees in a compound in Wau, a town in the western Bahr el Ghazal region of South Sudan, stands a quiet shelter. On the parched earth, colourful toys are…
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When the water rises: How women are adapting to a changing climate in north-eastern Bangladesh
Bangladesh
Sunamganj, BANGLADESH – When floodwaters sweep into the village of Bodipur in north-eastern Bangladesh, life does not pause – it adapts. For women like Shakila Akhter, a 24-year-old mother of two, adaptation is not a…
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Pregnant refugees in Chad see faltering sexual and reproductive health care amid funding crisis
Farchana Camp, CHAD – "I arrived at the health centre very early this morning for a prenatal appointment, but I've already been waiting for several hours,” Amina told UNFPA, the United Nations sexual and…
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“Now I know I have a future”: Safe spaces work with health centres to save women’s lives in Yemen
Yemen
AL MAHRAH/MARIB GOVERNORATES, Yemen – In a rural corner of Al Wadi District in Yemen’s eastern Marib Governorate, Salwa* was forced into marriage at just 17 years old.
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