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Gender inequality, lack of information fuel teen pregnancies in Timor-Leste
Timor-Leste
“I knew a little bit about how a baby is made, but not too much,” said Natalia, 19, in Aileu, the rocky highlands of Timor-Leste. Her 1-year-old daughter, Afeena, was sleeping nearby. “I had no education about this at…
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Sexual violence devastating, humanitarian needs mounting in Rohingya crisis
Bangladesh
“My sister was killed after gang rape in front of me, and they threw hot water on my body,” Fatima*, 30, told a case worker at a UNFPA-supported women-friendly space in Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh. Almost 600,000 Rohingya…
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From child bride to beauty expert: one Jordanian woman’s story
Jordan
On most weekday afternoons, you can find 22-year-old Hiba* working at a salon in Amman. But what few of her clients know is that she was once a child bride – an experience that haunted her for years.
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Ten actions for a more equal world
Vast inequalities threaten economies, communities and nations, says The State of World Population 2017, UNFPA’s flagship report, released today.
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Young women emerge as responders, leaders in Nepal flooding
Nepal
Flooding in southern Nepal this August affected over a million people, displacing tens of thousands . The destruction was widespread in Rautahat District, where 20-year-old Priyanka Singh lives.
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Girls speak out on inequality
Despite years of efforts and advances, full gender equality has yet to be realized. There is not one country in the world free of gender-based violence or discrimination. And in too many places, the burdens of…
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HIV prevention efforts must reach vulnerable girls and young women
Eswatini
More than one in five adults in Swaziland are HIV-positive, according to the most recent data, and the rates are highest among women. Despite these dangers, young people – and young women in particular – often lack the…
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Safe spaces offer relief as fighting in Marawi rages on
Philippines
Jamela Sani stood before a group of girls and new mothers, explaining that violence against women is an abuse – and that help is available. They were gathered in a tent in Pawak, a village about five kilometres from the…
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Women stand strong after Irma
Antigua and Barbuda
A scurry of activity greeted visitors at one of Antigua’s two largest temporary shelters, National Technical Training Centre, which houses around 70 Barbudans displaced by Hurricane Irma. Shelter manager Samantha…
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Leaders urge access to reproductive health supplies in crisis settings
Yemen
“My husband and I agreed to use family planning and not have more kids, but he was pressured by our family and I got pregnant again,” said Ahlam, a mother of two in Yemen, earlier this year. When she went into labour,…
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Cholera poses grave risks to pregnant women in conflict-affected Nigeria
Nigeria
Yana, 25, was three months pregnant when she fell sick with cholera just days ago. “I was already suffering, but then I started bleeding, and the baby is gone now,” she told UNFPA in one of the tent wards for cholera…
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UN and EU launch global effort to end violence against women
Violence against women continues to be the most pervasive human rights violation in the world. Roughly one in three women experience physical or sexual assault in her lifetime – and this figure may well be an…
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