Press releases
Press release
UNFPA State of World Population 2016
20 October 2016
UNITED NATIONS, New York—Forced marriage, child labour, female genital mutilation and other practices undermining girls’ health and rights threaten the world’s ambitious development agenda, warns UNFPA, the United Nations Population Fund, in The State of World Population 2016, released today.
Learn morePress release
UNFPA on standby to provide urgent psychosocial support, reproductive health care to rescued Chibok girls
14 October 2016
UNITED NATIONS, New York/ABUJA — UNFPA, the United Nations Population Fund, welcomes the release of 21 Chibok schoolgirls who were captured by Boko Haram. UNFPA commends the Nigerian Government’s…
Learn morePress release
Urgent Maternal Health, Protection Needs of Women, Girls Focus of UNFPA Response in Haiti
07 October 2016
UNITED NATIONS, New York—UNFPA, the United Nations Population Fund, is scaling up its emergency response to help more than 350,000 people who need immediate humanitarian help after Hurricane Matthew pounded Haiti this week. In particular, UNFPA is deeply concerned about the fate of more than 8,400 pregnant women who are expected to give birth in the next three months, as well as 1,200 women who would need Caesarean sections. In addition, among the 1.125 million people affected by the hurricane, more than 280,000 are women of childbearing age, and would need quality health services
Learn morePress release
Women, girls in north-east Nigeria face severe crisis, urgently need increased support, including the 566 handed-over by the army last week
19 September 2016
UNITED NATIONS, New York - Violence by Boko Haram continues to cause immense suffering in north-east Nigeria, where 2 million people are displaced and 7 million urgently need humanitarian assistance. On Friday 16 September, UNFPA, the United Nations Population Fund, and humanitarian partners helped the Borno State government receive from the army 566 rescued women and children who will need humanitarian support. UNFPA is already providing immediate humanitarian relief to this group.
Learn morePress release
African leaders, partners commit to actions to empower youth, women to transform Africa
28 August 2016
NAIROBI -- African, Japanese and other leaders at the Sixth Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD VI), in Nairobi, agreed today on more international actions to empower youth and women to achieve a demographic dividend and transform Africa.
Learn morePress release
UN Secretary-General Names Natalia Kanem as UNFPA Deputy Executive Director
28 July 2016
UNITED NATIONS, New York—United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today announced the appointment of Natalia Kanem, of Panama, as Assistant Secretary-General and Deputy Executive Director (…
Learn morePress release
Investments in Young People’s Human Capital needed to Lift Least Developed Countries Out of Poverty
27 May 2016
ANTALYA, Turkey – Young people can lift the world’s 48 least developed countries out of poverty, provided governments invest in the education, empowerment and employment of millions of people poised to enter the labour force, top officials from these countries agreed here yesterday.
Learn morePress release
World’s First Humanitarian Summit Commits to Ensuring Sexual, Reproductive Health; Empowering Young People
24 May 2016
ISTANBUL–The World Humanitarian Summit concluded here today with a demonstrated resolve to live up to the pledge to leave no one behind, including the more than 60 million displaced, and women, children and other groups in crises. To do so, world leaders and participants from other segments of society committed to ensuring that “the vulnerable receive the global support they deserve to live in safety and dignity,” according to the Summit Chair’s Summary released at the end of the two-day forum.
Learn morePress release
Countries Commit to Boosting Support for Women, Girls During Crises
23 May 2016
ISTANBUL—An unprecedented commitment by countries across the world to scale-up investments in sexual and reproductive health to end all preventable maternal deaths of women, girls and newborns in crises, was announced today, the opening day of the World Humanitarian Summit. The countries also committed to stepping up actions to achieve Sustainable Development Goals on safe delivery, emergency contraception, voluntary family planning, as well as medical and psychosocial services for gender violence survivors.
Learn morePress release
SAFE BIRTH EVEN HERE
23 May 2016
Childbearing should always be safe, even in emergencies. This is the message that UNFPA, the United Nations Population Fund, and United Colors of Benetton are shouting out as they roll-out a joint campaign, “Safe Birth Even Here”, at the World Humanitarian Summit, taking place in Istanbul, Türkiye, 23-24 May.
Learn morePress release
Brazilian Social Scientist, Polish NGO Win 2016 UN Population Award
27 April 2016
UNITED NATIONS, New York – Carmen Barroso, a Brazilian social scientist with long commitment to population causes, and the Childbirth in Dignity Foundation, a Polish organization promoting improved quality of care for Polish mothers and newborns, have won the 2016 United Nations Population Award. Established by the United Nations General Assembly in 1981, the award recognizes outstanding achievement in the fields of population and health.
Learn morePress release
A Year of Conflict in Yemen Puts the Lives of 3.4 Million Women of Reproductive Age at Risk
30 March 2016
SANA’A, Yemen – A year of conflict in Yemen has led to 21.2 million people requiring some form of humanitarian assistance, with nearly half of them being women and girls. UNFPA, the United Nations Population Fund, is increasingly concerned about the needs of an estimated 3.4 million women of reproductive age (between 15 and 49 years), of whom nearly 500,000 are pregnant and will give birth within the next nine months.
Learn more