Press releases
Press release
Diene Keita appointed Executive Director of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA)
29 August 2025
New York, 29 August, 2025 – Ms. Diene Keita was appointed Executive Director of UNFPA, the United Nations Population Fund, today by UN Secretary-General António Guterres. She holds the rank of United Nations Under-Secretary-General.
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UNFPA urges governments to act on climate and gender at Global Symposium ahead of COP30
31 July 2025
Call to action highlights growing risks to women’s health and rights in face of worsening climate impacts
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Anti-discrimination champion from India and global network of population scientists receive the 2025 United Nations Population Award
11 July 2025
UNITED NATIONS, New York, 11 July 2025 – The laureates of the fortieth edition of the United Nations Population Award are Ms. Varsha Deshpande, Founder, Dalit Mahila Vikas Mandal of India in the individual category, and the International Union for the Scientific Study of Population (IUSSP) in the institution category.
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Announcing winners of The Equalizer Challenge
03 July 2025
UNFPA Announces Winners of the Equalizer Challenge to Scale Breakthrough Women’s Health Innovations. Winners include an AI health tracker for pregnant women, a digital menopause platform and a…
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New Initiative Sets Out to Ensure 10 Million Safer Births Under the Patronage of Her Majesty The Queen of Denmark
26 June 2025
Under the patronage of Her Majesty Queen Mary of Denmark, UNFPA, the UN sexual and reproductive health agency, and Danish NGO Maternity Foundation announced the 10 Million Safer Births Initiative in Abuja, Nigeria on 24 June, 2025. The initiative is driven by an ambitious commitment to support 10 million births across Sub-Saharan Africa by the end of 2030.
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UNFPA report links falling birth rates to cost of living, sexist norms, fear of the future
10 June 2025
NEW YORK, 10 June, 2025 – Millions of people are unable to have the number of children they want, but not because they are rejecting parenthood; economic and social barriers are stopping them. This is the central finding of UNFPA’s 2025 State of World Population report, “The real fertility crisis: The pursuit of reproductive agency in a changing world”.*
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UNFPA and Partners Drive Strategic Shift in Women’s Health with Launch of Global WomenX Hub in Nairobi
09 June 2025
Nairobi, 9 June 2025 - UNFPA, the United Nations sexual and reproductive health agency, is proud to launch its WomenX Collective (WomenX) Nairobi Hub on 9 June 2025 at the Aga Khan University Auditorium.
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Sudan: Rape survivors and pregnant women cut off from life-saving services as funding collapses
04 June 2025
Hundreds of thousands of women and girls in Sudan are being left without access to emergency obstetric care or support after rape, as conflict, access constraints and devastating funding cuts cut off care and gut essential health services.
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UNFPA Warns of Devastating Impact of Funding Cuts on Midwife Support in Crisis-Hit Countries
05 May 2025
NEW YORK, NY, 05 May, 2025 – Severe funding cuts are forcing UNFPA, the United Nations sexual and reproductive health agency, to dramatically scale back its support for midwives in crisis settings, jeopardizing the health and lives of pregnant women and newborns in some of the most fragile places on earth.
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DRC: UN Officials Raise Alarm at the Dramatic Impact of Prolonged Conflict on Women and Children, Including Increased Risk of Conflict-Related Sexual Violence on Displaced People
23 April 2025
New York/Geneva, 23 April 2025 – The Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict, Ms. Virginia Gamba, the Special Representative of the Secretary General on Sexual Violence in Conflict, Ms. Pramila Patten, UNFPA Deputy Executive Director (Management), Mr. Andrew Saberton, and the Assistant High Commissioner for Refugees for Protection, Ms. Ruvendrini Menikdiwela, raise the alarm over the devastating impact of the prolonged conflict in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), particularly on women and children, expressing grave concern over the rising risks of conflict-related sexual violence.
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UNFPA Launches The Equalizer Challenge to Scale Women’s Health Innovations
11 April 2025
New York, 11 April 2025 – UNFPA, the United Nations sexual and reproductive health agency, in collaboration with MIT Solve, IE University, and Women of Wearables, is announcing the launch of The Equalizer Challenge: Scaling Women’s Health Innovations. This innovation challenge, enabled by the generous support from the Governments of Germany and Luxembourg, will support women-led enterprises in moving their projects beyond the pilot stage and achieving meaningful, scalable impact on women’s health.
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Aid cuts threaten fragile progress in ending maternal deaths, UN agencies warn
07 April 2025
GENEVA/ NEW YORK, 7th April 2025 --- Women today are more likely than ever to survive pregnancy and childbirth according to a major new report released today, but United Nations (UN) agencies highlight the threat of major backsliding as unprecedented aid cuts take effect around the world.
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