Press releases
Press release
Escalating violence in Sudan shuts hospitals and puts 219,000 pregnant women at risk
20 April 2023
New York 20 April 2023 – The heavy fighting which continues in Sudan’s capital Khartoum and across the country is putting tens of thousands of pregnant women in danger, making it too perilous to venture outside their homes to seek urgent care in hospitals and clinics.
Learn morePress release
UNFPA report identifies rising population anxiety, urges radical rethink of how countries address changing demographics
19 April 2023
New York, 19 April 2023 – New data reveals population anxieties are widespread and governments are increasingly adopting policies aimed at raising, lowering or maintaining fertility rates. But efforts to influence fertility rates are very often ineffective and can erode women’s rights, according to UNFPA's State of World Population report, released today.
Learn morePress release
UN calls for urgent action to address education crisis as global primary school-age population peaks In 2023
10 April 2023
New York, 10 April 2023 – The global population of primary-school-aged children is expected to reach an all-time high of 820 million in 2023. The number of secondary school children is also on the…
Learn morePress release
12.6 million women and girls in Yemen need life-saving support
24 February 2023
New York/Geneva, 27 February 2023 – As governments meet in Geneva to raise funds for the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Yemen, UNFPA, the United Nations sexual and reproductive health agency, urgently reminds the world of the catastrophic impact eight years of war has had on women and girls. With 12.6 million women in need of lifesaving reproductive health and protection services, UNFPA is appealing for US$70 million to sustain these programmes for women and girls.
Learn morePress release
Women and girls still suffering immense hardship as war in Ukraine passes one year mark
24 February 2023
New York/Kyiv, 24 February 2023 – One year on from Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, UNFPA, the United Nations sexual and reproductive health agency, warns of the war’s continuing devastating impacts on women and girls.
Learn morePress release
A woman dies every two minutes due to pregnancy or childbirth: UN agencies
23 February 2023
GENEVA/NEW YORK/WASHINGTON, 23rd February 2023 — Every two minutes, a woman dies during pregnancy or childbirth, according to the latest estimates released in a report by United Nations agencies today. This report, Trends in maternal mortality, reveals alarming setbacks for women’s health over recent years, as maternal deaths either increased or stagnated in nearly all regions of the world.
Learn morePress release
Earthquake survivors include 356,000* pregnant women who urgently require reproductive healthcare
18 February 2023
New York/Geneva, 18 February 2023 – Among the survivors of the earthquakes that devastated lives in Türkiye and Syria are around 356,000* pregnant women who urgently need access to reproductive health services. These women include 226,000* in Türkiye and 130,000 in Syria, around 38,800 of whom will deliver in the next month.
Learn morePress release
UNFPA scaling up emergency response to reach women and girls in Türkiye and Syria in aftermath of powerful earthquakes
07 February 2023
New York/Geneva, 7 February 2023 – UNFPA, the United Nations sexual and reproductive health agency, is working with national and local authorities to scale up its emergency response to reach women and girls impacted by two powerful earthquakes that struck south-eastern Türkiye near the Syrian border on Monday. Thousands of people have died and many more have been injured, with the numbers expected to rise in the coming days and weeks. Both the Governments of Türkiye and Syria have declared national emergencies and called for international support.
Learn morePress release
Long-awaited life-saving reproductive health supplies reach Tigray, Ethiopia amid one of the world’s most extreme humanitarian crises
14 December 2022
New York, 14 December 2022 - UNFPA, the United Nations sexual and reproductive health agency, has resumed distribution of humanitarian aid in Tigray, following the recent peace agreement. On 8 December, around 70 tonnes of reproductive health medicines and equipment arrived in the capital Mekelle, the first consignment since August 2022.
Learn morePress release
Largest ever: UNFPA launches 1.2 billion humanitarian appeal as crises prove devastating for women and girls’ health and rights
13 December 2022
New York, 13 December 2022 – UNFPA, the United Nations sexual and reproductive health agency, has outlined record-breaking funding needs to respond to women and girls facing crisis around the world. The agency has appealed for $1.2 billion to provide life-saving reproductive health and protection services to 66 million of the world’s most vulnerable women, girls and young people in 65 countries in 2023. This includes $289 million in Afghanistan, $70 million in Ukraine, $62 million in Somalia, and $23 million in Haiti.
Learn morePress release
UNFPA appeals for $113.7 million as women’s and girls’ needs soar in Horn of Africa
16 November 2022
New York, 16 November 2022 - UNFPA, the United Nations sexual and reproductive health agency, has launched an appeal for US$113.7 million to scale up life-saving reproductive health and protection services for women and girls in the Horn of Africa.
Learn morePress release
UNFPA and Artist Cecilie Waagner Falkenstrøm Launch AI-Generated NFT Collection to Celebrate Global Population Reaching 8 Billion
15 November 2022
PATTAYA CITY, THAILAND, 15 November 2022 - On the day the global population reaches 8 billion, UNFPA, the United Nations sexual and reproductive health agency, and award-winning digital artist Cecilie Waagner Falkenstrøm are launching the agency’s first-ever NFT collection. Titled “Stronger Together, the collection reflects and pays tribute to humanity’s collective ingenuity that has led to the impressive advances in health care and reductions in global poverty that have enabled the population to reach 8 billion.
Learn more