Statements and speeches
Statement
Statement on Gender-Based Violence in Tigray region of Ethiopia
22 March 2021
NEW YORK/GENEVA/WASHINGTON D.C., 22 March 2021 - "Amid a worsening humanitarian situation in the Tigray region of Ethiopia, reports of indiscriminate and targeted attacks against civilians,…
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Executive Director Statement on Myanmar
15 March 2021
UNFPA, the United Nations sexual and reproductive health agency, strongly reiterates the statements made by the office of the United Nations Secretary-General in condemning the escalating use of force by military and security forces against peaceful protesters in Myanmar. Over the past several weeks, and increasingly in recent days, disproportionate and even deadly force has been used against civilians, including women and young people, resulting in scores of people dead.
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Celebrate women leaders on the frontlines of the COVID-19 response and beyond
08 March 2021
All over the world, women lead. They lead peace processes, run businesses, establish hospitals and schools. They are presidents of countries and corporate boards. They head international and grassroots organizations, faith-based groups and sports teams, labour and environmental movements, often while caring for their families and communities.
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UNFPA Statement on the Situation in Myanmar
23 February 2021
In light of the unfolding events in Myanmar, UNFPA joins the wider United Nations family in expressing its strongest concern over the adverse impacts on the rights, safety, health and well-being of…
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Statement of the Executive Director to the High-Level Segment of the Human Rights Council
23 February 2021
Statement of UNFPA Executive Director Dr. Natalia Kanem to the High-Level Segment of the 46th session of the Human Rights Council
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2 million additional cases of female genital mutilation likely to occur over next decade due to COVID-19
06 February 2021
Two million additional cases of female genital mutilation may occur over the next decade as COVID-19 shutters schools and disrupts programmes that help protect girls from this harmful practice. We must act now to stop this from happening.
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Statement of the Executive Director to the 1st Regular Session of the Executive Board 2021
03 February 2021
Statement of UNFPA Executive Director Dr. Natalia Kanem to the First Regular Session of the Executive Board of UNDP, UNFPA and UNOPS.
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Let’s stop treating sexual and reproductive health care as anything less than essential
12 December 2020
When universal health coverage became an agreed global goal just five years ago, it marked a huge leap forward. It is a vision of care and compassion for one another, in sickness and in health. The COVID-19 pandemic reveals just how vital it is that we make that vision real. None of us is safe until all of us are safe.
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Standing up for human rights more important than ever
10 December 2020
Realizing human rights, equal and inalienable for every person, is the most just and meaningful goal of any society. Human rights are universal principles, yet as Eleanor Roosevelt once reminded us, they begin in “small places, close to home…. Unless these rights have meaning there, they have little meaning anywhere.”
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The health systems we build back after COVID-19 must reach everyone
03 December 2020
More than a billion people: that’s how many live with a disability today. Some disabilities are apparent, but not all. Learning disabilities and mental disorders, for example, may hinder one’s full and effective participation in society. Often unrecognized, they can profoundly complicate navigating a world with little in the way of accommodation or accessibility.
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COVID-19 Threatens to Exacerbate Inequalities Faced by Many Living with HIV
01 December 2020
On World AIDS Day, as we unite in support of people living with and affected by HIV, let us remember all those who have lost their lives to AIDS, and those who mourn them. As the world combats another virus, COVID-19, it must not forget HIV.
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Stand up and say ‘enough’ to violence
25 November 2020
Enough! That’s what we say, today and every day, to all forms of violence against women and girls. Enough to domestic violence. Enough to rape. Enough to harmful practices like female genital mutilation. And enough to impunity for one of the most flagrant and pervasive violations of human rights.
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