In an ideal world, every mother-to-be would have access to a skilled midwife and could give birth in a safe and peaceful environment. Unfortunately, many women lack these assurances. The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) is striving to achieve this ideal scenario for every woman by investing in midwives and training, including in emergency humanitarian situations, and by equipping maternity wards and mobile health teams.
Midwives in Chad's Kalambari refugee camp provide crucial care and support, helping Cameroonian refugees navigate the challenges of displacement and access essential sexual and reproductive health services.
Approximately 800 women die every day from preventable causes related to pregnancy and childbirth. Making motherhood safer is a human rights imperative, and it is at the core of UNFPA’s mandate.
The two-year violent clashes in Ethiopia's Tigray region damaged or destroyed over 90% of health facilities, leading to an increase in obstetric complications and maternal deaths. Cases of obstetric fistula, – a condition in which prolonged, obstructed labour without access to medical care causes a hole between the birth canal and bladder or rectum, or both – also rose due to a lack of medical care. However, the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) supports several initiatives to both heal and prevent fistula, including a network of six regional facilities run by Hamlin Fistula Ethiopia. UNFPA also supports a network of 54 "maternal waiting homes" across Ethiopia to reduce obstetric complications and maternal mortality.
Aissata's difficult journey to access maternal health care underscores the persistent challenges faced by women in Mali, highlighting the need for increased support and accessibility to essential services.
UNFPA's Palestine Representative Dominic Allen describe the heroic efforts of desperate medical staff helping women in Gaza give birth safely at the overcrowded Al-Emirati Hospital in Rafah as doctors run out of basic medical supplies.
One year on, reproductive health and protection services have yet to fully recover. Many women and girls still remain in temporary shelters – in both Türkiye and Syria – where risks of violence, sexual exploitation and abuse have soared, and where access to services and support to prevent and respond to gender-based violence are limited.
Post-childbirth complications such as obstetric fistula have agonized women in Senegal, yet UNFPA and partners are aiding women to reclaim their dignity and rebuild their lives.
The only hospital in Yemen's Bani Saad district serves around 20,000 people who have to travel on foot or by camel for hours to reach it. Pregnant women take this journey to access skilled birth attendants, but home births are also risky due to a lack of qualified help. Yemen's healthcare system is devastated by nine years of civil war, leaving fewer than half of the country's hospitals functional, and only one in five can provide maternal and newborn services. The United Nations Population Fund’s (UNFPA) appeal for funding to sustain programs for women and girls in 2023 was only 57% funded by the end of the year, which has severe consequences for women and girls in Yemen. With a fully funded appeal, UNFPA would be able to support more health facilities, improve the health outcomes for women and girls, and reduce preventable deaths.
Aspy Kamsing, eagerly anticipates graduation as she looks forward to pursuing her passion for midwifery, amid a rising demand for trained midwives in Laos underscored by UNFPA's acknowledgment of a shortage of nearly 1 million midwives globally.
The Ardamata clinic supported by UNFPA, reopens in Sudan, providing critical support for some 300,000 people, both those displaced within Sudan and from host communities.
The WHO global malaria strategy for malaria urges all malaria-endemic countries to accelerate progress towards the goal of elimination.
UNICEF has teamed up with spoken word artist @clickfortaz, in support of the 1 in 7 adolescents living with a mental health condition and to promote good mental health and well-being for all children and young people.
World Health Organization is raising awareness of the Guinea-worm disease through community sensitization and prevention methods to stop any further spread.
