News on Gender-based violence

1 April 2020
News
Yveka, 17, visits a UNFPA mobile clinic in Haiti. Haiti's former Minister of Women, Dr. Lise Marie Dejean, says many women lack autonomy over their bodies and health. © UNFPA
Staggering numbers of women unable to exercise decision-making over their own bodies, new UNFPA report shows
UNITED NATIONS, New York/BAMAKO, Mali/PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti – Out of nine pregnancies, Kadiatou experienced five tragic stillbirths, all at her home in rural Mali. Each time, she gave birth without the assistance of a... Read more
26 March 2020
News
A woman in Iraq. © UNFPA Iraq/Seivan Salim
Former child bride, once sold to pay debts, finds a new start
KURDISTAN, Iraq – Intisar* was only 15 years old when her parents forced her into a marriage. She described it as an act of commerce: They sold her to another family to pay off a debt. “It is the worst feeling in the... Read more
19 March 2020
News
Women face increased risk of violence, loss of livelihoods and other threats under the pandemic. © Unsplash/Tam Wai
As pandemic rages, women and girls face intensified risks
UNITED NATIONS, New York – As the COVID-19 pandemic rages around the world, governments are taking unprecedented measures to limit the spread of the virus, ramping up health system responses and announcing movement... Read more
5 March 2020
News
"I want my daughters to be respected as human beings," says Fawzia Koofi, a trailblazer in Afghanistan. © Johannes Eisele/AFP/GettyImages
“We must resolutely resist any attempts to go back”: Listening to the icons and activists of women’s rights
UNITED NATIONS, New York – The eighth of March is International Women’s Day, and the stakes could not be higher. This year marks a quarter century since the creation of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, a... Read more
4 March 2020
News
Young people in Myanmar face a variety of risk factors for depression and other mental health disorders, including exposure to conflict and humanitarian crisis. © UNFPA Myanmar
Better suicide prevention and mental health care needed among Myanmar’s most vulnerable
YANGON, Myanmar – Globally, a person dies from suicide every 40 seconds, and it is estimated that for every death, 20 others have attempted to take their own lives. The vast majority of suicides take place in low- and... Read more
6 February 2020
News
Yemen tops the list of countries with the greatest humanitarian needs. © UNFPA Yemen
UNFPA seeks to reach 48 million women and girls in humanitarian crises
UNITED NATIONS, New York/SANA’A, Yemen – When Yemen’s unrelenting conflict arrived in Taizz City late last year, Ashwaq saw her neighbourhood fall to pieces. Amid the bombardments, her house caught fire. She, her... Read more
5 February 2020
News
Stigma is preventing survivors of sexual violence from seeking care and support. © UNFPA Sudan/Sufian Abdul-Mouty
Pregnant women, survivors of violence at risk in West Darfur clashes
KHARTOUM/EL GENEINA, Sudan – Deadly clashes in West Darfur have uprooted tens of thousands of people from their homes. Reliable sources indicate that widespread gender-based violence is taking place,  including alleged... Read more
3 January 2020
News
Survivors and advocates Nachaki, Rosillah and Eunice speak with advocate and psychotherapist Leyla Hussein at the Nairobi Summit on ICPD25. (L-R) Photo courtesy of Elizabeth Pratt/Too Young to Wed.
From child brides and FGM survivors to leaders on a global stage
NAIROBI, Kenya/UNITED NATIONS, New York – Monicah, 13, was astonished to learn that female genital mutilation (FGM) is not just an issue just within her community, in Kenya’s rural Samburu County. “I realized it we are... Read more
23 December 2019
News
The world has seen both peril and promise in the last 10 years.
A look back at the 2010s: A decade of voices and choices
UNITED NATIONS, New York – As another decade draws to a close, the world is preoccupied with perils on the horizon. Climate change is beginning to ravage communities everywhere. The global displacement crisis has... Read more
20 December 2019
News
A study of Yazidi survivors found that some were negatively affected by their experiences with journalists, expert Sherizaan Minwalla said. © UNFPA/Khetam Malkawi
How to do no harm: Resources to help journalists avoid re-traumatizing survivors of sexual violence
UNITED NATIONS, New York/AMMAN, Jordan – Sexual and gender-based violence terrorizes women and girls around the world, affecting as many as one in three women. Reporters play an essential role in bringing these cases to... Read more

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