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State of World Population report 2024
Entitled “Interwoven Lives, Threads of Hope: Ending inequalities in sexual and reproductive health and rights”, the report highlights the role racism, sexism and other forms of discrimination continue to play in blocking broad gains in sexual and reproductive health for women and girls. The data are damning. Women and girls who are poor, belong to ethnic, racial and indigenous minority groups, or are trapped in conflict settings, are more likely to die because they lack access to timely health care:
Maternal Health Analysis of Women and Girls of African Descent in the Americas
The UNFPA, UNICEF, UN-Women, PAHO and NBEC Maternal Health Analysis of Women and Girls of African Descent in the Americas brings together for the first time, comparative data across the Americas on the situation of Afrodescendant women’s maternal health.
Programme of Action - Adopted at the International Conference on Population and Development, Cairo, 5-13 September 1994
On the occasion of the tenth anniversary of the International Conference on Population and Development, UNFPA, the United Nations Population Fund, is pleased to issue this pocket edition of the ICPD Programme of Action, which was adopted by 179 governments in 1994, and the Key Actions for its further implementation, which were adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in July 1999. The Cairo Conference, held from 5 to 13 September 1994, was the largest intergovernmental conference on population and development ever held. A total of 11,000 participants—from governments, the United Nations, intergovernmental organizations, non-governmental organizations and the media—contributed their expertise to make the Conference a critical success. The Cairo Conference moved population policy and programmes away from a focus on human numbers to a focus on human lives. It put the emphasis where it should be: on improving the lives of individuals, and increasing respect for their human rights. Delegates from all regions and cultures agreed that reproductive health is a basic human right.
Human Rights-Based Approach to Family Planning
The United Nations has developed a common understanding of the “human rights-based approach” over the past two decades, with a definition first published in 2003 (UNDG Human Rights Working Group). The Support Tool draws on this common understanding to elaborate a more specific definition of a human rights-based approach as applied to family planning. The definition draws on a range of sources.1
Taking stock: Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights in Climate
Women, girls and marginalized groups who are largely dependent on natural resources for livelihoods are among the hardest hit by extreme weather patterns. These weather patterns limit their access to food, water, shelter, education and access to essential health services, including those that address sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR), gender-based violence (GBV) and preventing harmful practices such as child marriage and female genital mutilation
UNFPA WCARO launches Humanitaran Leadership training to tackle regional growing crises
In response to escalating crises in West and Central Africa, the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) launched the Regional Humanitarian Leadership Programme in December 2023. The initiative aims to equip UNFPA country leadership teams to address urgent protection and reproductive health needs, particularly impacting women and girls.
The Regional Humanitarian Leadership Programme reflects UNFPA's commitment to building capable and confident leadership teams to address the unique needs of women and girls in the region. This initiative underscores UNFPA's dedication to ensuring vulnerable populations receive timely and dignified assistance during crises.
SWEDD Annual Report 2022: Empowering women and building resilience in the Sahel
In 2015, a transformative initiative known as Sahel Women's Empowerment and Demographic Dividend (SWEDD) project was launched in response to a call from the heads of state of Burkina Faso, Chad, Côte d'Ivoire, Mali, Mauritania and Niger. Its mission: to combat gender inequality and strengthen the resilience of adolescent girls and young women in the Sahel region. Over the years, SWEDD has become a powerful tool for regional integration, placing the empowerment of women at the forefront of public policy. It encourages countries to allocate resources to address the vulnerabilities of adolescent girls and young women, with the aim of transforming their lives and contributing to the overall progress of society. SWEDD's success is based on a collaborative partnership between countries and development aid institutions such as the World Bank, UNFPA, the West African Health Organisation (WAHO), the African Union and the French Development Agency (AFD). This partnership has helped to drive change and mobilise resources.
SWEDD: Progress Highlights
The SWEDD (Sahel Women's Empowerment and Demographic Dividend) project is based on the aspiration of an innovative partnership. The project has been meticulously designed as a regional integration initiative, focusing on the economic empowerment of women, the fight against the vulnerability of adolescent girls and young women, and the eradication of gender inequalities in the region, all with the ultimate aim of unlocking the demographic dividend. The World Bank has committed a substantial investment of $680 million in SWEDD in nine countries, supported by the technical assistance of UNFPA at the continental, regional and national levels.
Technology-facilitated Gender-based Violence: Making All Spaces Safe
As the world continues to evolve and expand in the use of technology and platforms, so too does the expansion of spaces through which violence can be perpetrated. This was evidenced no more so than during the COVID-19 pandemic where containment efforts reduced access to information and services driving increased use of technology and online spaces. This paper serves as an alarm bell for the international community, digital and feminist movements, private technology companies and national Governments to act in unison to end the rising scourge of technology-facilitated gender-based violence.
The report is accompanied by the What is technology-facilitated gender-based violence? brochure which can be accessed here.
STATE OF WORLD POPULATION REPORT 8 Billion Lives, Infinite Possibilities: The case for rights and choices
The State of World Population report is UNFPA’s annual flagship publication. Published yearly since 1978, it shines a light on emerging issues in the field of sexual and reproductive health and rights, bringing them into the mainstream and exploring the challenges and opportunities they present for international development. This year’s report includes contributions from two UN partners: the International Organization for Migration and the Population Division of the Department of Economic and Social Affairs.