News

Female Genital Mutilation (FGM): Who is at risk?

Female Genital Mutilation (FGM): Who is at risk?  FGM is mostly carried out on young girls sometime between infancy and adolescence, and occasionally on adult women.  More than 3 million girls are estimated to be at risk for FGM annually.  More than 200 million girls and women alive today have been subjected...
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Statement by UN Women Executive Director Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka for World Humanitarian Day 2020

Date: Wednesday, August 19, 2020   On 19 August, the world celebrates World Humanitarian Day to commemorate the humanitarian workers serving in crisis contexts around the globe. As we remember the humanitarians who were killed and injured in the course of their work, this year we also honour all aid and health workers who continue to...
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Women and girls at IDP camps ‘should be empowered’

Representatives of humanitarian organisations have called for improved welfare for internally displaced women and girls in Nigeria. The stakeholders from within and outside Nigeria emphasised the need to protect and empower internally displaced women and girls to enable them take on the challenges arising from the COVID-19 pandemic. They made the call during a virtual...
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Stronger partnerships and investment needed to support women’s recovery from COVID-19 in the Global South

A virtual ministerial roundtable meeting organized by UN Women on 5 August 2020 brought to the forefront the need to safeguard women’s rights and put in place deliberate measures to advance gender equality, as part of COVID-19 response and recovery interventions. The event, titled Ensuring Progress Towards SDG 5 Amid the COVID-19 pandemic – from Response...
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Egypt approves law protecting identities of women reporting sexual violence

Egypt has approved a new law to protect the identity of women who come forward to report sexual harassment or assault in a move that aimed to encourage women and girls to report cases of sexual violence. The law, which will give victims the automatic right to anonymity comes as hundreds of women have started...
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Are there any health benefits associated with Female Genital Mutilation (FGM)?

Are there any health benefits associated with Female Genital Mutilation (FGM)? According to the WHO, FGM has no health benefits, only harm. FGM harms girls and women in many ways. It involves removing and damaging healthy and normal female genital tissue, and interferes with the natural functions of girls’ and women’s bodies. Generally speaking, risks...
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Outrage as Somali parliament drafts law permitting child, forced marriages

Somalia’s parliament has sparked outrage by replacing long-awaited legislation to protect women and girls from violence with a new bill permitting child and forced marriage. The east African nation has high rates of child marriage and violence against women, including rape and female genital mutilation (FGM). The United Nations says 45% of women are married...
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73% OF GIRLS SAY GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE BIGGEST BARRIER TO GENDER EQUALITY

Girls worldwide believe gender-based violence is the biggest barrier that holds them back, according to our global survey. A total of 1147 girls were consulted by Plan International, and 350 of those, aged 14 to 19, from 12 countries, took part in qualitative interviews. These formed the basis  of the Girls’ Platform for Action research...
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UN Women statement on the International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples

2020 theme: COVID-19 and indigenous peoples’ resilience Date: Sunday, August 9, 2020 The global COVID-19 crisis has exacerbated longstanding structural inequalities for the most marginalized, with indigenous women and girls some of the most affected. On the International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples we consider not only the enormous challenges faced by indigenous women,...
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