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For two indigenous girls in Guatemala, early unions spell the end of dreams
At 15, Quetzali* had only ever spoken via telephone to a 22-year-old soldier she met through her aunt. He persuaded her to meet his family, but when Quetzali went to his house in a different town, he barred her from…
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Reproductive health needs in Mozambique a priority after Tropical Storm Ana
The country may have been spared by Tropical Cyclone Batsirai but it is still reeling from the devastating impacts of Tropical Storm Ana. Making landfall on 24 January in Angoche District in the coastal province of…
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In her words: A child bride from Yemen forced to grow up too fast
Ibtisam* is a 16-year-old girl living in Yemen who shared her story of marrying at 14. Of the 4 million girls married before the age of 18 in Yemen, 1.4 million were married before age 15.
Since I was…
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Girls in Sudan are coding their way to a brighter future
At the ShareZone Centre filled with laptops and three technical instructors, aspiring coders Hajer, 18, and Eman, 25, see the results of their work: the words “Hello, World!” moving across their computer screens. Last…
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Crisis after the storm: needs soar for women and girls in typhoon-ravaged Philippines
When Super Typhoon Rai (Odette) barrelled down on the Philippines on 16 December 2021, its 195km/h winds and torrential rain tore through hundreds of thousands of homes, businesses and vital infrastructure, putting…
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Drought in Kenya proves a setback to eliminating female genital mutilation
There are two rainy seasons in Kenya: The long rains in March, April and May and the short rains in October, November and December. The past three seasons have failed, and the next one is forecast to do the same. In…
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In Somalia, 100 mothers pledge not to subject daughters to female genital mutilation
When Halima* was eight, she underwent female genital mutilation under the blade of her mother, a traditional birth attendant (TBA). “The procedure was painful, with no anaesthesia. I bled for days,” she recalled. “I was…
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Women refugees bear the brunt of Ethiopia’s forgotten crisis in Gambella
Nyabel fled to Ethiopia more than five years ago from Nasir in the Upper Nile state of South Sudan, after conflict broke out in 2013 and displaced some 1.5 million people. She arrived at the camp with little more than…
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For gender-based violence survivors in Palestine, a little assistance goes a long way
After receiving psychosocial and well-being services at the UNFPA-supported women and girls’ safe space for gender-based violence survivors in Nablus, women may leave with vocational training experience to help them…
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