Your Support in Action: Protecting Women During the Greatest Public Health Crisis in a Century
In every humanitarian catastrophe, women and girls are disproportionately affected, abused, and exploited — and the coronavirus pandemic has been no exception.
An analysis by UNFPA, the UN reproductive health and rights agency, uncovered the devastating toll that this global public health crisis is taking on women’s and girls’ ability to plan their families and protect their bodies and their health.
For every six months of lockdown, more than 31 million women, trapped inside with their abusers, will experience sexual and gender-based violence.
An additional 13 million girls will be forced into marriage — depriving them of their rights and their futures. And 2 million more girls will suffer the psychological and physical trauma of female genital mutilation.
“For every six months of lockdown, 47 million women could lose access to birth control, resulting in 7 million unintended pregnancies.”
As Dr. Natalia Kanem, UNFPA’s Executive Director, says: “Women’s reproductive health and rights must be safeguarded at all costs. The services must continue; the supplies must be delivered; and the vulnerable must be protected.”
Thanks to you, UNFPA is doing everything in its power to care for expectant mothers, women who want to prevent pregnancy, survivors of abuse, and girls in need of sexuality education and other services. You are also providing frontline health workers with personal protective equipment (PPE) that protects them while caring for their patients.
Perhaps nowhere is the situation more tragic than in Yemen, where five years of civil war have decimated the country’s health systems. With COVID-19 cases spiking, women and their families are suffering even more.
Even worse: funding shortfalls have forced UNFPA to shutter 75 percent of its facilities. As the agency advocates for financial commitments from the international community, you are making it possible for local health workers to continue providing care with the resources they have.
By standing with UNFPA, you and your fellow supporters are a powerful force — united to protect our world’s most vulnerable people. Thank you for your commitment and generosity!