'This report provides highlights of a September 2003 consultation in Rome with UNFPA and many of its partners. It provides lessons learned from ten pilot projects that used a programme guide created by UNFPA to help health care providers address gender-based violence. It also summarizes presentations from ten experts on gender-based violence and recommendations from the three working groups.'

'This publication, which consists of two parts, underscores the importance of population issues, including reproductive health, as a critical component of national efforts to reduce poverty and achieve the MDGs. The first part highlights key arguments on the benefits to be gained when governments make reproductive health and rights a development priority. The second part includes the 'Stockholm Call to Action', a list of practical ways to invest in reproductive health which was endorsed by a num more...

'Three decades of assistance from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) has helped the Government of Egypt dramatically reduce deaths among pregnant women and infants. Compared with the 1970s, today 50 percent fewer women are dying during pregnancy, and 70 percent fewer infants are dying in the first year of life.'

Breastfeeding is one of the most effective ways to ensure child health and survival. A lack of exclusive breastfeeding during the first six months of life contributes to over a million avoidable child deaths each year. Globally less than 40% of infants under six months of age are exclusively breastfed. Adequate breastfeeding support for mothers and families could save many young lives.

WHO actively promotes breastfeeding as the best source of nourishment for infants and young children. This more...

More than half a million women die every year of complications during pregnancy or childbirth. Most of these deaths can be avoided as the necessary medical interventions exist and are well known. The key obstacle is pregnant women's lack of access to quality care before, during and after childbirth.

Millennium Development Goal 5 (MDG 5) aims to improve maternal health and reduce maternal mortality by 75% by 2015. But, so far progress in reducing mortality in developing countries has been too more...

Cambodian women are at significant risk from unsafe abortion with limited access to contraception or safe services for termination. This participatory research involved women themselves as researchers to better understand perceptions, attitudes and behaviours relating to abortion and family planning.Using the PEER method, local women developed their own research questions, interviewed their friends, and fed back findings to the research team. The work provides significant insights into how women more...

This case Study from Haiti is a part of a series of joint publications by UNFPA, WHO, UNAIDS and IPPF on the issue of strengthening linkages between sexual and reproductive health and HIV/AIDS. The document is based on country experiences and it is the result of a joint effort of national experts and a group of public health professions at UNFPA, WHO, IPPF and UNAIDS.

The health implications of the global food security crisis are immense, particularly in the 21 countries that suffer from acute or chronic malnutrition. WHO is providing guidance to the UN Secretary-General's High-Level Task Force on the health aspects of the crisis. The task force was formed in April 2008 to create a prioritized action plan and coordinate its implementation.

Religious leaders play a key role in shaping the health-seeking behavior of their communities—particularly with respect to family planning and reproductive health, topics where science, religion, culture and morality profoundly intersect. The Extending Service Delivery (ESD) Project is pleased to announce the launch of a new training tool that will help religious leaders to better understand reproductive health issues and to positively influence the choices made within their communities.

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Save the Children has worked in Central Asia to better serve the great needs of children and best use the vital resources of donors. Save the Children recently merged programs and activities with other members of the International Save the Children Alliance who also have programs in Central Asia. These programs focus on five priority initiatives: Child Protection, Education, Food Security, Health, and HIV/AIDS.