“Mere access is not enough” said UNICEF’s Kelly Ann Naylor, Associate Director of Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH). “If the water isn’t clean, isn’t safe to drink or is far away, and if toilet access is unsafe or limited, then we’re not delivering for the world’s children”. The Joint Monitoring Programme report, “Progress on drinking water, sanitation and hygiene: 2000-2017:… Read More

“The World Population Prospects 2019: Highlights”, estimates that the next 30 years will see the global population add an extra 2 billion people to today’s figure of 7.7 billion, and, by the end of the century, the planet will have to sustain around 11 billion. India will overtake China, sub-Saharan Africa population to double India is expected to show the… Read More

South Sudanese facing famine in all but name, warns UN food agency Record numbers in South Sudan – some seven million people – face acute food shortages, while more than 20,000 are close to famine, the World Food Programme (WFP) warned on Friday. The warning, which follows years of violent unrest and vicious rights abuses linked to mass displacement, food… Read More

According to UNICEF, one woman and six newborns die every two hours from complications during pregnancy or childbirth. The years of intense fighting in the country have contributed to limited access to crucial healthcare, with only three out of 10 births taking place in regular health facilities. The results are part of a series compiled by the agency, Childbirth and… Read More

“The sexual abuse and rape of older persons is a subject rarely discussed, but nevertheless is a reality,” said Ms. Kornfeld-Matte, in a statement issued on Thursday, calling on everyone to “be more attentive and report suspected cases of abuse of older people”.  “Invisible” and “still taboo”, she noted that, “with the ageing of our societies, this problem is expected to grow dramatically” and… Read More

Each 13 June, the world is reminded that people with albinism deserve to have their rights to life and security protected. Persons with albinism routinely face ongoing hurdles and challenges to their human rights, ranging from stigma and discrimination, to barriers in health and education. Albinism is a rare, non-contagious, genetically inherited condition present at birth. It is found in both sexes,… Read More

One-in-five suffers mental health condition in conflict zones, new UN figures reveal More than one-in-five people living in conflict-affected areas suffers from a mental illness, according to a new report based on UN figures, prompting the World Health Organization (WHO) to call for increased, sustained investment in mental health services in those zones. Around 22 per cent of those affected,… Read More

Tens of millions of children living through conflict, disaster and other emergencies in dozens of countries urgently need protection, UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) said on Tuesday, in an appeal for $3.9 billion to support its humanitarian work around the world. Read More

More than one million sexually transmitted infections occur every day: WHO The global scale of sexually transmitted infections (STI) should be a “wake-up call” to governments, UN health experts said on Thursday, citing data showing that one in 25 people today have “at least one” curable STI, which occur at a rate of more than one million a day worldwide.… Read More

“These deaths are entirely preventable,” said Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. Unsafe food – contaminated by bacteria, viruses, parasites or chemical substances – also causes nearly one-in-ten people, or some 600 million, to fall ill globally each year. “World Food Safety Day is a unique opportunity to raise awareness about the dangers of unsafe food with governments, producers, handlers and consumers”, he… Read More