.png?sfvrsn=6d0e27cd_1 "Partnership for Change - v7 (1)")
This month, I’m proud to spotlight UNFPA, the United Nations Population Fund, which is headed by the amazing Natalia Kanem, as Executive Director. UNFPA is a critical member of the PMNCH UN Agencies Constituency. UNFPA calls for the realization of reproductive rights for all and supports access to a wide range of sexual and reproductive health services – including voluntary family planning, maternal health care and comprehensive sexuality education. UNFPA is also a global leader in the fight against female genital mutilation (FGM), which harms more than 4 million girls annually. Globally, it is estimated that more than 200 million girls and women alive today have undergone some form of FGM, and an estimated 68 million girls are at risk of being mutilated between 2015 and 2030. Humanitarian crises, including COVID-19, exacerbate the issue by hindering prevention efforts -- an estimated 2 million more girls over the next decade will be subjected to the practice compared with before the pandemic. The recent UNFPA advocacy campaign for the International Day of Zero Tolerance for FGM, #InvestDontRest, called for accelerated investments in programmes, services, and opportunities for those affected and at risk and laws to end the harmful practice. The #InvestDontRest campaign has reached over 32 million people in its first week mobilizing thousands of online activists to share their commitments and investments to end FGM by 2030, including governments, policy-makers, CSOs and leading figures.
UNFPA is co-leading the Action Coalition on Bodily Autonomy and Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights of the Generation Equality Forum and is committed to empowering communities through consensus-building and collective public abandonment of the practice of FGM by: 1. Scaling up gender and social norms evidenced-based prevention programmes; 2. Supporting regional institutions to promote accountability; and 3. Engaging men and boys as champions of gender equality and advocates for ending FGM by promoting gender equitable norms in their families and communities. PMNCH joins hands with UNFPA as a member of the Action Coalition and is committed to equip national stakeholders from its 10 constituencies with advocacy tools and resources to mobilize governments to make financial and policy commitments to advance PMNCH’s COVID-19 Call to Action. The Call to Action prioritizes sexual and reproductive health rights as part of national COVID-19 response and recovery plans.
As a founding partner of PMNCH, UNFPA has held a seat on the board since 2005, and is represented by Natalia, supported by many dedicated and professional senior officers – Anneka Knutsson, Monica Ferro, Petra ten Hoppe-Bender and Will Zeck, to mention a few. UNFPA plays a leadership role in PMNCH’s efforts on SRHR and adolescent health and well-being. As a member of PMNCH, UNFPA works closely with other PMNCH members on a wide range of evidence-based SRHR advocacy efforts, including those focused on adolescent girls. Recently, UNFPA has played a key role in developing the definition and framework of Adolescent Well-being, as well as leading on key papers in the BMJ collection on adolescent well-being, coordinated by PMNCH.
PMNCH congratulates UNFPA on its unflagging global leadership for SRHR and looks forward to its close collaboration in forthcoming efforts in 2022-23, including the Global Forum for Adolescents in 2023.
Learn more about UNFPA and follow Twitter UNFPA and Twitter GPtoEndFGM.