- 22/05/2013 : Newborn deaths down by a third in Bangladesh
- 17/05/2013 : New evidence to save mothers’ lives!
- 13/03/2013 : Join us in May at Women Deliver!
- 25/02/2013 : A Manifesto for Maternal Health Post-2015
- 16/01/2013 : In India Preference for Sons Undermines Desire for Smaller Families
- 08/01/2013 : UK Government launches Violence Against Women initiative
- 07/01/2013 : AIDS still a leading cause of death among women of reproductive age
- 06/01/2013 : Follow up to Rio + 20 and the General Assembly Working Group on the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
- 05/01/2013 : The Secretary General's High-Level Panel of Eminent Persons on the Post-2015 Development Agenda
- 04/01/2013 : United Nations Development Group (UNDG) Process
- 03/01/2013 : An interview with Marianne Haslegrave, Director, Commonwealth, Medical Trust
- 02/01/2013 : The Post-2015 Development Agenda
Latest News
08/01/2013 : UK Government launches Violence Against Women initiative
The UK Government has launched a new initiative to help prevent violence against women and girls living around the world. According to UN figures, one in three women globally will be beaten or sexually abused in their lifetime. International Development Secretary Justine Greening announced in a speech in November that a new research and innovation fund will collect evidence of violence against women and girls from ten countries in Africa and Asia to help shape a new prevention strategy over a five year period.
Speaking at an event to mark International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women on 28 November, Justine Greening said: "It is shocking and unacceptable that in the 21st century one in three women is still beaten or sexually abused in her lifetime. This matters for development: girls who experience violence are less likely to complete their education, find it harder to earn a living, and have a significantly higher risk of maternal death and vulnerability to HIV and AIDS. The UK is leading the international community to prevent violence against women and is working to get a better understanding of what works on the ground so we can stop it for good."
Evidence from the research will enable the UK and its international partners to transform the way programmes are designed and to better formulate schemes to help women and girls. For example, in Nepal, a new paralegal programme was created after trials showed that community mediators are particularly effective at addressing protection issues, leading to a 36% reduction in domestic abuse cases. Specifically, the research and innovation fund will:
- Drive innovation, generate ground-breaking new evidence and support new prevention programmes
- Support innovation and research in humanitarian settings and conflict states so that we can ensure women and girls at risk of violence are best protected
- Focus on prevention strategies in over 10 countries
- Encourage the international community to work better with communities and national governments to help transform discriminatory attitudes and behaviours contribute to helping 10 million women access justice by 2015.
Saving Lives
Over a quarter of a million women and three million newborn babies die each year in pregnancy and childbirth or soon afterwards, the majority of them in Africa and South Asia. For every woman who dies at least twenty more suffer complications which leave them with lifelong disability and pain.
Our unique programmes are saving the lives of mothers and babies every day. We need you to help us to equip women with their most vital survival tool: knowledge.
