Kenya: Escape at Dawn - Running Away From Child Marriage and FGM in Kenya

"I woke up one morning, and my father told me that we were poor and needed money," said Faith, describing the moment she learned she was engaged. She was 11 years old at the time. Read more »

South Sudan: Fistula, a Preventable Birth Injury, Afflicts Most Vulnerable Women and Girls

Childbirth is supposed to be a joyous occasion. But for the most vulnerable women and girls, it can be anything but. Read more »

South Sudan: Once Frowned On, Family Planning Offers a Lifeline in South Sudan

Life is harsh in the northern city of Malakal. Once a vibrant commercial hub, it is now essentially a ghost town, its residents crammed into a protection camp on the city's… Read more »

Sudan: Stay and Deliver - Saving Lives Under Gunfire in Juba

Ferocious violence erupted in Juba, the capital of South Sudan, on 7 July, two days before the fifth anniversary of the country's independence. Hundreds of people were killed or… Read more »

Tanzania: The Very Important Girls Group - Investing in Youth to Invest in the Future of Tanzania

Unlike 95 per cent of girls her age in Tanzania's Shinyanga region, at 17, Rahuba Kenedy was enrolled in secondary school - and excelling academically. Then, she met a charming man… Read more »

Somalia: Midwives On the Frontlines of Fighting Maternal Death in Somalia

Nine years ago, Maymuun Abdullahi Nur's mother died giving birth to her eighth child, during a delivery attended only by an untrained traditional birth attendant. Just 13 at the… Read more »

Kenya: Kenyan Journalist Wins First UNFPA/Guardian Award for FGM Reporting

Diana Kendi Makale, a journalist from Kenya, was selected as the winner of the first Efua Dorkenoo Pan African Award for Reportage on Female Genital Mutilation. Read more »

South Sudan: Young South Sudanese Actors and Athletes Take On Violence, HIV, Human Rights

Weeks after violence erupted in in South Sudan, Mike Marchar fled for his life. He found safe haven in the Ayilo Refugee Settlement in northern Uganda, but lost track of his… Read more »

Ethiopia: Giving Women Choices - Family Planning Options Increase in Rural Ethiopia

"My heart is with him," said Netsanet*, speaking of her husband, who has moved away to a distant town, leaving her and their son behind in a rural village in northern Ethiopia. She… Read more »

Uganda: "If It's Not On, It's Not Safe" - Ugandan Musicians Promote Condom Use to Save Lives

"A commando dies if he neglects the bullet proof. How do you work on a farm minus gumboots?" raps popular Ugandan musician GNL Zamba in the hit song "If It's Not On, It's Not… Read more »