UNFPA News

31 August 2010 - Dispatch

Special Youth Fellows Head Back to Work in their Home Countries

NEW YORK — Each spring, the halls of UNFPA come alive with youthful energy as a new crop of Special Youth Fellows come on board. And then, four and a half months later they leave, to take experiences and capacities gained back to the UNFPA offices in their respective countries. more

30 August 2010 - Dispatch

UNFPA Executive Director Delivers Her Final Executive Board Statement

NEW YORK — When she first addressed her Executive Board nearly a decade ago, Executive Director Thoraya Ahmed Obaid highlighted three basic challenges facing UNFPA: ensuring a financially stable Fund, strengthening its institutional capacity, and addressing the social and cultural context of programme development and delivery. Her final statement to the board today examined progress in those three areas, and went into detail about many other issues. more
30 August 2010 - Statement

Statement of Thoraya Ahmed Obaid UNFPA Executive Director

Today, in my final statement to the Executive Board I will be as frank as I have always been with you. I will tell you what I perceive to be the successes, shortcomings and challenges that remain for UNFPA in ensuring accountability and driving the ICPD agenda forward. more
27 August 2010 - Dispatch

World Youth Conference: Why It Pays to Invest in Young People

LEON, Mexico — The idea that governments must invest more in young people been repeated in forums and panels throughout the World Youth Conference this week. But why is this so important? And what specific investments will generate the most traction? more
26 August 2010 - Feature Story

Preventing Teenage Pregnancy in Ecuador

RIOBAMBA, Ecuador — When fifteen-year-old Maria Victoria Urquizo tends to the potato-field in front of her brother’s house in the indigenous community of Guanilchig, she has a stunning view of the majestic, snow-capped Chimborazo—Ecuador’s highest mountain. At 3,500 meters above sea level, the morning air in this Western range of the Andes is crisp. The sunlight reflects the bright colours of the traditional indigenous textiles Maria wears, but the story she tells is dark. more
26 August 2010 - Dispatch

UNFPA Teams Up with MTV Latin America to Highlight Youth Culture and Reproductive Health

LEON, Mexico — “Culture cannot change unless you stand up and say something,” said Thabo Sephuma, a 29-year-old South African who has lived in five different countries and encountered discrimination first-hand. “Having access to basic [reproductive health] services is an issue,” he said. more
25 August 2010 - Statement

Opening Statement at the World Youth Conference 2010

I have two messages for you today. My first message is that NOW is the time to invest in young people. Now is the time, not sometime in the future. My second message is that NOW is the time to promote dialogue and understanding across cultures and generations, to advance human rights for all people, both young and old. I say now is the time because young people are not just the future; they are very much the present. more
25 August 2010 - Press Release

It’s Time to Invest in Young People, Says UNFPA

UNITED NATIONS, New York—Now is the time to invest in young people and to promote dialogue and understanding across cultures and generations, said Purnima Mane, Deputy Executive Director of UNFPA,  who delivered an opening speech at the World Youth Conference on behalf of UNFPA’s Executive Director Thoraya Ahmed Obaid. Young people are not just the future, but very much the present, she told the conference, which is under way in Léon, Mexico. more
23 August 2010 - Dispatch

Young People Urged to Speak Out: The World is Listening

LEON, Mexico  — The  hall was filled with the energy of some 4,000 young people from more than 100 countries, who had gathered to have a say about the future at the World Youth Conference here today.  "This energy is unrivalled, as it comes from their belief that the world can be changed, that the future can be better than today; because we know for a fact that young people are powerful agents of change," said Ms. Purnima Mane, UNFPA Deputy Executive Director (Programme) at the opening of the Social Forum segment of the conference. more

Calendat of event

Latest publications

  • Beijing at 15
    The document presents a review of progress in acheiving the objectives of the Beijing Platform for Action and how those objectives are relevant to UNFPAs mandate, ICPD, the MDGs and other international commitments.

  • The Maternal Health Thematic Fund Annual Report 2009
    The annual report 2009 from UNFPA's Maternal Health Thematic Fund, MHTF, outlines the activities, results and achievements from a very busy year and looks ahead at future challenges.

  • Countdown to 2015: Maternal, Newborn & Child Survival
    This report collects and analyses data from the 68 countries that account for at least 95 per cent of maternal and child deaths. It produces country profiles that present coverage data for a range of key health services, including:

    • Contraceptive use.
    • Antenatal care.
    • Skilled attendance at delivery.
    • Postnatal care.
    • Child health.
    • Financial investments in maternal, newborn and child health.
    • Equity of access, health systems and policy.
    The 2010 report reviews progress over 2000–2010.