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Articles by Julitta Onabanjo
Narrowing data gaps to ensure no woman or girl left behind
COMMENT | It has been said that data is currency. Data is power. Data is perhaps even the new fuel. As the world celebrated International Women’s Day last month and renewed commitments to women’s empowerment and gender equality, I was repeatedly reminded of the limited availability of good quality gender data, including gender-disaggregated data. Why is this important? Well, many would argue that women and girls experience the world quite differently from men and boys.
Narrowing data gaps to ensure no woman or girl in Malaysia is left behind
IT has been said that data is currency. Data is power. Data is perhaps even the new fuel. This March, as the world celebrated International Women's Day and renewed commitments to women's empowerment and gender equality, I was repeatedly reminded of the limited availability of good quality gender data, including gender-disaggregated data. Why is this important? Well, many would argue that women and girls experience the world quite differently from men and boys.
Opinion: Getting it right on family planning
More than250 million women worldwide would like to be using modern contraceptives but are not. This figure is particularly egregious if we consider the leaps in scientific innovation and increase in supplies of safe and effective contraception the world has seen in recent years. Too often, policymakers treat family planning as optional or secondary to other public health work.
UNFPA Calls for Protection & Justice for Women & Girls in Tigray
Armed Conflicts, Civil Society, Editors' Choice, Featured, Gender, Global, Global Governance, Headlines, IPS UN: Inside the Glasshouse, TerraViva United Nations Opinion By Julitta Onabanjo Reprint | | Print | The writer is UNFPA Regional Director for East and Southern Africa. In retelling their stories, women in Tigray describe their attackers as “armed men”.
Ethiopia: UNFPA calls for the protection and justice for women and girls in Tigray - Dr. Julitta Onabanjo, UNFPA Regional Director for East and Southern Africa
...Conflict-affected women with their UNFPA Dignity Kits at Meserete IDP camp in Mekelle, Tigray Dr. Julitta Onabanjo, UNFPA Regional Director for East and Southern Africa Listen to article The 2018 Nobel Laureate, Dr. Denis Mukwege, a gynaecologist celebrated for his work with survivors of sexual assault in the Democratic Republic of the Congo's Panzi Hospital once said: “Rape is a strategy of war – it is meant to destroy women and communities physically and mentally”.
Africa: A Menstrual Health Revolution for the Africa We Want!
opinion By Dr. Julitta Onabanjo, Regional Director, UNFPA East and Southern Africa A red revolution of a different kind is flowing across Africa, to the benefit of more than half of its people. The continent's nations have begun to work together on a widespread challenge that, until three years ago, had not been tackled head on.
Ethiopia: UNFPA calls for the protection and justice for women and girls in Tigray
A social worker at the UNFPA-supported safe house where Selam now resides described the women as arriving “traumatized and depressed due to prolonged suffering, distress and horrendous violence”. Even when women have not experienced sexual violence, the fear of rape or insecurity prevents them from accessing food distributing centres, critical health-care services for themselves or their children, and adolescent girls may stay away from school.
Turning The Tide For Women And Girls Caught In Mozambique’s Cabo Delgado Crisis
Listen to article The resource-rich land of Cabo Delgado province in Mozambique has developed one of the continent’s most complex and layered crises. As governments and communities rallied together to tackle the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, other humanitarian crises caused by conflict and natural disasters continued unabated.
Turning the tide for women and girls caught in Mozambique’s Cabo Delgado crisis
Women and girls are disproportionately affected by the conflict due to their particular vulnerabilities. When we recognize their unique needs as half of the population, then we must acknowledge that Mozambique’s humanitarian crisis response will not achieve the desired results unless women and girls are adequately protected.
OPINION: Turning the tide for women & girls caught in Cabo Delgado crisis
OPINION: Turning the tide for women & girls caught in Cabo Delgado crisis As governments and communities rallied together to tackle the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, other humanitarian crises caused by conflict and natural disasters continued unabated. This is the situation faced by Mozambique, a nation that was still wrestling with the devastating impact of two cyclones in 2019 when a tropical storm and another cyclone hit recently – amid the violent conflict in its northern reaches.
Southern Africa: Our March Continues 365 Days a Year
Message from Dr. Julitta Onabanjo, UNFPA Regional Director for East and Southern Africa, on the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women This year has been a challenging one. Lockdown and restrictive measures introduced to curb the spread of the coronavirus have unfortunately led to an increase in the already existing silent pandemic of gender-based violence.
Africa: Raise the Voices of Millions of Girls Who Hope and Dream of a Gender-Equal World
The story of 12-year-old Amanda in Zambia, who has large dreams, is the story of millions of girls across Africa. She sees a hopeful future ahead - one in which her voice is heard, her rights are respected and a world of opportunities awaits her. As we celebrate the 2020 International Day of the Girl Child, amidst the roiling global crisis of Covid-19, let the voices of girls become louder.
People still have sex during outbreaks — forgetting it can be deadly – Bhekisisa
Planning for the pandemic has to include sexual and reproductive health services. If not, we risk saving women from the new coronavirus but leaving them to die during childbirth, unsafe abortions or at the hands of their partners. COMMENT The world is gearing up its response to the rapidly spreading new coronavirus, SARS-Cov-2. But as it does so, access to sexual and reproductive health services and care are being severely curtailed.
CORONAVIRUS OP-ED: People still have sex during disease outbreaks. Here’s why governments would do well to remember that
If sexual and reproductive health services are not embedded now as part of national and local responses to the new coronavirus, in the coming months we are likely to see a rise in sexually transmitted infections and unintended pregnancies, including high-risk teen pregnancies, say the writers. (Photo: EPA-EFE / Sergey Dolzhenko) Planning for the pandemic has to include sexual and reproductive health services.
East Africa: 2020 to 2030 - Decade for Slaying the Female 'Cut' Globally
The ten-year period from 2020 to 2030 is the Decade of Action for Sustainable Development, a decade of ambitious action to deliver the goals by 2030. The United Nations, with 75 years of global development experience, understands that meaningful development takes time. It is often achieved in a series of decisive, cumulative actions that build up to big transformative results. The role of young people in sustainable development cannot be understated, and their efforts must underpin this decade.
2020 to 2030: Decade for slaying the female ‘cut’ globally
In Summary The theme of the 2020 International Day of Zero Tolerance to female genital mutilation (FGM) underscores the critical role that young people play in ending FGM, and this is celebrated this year through #youthendFGM. FGM practices can cause haemorrhage, shock, serious injury or a range of infections. In the long term, FGM may lead to infertility and increased susceptibility to infections, and can become life threatening during child birth.
Congo-Kinshasa: Women & Girls Up Front - the Humanitarian Response in Democratic Republic of Congo
Geneva / Johannesburg / Kinshasa — Eleven-year-old "Anne" went to a health facility with her mother in the conflict-affected province of Ituri, in northeastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. At first, she could barely tell her story. Traumatized and frightened, she feared reprisal from her attackers. Painstakingly, she recounted the brutal rape she had suffered and the pain that she felt in her body.
Women & Girls Up Front -- the Humanitarian Response in Democratic Republic of Congo
Africa, Aid, Climate Change, Environment, Featured, Gender, Headlines, Health, Human Rights, Humanitarian Emergencies, Labour, TerraViva United Nations, Women's Health Opinion By Julitta Onabanjo, Shoko Arakaki and Sennen Hounton Reprint | | Print | Julitta Onabanjo is Regional Director, UNFPA East and Southern Africa based in Johannesburg; Shoko Arakaki is Director, UNFPA Humanitarian Office, Geneva; & Sennen Hounton is UNFPA Representative in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) Woman...
When is Universal Health Coverage Good for Attaining Universal Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights?
Africa, Gender, Headlines, Health, Population, Poverty & SDGs Opinion By Julitta Onabanjo Reprint | | Print | Dr. Julitta Onabanjo is Regional Director, United Nations Population Fund, East and Southern Africa UNFPA-supported midwives ensured that this young woman gave birth safely in Bor Hospital, South Sudan.
East Africa: When Is Universal Health Coverage Good for Attaining Universal Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights?
This is a special year for all rights-based health advocates, as we celebrate 25 years of the International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD).
The business of love: Why condom factories and job creation could go hand-in-hand
Every year, the continent falls 3-billion condoms short of what it needs. Could investing in condom factories be the answer — and create jobs to boot? By the end of today, another 3 300 people in sub-Saharan Africa will become HIV positive. But why are 50% of the condoms the continent needs to prevent this, missing in action? East and Southern Africa may only be home to 8% of the world’s population but it accounts for nearly half of the world’s HIV infections, UNAIDS 2018 data reveals.
Africa: Celebrating Menstruation - from Menarche to Menopause
opinion By Dr. Julitta Onabanjo, Regional Director, United Nations Population Fund, East and Southern Africa Regional OfficeThe cycle of poverty is a complex phenomenon, yet an intervention that tackles just one of its elements can make a world of difference. Take an initiative at a primary school in Malawi. Every Friday, a group of schoolgirls gather in a room that has been set aside for them at Lifidzi Primary School in Salima District.
Africa: Together, We Can Stop FGM
opinion By Julitta OnabanjoAs we mark the 2018 international day International Day of Zero Tolerance for Female Genital Mutilation we need to accelerate efforts of raising awareness and encourage concrete actions to stop the harmful practice. "Female genital mutilation targets little girls, baby girls - fragile angels who are helpless, who cannot fight back. It's a crime against a child, a crime against humanity. It's abuse.
OPINION: The Plight of Women and Girls in Zambezi’s Floods
Dr. Julitta Onabanjo is Regional Director, UNFPA East and Southern Africa Region. Dr. Michael Charles is Officer-in-Charge Acting Regional Representative for IFRC Southern Africa Region Office. UNITED NATIONS, Feb 2 2015 (IPS) - The flooding of the Zambezi River has had devastating consequences for three countries in Southern Africa. The three worst affected countries are Malawi, Mozambique and Zimbabwe.
The world needs midwives, now more than ever
COMMENT The onset of labour marks the end of pregnancy and heralds what for many women living in rural areas is a treacherous and anxious filled time. While to the global community South Africa bears the status of a middle income country, it is still dealing with deep inequalities. While urban living guarantees women access to hospitals with good maternity wards, rural areas can sometimes paint a considerably different picture.
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