In the past 20 years, progress has been made towards universal sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) in the East and Southern Africa (ESA) region. However, millions still lack universal access to comprehensive SRHR in the ESA region, which includes 23 diverse countries with over 670 million people, of whom nearly one-third are between 10 to 24 years of age.  Providing universal comprehensive SRHR, in oper...

Hiwet carries the weight of a painful past, one that inflicted a harmful practice forced on her during childhood, and without her consent. Through the agony of childbirth complications suffered due to this archaic tradition, she has emerged as a fierce advocate for change. Today, determined to spare others from a similar fate, Hiwet leads an awareness campaign that seeks to empower girls to reject female genital muti...

End discrimination to ensure the right to health for all. On World Health Day, we celebrate the successes achieved since the adoption of the 1994 International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) Programme of Action in Cairo, which placed sexual and reproductive health and rights at the heart of development.