Fifty years ago, the world declared that “parents have a basic human right to determine freely and responsibly the number and the spacing of their children,” at the United Nations International Conference on Human Rights in Tehran, on 13 May 1968.

Based on observations from our recent visits to the refugee camps in the Cox’s Bazar District of Bangladesh, we call on the international community to urgently step up its efforts to help all Rohingya refugees in confronting their ordeal.

UNITED NATIONS, New York—At UNFPA, the United Nations Population Fund, we welcome the release of our colleague, Zarmina Zafar, and her son, who were abducted in Kabul in January.

Pregnancy and childbirth should be among the happiest of occasions in a woman’s life. Unfortunately, this is not the case for many of the world’s poorest and most marginalized women.

On this International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia and Transphobia, UNFPA, the United Nations Population Fund, stands with all members of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) communities worldwide.

I am happy to learn of today’s release of some of the girls who had been abducted by insurgents in Dapchi, Nigeria. Like their families and community, I am deeply concerned about their physical and emotional well-being after their ordeal.

UNFPA, the United Nations Population Fund, has zero tolerance for sexual harassment, exploitation and abuse. This policy is strictly enforced.

The economic inequalities plaguing much of the world today are reinforced by many other forms of inequality, including inequalities in sexual and reproductive health. More than 200 million women—many of them poor and living in rural and remote parts of the world—lack access to voluntary family planning methods. In addition, more than 800 pregnant women—many in fragile socio-economic situations—die each day from complications related to pregnancy and childbirth.

UNFPA notes the recent news stories on possible sexual exploitation and abuse in the distribution of humanitarian aid inside Syria. UNFPA underscores that it has zero tolerance for any form of abuse or exploitation.

Statement of Dr. Natalia Kanem, Executive Director of UNFPA, the UN Population Fund, in response to Escalation of Violence in Syria

Female genital mutilation is many things: A violent act that causes infection, disease, childbirth complications and even death. A cruel practice that inflicts lasting emotional harm and preys on the most vulnerable, least powerful members of society – girls between infancy and age 15. A violation of human rights that both reflects and perpetuates the low status of girls and women in too many places. A drag on the well-being of communities and economies.