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WFP warns Ebola outbreak in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is spreading rapidly, worsening hunger, displacement, and overwhelming fragile humanitarian response systems.
In the Central African Republic conflict, poverty and shrinking humanitarian funding are pushing health systems to the brink. At the Bangui Paediatric Complex, Central African Republic's only specialist neonatal and paediatric hospital, families face rising costs for care after free health services sustained by international partners, including UNFPA, were scaled back. Belicia, who had triplets is receiving quality care in the maternity ward. However, only around 40 per cent of births in the country are attended by skilled personnel and many women struggle to access essential reproductive and neonatal healthcare.
Regular physical activity of moderate intensity – such as walking, cycling, or doing sports – has significant benefits for health. World Bicycle Day (3 June) celebrates the bicycle for being a simple, affordable, and reliable way to travel for over 200 years. It is a great, clean choice for keeping both our bodies and our planet healthy.
The World Health Organization estimates that 40 million adolescents aged 13–15 worldwide use tobacco. The tobacco and nicotine industries design their products to get young people stuck in a cycle of addiction. The grip of tobacco and nicotine addiction can be broken. This World No Tobacco Day (31 May) let us join together to unmask the appeal and work together for a world free of tobacco addiction.
Millions of women and girls worldwide still lack access to menstrual products, clean water, sanitation, and education needed to manage their menstrual health and hygiene safely and with dignity. Periods make them miss school, work, and opportunities — especially in conflict-affected areas where the challenges are even greater. But it does not have to be this way. This Menstrual Hygiene Day (28 May), let's end period poverty and stigma. Let's change the rules and support the work of UNICEF, the United Nations Population Fund and UN Women to ensure every girl and woman can thrive.
During an obstetric emergency, minutes can make the difference between life and death. In Benin, Côte d’Ivoire and Togo, drivers race along rural roads day and night to bring pregnant women to health clinics and hospitals. At the end of the journey, skilled midwives stand ready to deliver crucial care. A global partnership between the United Nations Population Fund and Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited is helping to make these potentially life-saving connections possible. The initiative, “2 Hours to Life”, trains both drivers to drive safely and midwives to deliver babies, to ensure that pregnant women are transported safely and receive quality obstetric care within two hours. This photo story follows the people behind those critical moments: the fast-acting drivers and expertly trained midwives, and the women they have helped deliver safely.
On 18–23 May, the 79th World Health Assembly (WHA) is taking place in Geneva, Switzerland. As the principal decision-making body of the World Health Organization, it plays a vital role in global health governance, addressing pressing health challenges through collaborative action. The WHA serves as a platform for Member States to discuss and vote on critical health issues, set priorities, and coordinate responses to global health threats. It is essential in shaping international health policies and ensuring that health systems are resilient and equitable. Watch the Assembly live. #WHA79
A large proportion of avoidable infections acquired during health care delivery could still be prevented with hand hygiene and infection prevention and control action at the right times. Each year, since 2009, the SAVE LIVES: Clean Your Hands campaign marked on World Hand Hygiene Day (5 May) aims to progress the goal of maintaining a global profile on the importance of hand hygiene and infection prevention and control in health care and to ‘bring people together’ in support of improvement globally. #handhygiene
Global efforts to curb viral hepatitis are reducing infections and deaths, but progress is too slow to meet 2030 targets, a new World Health Organization (WHO) report warns. Hepatitis B and C, which cause 95% of hepatitis deaths, killed 1.34 million people in 2024, while 1.8 million new infections occurred. Since 2015, new hepatitis B infections fell 32% and hepatitis C deaths 12%, and child hepatitis B prevalence dropped to 0.6%. Yet 287 million people live with chronic infection, most untreated, and transmission persists due to low vaccination, unsafe injections and limited harm reduction. WHO urges faster scale-up of prevention, testing and treatment efforts worldwide.
For girls in eastern Uganda, sport has become a lifeline. Athletics coach Zuena Cheptoek is more than a trainer: she is a trusted adult to whom girls confide fears about female genital mutilation, pressure to leave school and unsafe relationships. Working with Sebei communities, she uses sport to challenge traditions that trap girls in cycles of poverty, violence and early marriage. Through races, mentorship and safe spaces, girls gain education, confidence and knowledge of their rights. As they run and learn, attitudes begin to shift—offering girls the chance to choose safety, dignity and a future of their own.
When psychosocial factors harm workers, they become hazards that, alongside physical, chemical and biological risks, must be addressed and managed to ensure safe and healthy working environments. Each year, an estimated 840,000 deaths are linked to psychosocial risks at work, underscoring the scale and urgency of the challenge. The 2026 campaign of the World Day for Safety and Health at Work (28 April) focuses on creating safe and healthy psychosocial working environments, tackling issues such as work-related stress, burnout and mental health, alongside physical safety.
In Myanmar’s remote and conflict-affected Shan State, accessing basic healthcare has long meant long journeys, unreliable facilities and difficult conditions. Today, that reality is changing. Through community-focused design and investment, new and upgraded health centres are bringing safe, dignified care within reach for thousands. Equipped with reliable power, clean water and inclusive spaces, these facilities are more than buildings—they are trusted lifelines. By strengthening local health systems and supporting frontline workers, the initiative is helping ensure that even in the most challenging environments, families have a dependable place to turn when it matters most.
Women are living longer, but they are not living better. An explainer by UN Women lays out how deep‑rooted gender bias in healthcare continues to undermine women’s health worldwide. Women are more likely to have their pain dismissed, symptoms misread and conditions diagnosed too late, reflecting medical systems built without women in mind. From outdated examination tools to male‑centric data driving diagnosis and treatment, inequality is embedded in everyday care. These systemic gaps have lasting consequences for women’s health, safety and quality of life, prompting calls for research, services and systems that deliver dignity, accuracy and respect for all women and girls.
In voodoo ceremonies, in mosques and in churches, religious leaders across Benin are talking about sex. From consent to preventing the spread of HIV and AIDS, UNFPA is helping them provide sexual health education.