UNFPA (United Nations Population Fund)
Individual Documents
Description:
"Yangon, MYANMAR / Bangkok, THAILAND, 20 December 2023 – During conflicts, women and girls bear the brunt with increased risk of gender-based violence and loss of access to life-saving sexual and reproductive health supplies and services. In Myanmar, 9.2 million women and girls are in urgent need of humanitarian assistance, and over the last three years more than 2 million people have been internally displaced, of which more than half are women and girls.
UNFPA, the UN's sexual and reproductive health agency, is on the ground in Myanmar working closely with UN agencies and partners to ensure women and girls continue to receive life-saving services, including psychosocial support to survivors of gender-based violence.
“I recognize the selfless dedication and commitment of our staff and partners on the ground in Myanmar, working under extremely challenging circumstances. Our work is saving lives, and together, despite the challenges, we can and will stay and deliver for the women and girls of Myanmar to ensure their health, protection, and dignity is upheld at all times”, said UNFPA Regional Director for Asia-Pacific, Mr. Pio Smith, concluding a three-day visit to Myanmar, during which he met with UNFPA personnel, partners, donors, civil society, and youth organizations.
During his visit, Mr. Smith noted the operational challenges that UNFPA and its partners face in effectively and efficiently delivering life-saving services to women and girls within the current political context in Myanmar.
As part of his visit, Mr. Smith also met with authorities in Nay Pyi Taw where he discussed the impending operational challenges, and stressed on the urgent need for visas to be issued to UNFPA staff and for UNFPA and its partners to be granted travel authorization to the affected areas across the country to ensure continued and undisrupted delivery of life-saving services to women and girls in Myanmar.
During the discussions, Mr. Smith reaffirmed UNFPA’s stance on the 2024 census, noting the UN agency’s inability to support the census given the current political and conflict context in Myanmar, a decision rooted in UNFPA's commitment to ensuring data collection is transparent, neutral, and respectful of human rights.
UNFPA's dedication to supporting the sexual and reproductive health and rights of women and girls in Myanmar remains unwavering, noted Mr. Smith, reaffirming UNFPA’s continued commitment to stay and deliver. This pledge reflects the enduring mission to ensure that every pregnancy is wanted, every childbirth is safe, and every young person's potential is fully realized, at all times, especially in challenging environments..."
Source/publisher:
United Nations Population Fund (New York)
Date of publication:
2023-12-20
Date of entry/update:
2023-12-20
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
UNFPA (United Nations Population Fund), Public Health, Human Rights and international relations
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more
Description:
"The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) Asia and the Pacific Regional Office is committed to making sure that all efforts to address gender-based violence (GBV) are inclusive of and accessible to women and girls with disabilities, ensuring that transformative goals are met and that no one is left behind. To meet this critical need, UNFPA APRO developed tools for UNFPA Country Offices and partners to strengthen GBV and Disability inclusion programming, which include a Tip-sheet on Disability Inclusion in GBV Programming and a GBV and Disability Inclusion Assessment Tool.
The lessons learnt from the implementation of the UNFPA APRO tools informed this documentation on promising practices and innovative approaches to disability inclusion in GBV programming adopted by UNFPA Country Offices and their partners in the Asia-Pacific region. The promising practices and approaches highlight the power of partnerships between UNFPA, GBV service providers and Organizations of Persons with Disabilities not only in addressing the needs of survivors with disabilities, but for knowledge exchange, mentoring and joint advocacy. However, there is still a critical gap in the evidence on effective approaches and interventions to ensure sustainable changes in the knowledge, attitudes and practices of service providers. Gathering more information about this is critical to identifying what disability-inclusive approaches and strategies work, where they work and why..."
Source/publisher:
United Nations Population Fund (New York)
Date of publication:
2023-08-11
Date of entry/update:
2023-08-25
Grouping:
Individual Documents
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Format :
pdf pdf
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5.27 MB 235.81 KB
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"1 Introduction
More than one billion people experience some form of disability globally. The disability prevalence rate is higher in developing countries and among marginalised groups such as women, older people, those in the poorest wealth quantile, and those living in rural areas. Persons with disabilities who belong to these groups are more likely to experience challenges accessing essential social services such as education, health, and employment, further pushing them to the margins of society.
In Myanmar, the disability prevalence rate is 12.8 per cent, which is about 5.9 million people. According to the latest intercensal survey conducted in 2019, the country follows the global trend – disability prevalence is higher among women than men, older people, and those living in rural areas. Recognising that persons with disabilities in Myanmar face challenges in different spheres of life, hence the need to promote and protect their rights, the Government of Myanmar ratified the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) on December 07, 2011. The ratification of the CRPD paved the way to enact the Law on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in 2015 and the by-law/regulations in 2017.
Nevertheless, marginalisation is still present among the members of the disability sector in Myanmar as they are less likely to receive education, gain decent employment, marry, or have access to various amenities and facilities enjoyed by those without disabilities. In particular, there is an urgent need to address the situation of women and girls with disabilities who experience discrimination at the intersection of their gender and disability. Their situation is further exacerbated by the country's Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic and the ongoing military coup d’état.
Since 1973, the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) in Myanmar has provided continuous support to different target priorities, including sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) and the prevention of gender-based violence (GBV). One key programme that promotes these priorities is the Women and Girls First (WGF) Programme. This multi-year and multi-donor initiative supports the integrated service delivery of SRHR and GBV response programming across humanitarian, peacebuilding, and development nexus. The Programme’s second phase (2019-2022) focuses on integrating SRHR, GBV prevention and response interventions, and mental health and psychosocial support (MHPSS) services to safeguard the rights of women and girls to access comprehensive services that are essential in achieving their rights.
To ensure that persons with disabilities are not left behind in the delivery of integrated SRHR, GBV and MHPSS services, the UNFPA WGF Programme commissioned this study to identify the needs of persons with disabilities at the programme level. This study included identifying the barriers to and facilitators of the services delivered by the WGF Programme’s implementing partners and formulating recommendations to improve the disability inclusion component in the delivery of integrated SRHR, GBV and MHPSS services..."
Source/publisher:
United Nations Population Fund
Date of publication:
2023-06-28
Date of entry/update:
2023-06-28
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
UNFPA (United Nations Population Fund), Public Health, Human Rights and international relations, Freedom of opinion and expression: - the situation in Burma/Myanmar - reports, analyses, recommendations
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Format :
pdf
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1.91 MB (208 pages) - Original version
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"UNHCR and its partners continue to respond to the devastating impact of Cyclone Mocha, which affected millions of people in Myanmar and Bangladesh, destroying homes and infrastructures. UNHCR declared an internal Level-2 emergency on 29 May for Myanmar and Bangladesh to mobilize further internal capacity to respond to this new emergency.
In Myanmar, UNHCR is supporting response and coordination efforts as part of the United Nations Humanitarian Country Team. Latest reports indicate that an estimated 7.9 million people were in the path of over 90km per hour winds, damaging houses and infrastructure. 3.4 million are estimated to be need of humanitarian assistance. Rakhine State bore the brunt of the cyclone.
In Bangladesh, some 2.3 million people were residing in areas affected by the cyclone. UNHCR is supporting the government-led response and is working closely with the humanitarian community via the Inter-Sector Coordination Group (ISCG), displaced and host communities, as well as community leaders and volunteers.
Inter-agency Flash appeals were issued for both Myanmar and Bangladesh on 23 May, building on the existing Humanitarian Response Plan for Myanmar and the Joint Response Plan for Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh..."
Source/publisher:
UN High Commissioner for Refugees (Geneva) via Reliefweb (New York)
Date of publication:
2023-05-30
Date of entry/update:
2023-05-30
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
UNFPA (United Nations Population Fund), Food Security and nutrition in Burma/Myanmar, Human Rights and international relations, Cyclones - regional, Natural Disasters - General
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Format :
pdf
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769.6 KB
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"“We (Women with disabilities) experience double discrimination due to our gender and disability status. Without having access to information and services, we are more vulnerable to face different forms of violence both inside and outside of our homes,” Nwe Nwe Win, a local woman with physical disability said.
According to the 2019 Myanmar Inter-censal Survey, there is an estimated of 3.5 million females with disabilities compared to an estimated 2.5 million of males. Women with disabilities are 2 to 4 times more likely to experience intimate partner violence. They are more vulnerable to experience the situation such as withholding medication and assistive devices (such as wheelchairs, hearing aid and white canes, etc.), denial of assistance, food, water, and basic needs.
In conflict related situation, women and girls with disabilities are especially vulnerable. UNFPA, the United Nations sexual and reproductive health agency, with the support of local partner organizations of persons with disabilities , provides dignity kits which include basic needs for women and girls with disabilities from affected communities to ensure their personal hygiene and dignity.
“I had to flee my home when armed clashes happened near my village. I couldn’t bring anything from my personal belongings due to my physical disability?. Thanks to the items included in the kits such as basic clothing and sanitary napkins, I can live with dignity and manage my personal hygiene even in the situation of emergency.” Nyein Nyein, a local woman with disabilities from conflict affected area.
Sexual and reproductive health and gender-based violence information is important for women with disabilities at the displaced sites to minimize the risks they might have. Without access to the sexual and reproductive health services and information, they are at higher risk of unwanted pregnancies and sexually transmitted infections. Women with disabilities are up to 10 times more likely to experience sexual violence. It is important to provide information and services for persons with disabilities considering their specific needs based on major types of disabilities.
Sian Nuam, a local woman with physical disability said, “I didn’t notice that I was experiencing gender-based violence at home. Thanks to the assistive devices (wheelchair) to go out by myself without needing assistance from my family anymore and the opportunity to attend gender-based violence awareness and mental health and psychosocial support sessions provided by local OPD with the support of UNFPA, I feel empowered and understand my rights.”
Every person with disability has equal rights and choices as anyone else, as in global frameworks such as the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the ICPD Programme of Action and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. To end discrimination and exclusion in our society, it is important that we leave no one behind.
Yu Myat Mun, Programme Analyst of UNFPA Myanmar said, “The integrated sexual and reproductive health, gender-based violence and mental health and psychosocial support services and information are lifesaving assets for the women and girls with disabilities especially who are at the conflict affected displaced sites, by safeguarding their dignity, and opportunity to practice their body rights with the informed choices.” UNFPA’s support also ensure the equal accessibility to the maternal and family planning services for the persons with disabilities promoting their sexual and reproductive rights as others.
Joshua, one of the leaders of local organization of persons with disabilities said, “The main barrier which women and girls with disabilities face in the society is not their disabilities, but, sadly, it is the discrimination of people from their communities. It hinders full and effective participation of women with disabilities in the communities. We must end this barrier - discrimination against persons with disabilities including women and girl and provide support to ensure their rights and dignity.”..."
Source/publisher:
United Nations Population Fund
Date of publication:
2023-03-31
Date of entry/update:
2023-03-31
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
UNFPA (United Nations Population Fund), Rights of people with disabilities, Women's rights
Language:
more
Description:
"Kachin State, Myanmar — On International Women’s Day, and Daw Htu Tawng, 33, and Daw Ja Nan, 34, are giggling together in the kitchen of their restaurant in north-eastern Myanmar. Daw Htu Tawng is holding some spices; she adds a dash of black pepper in a pot of noodles while the other stirs the food. The air holds a fusion of mouth-watering aromas. With this year’s International Women’s Day promoting Innovation and Technology for Gender Equality, it is a perfect setting to celebrate women who have used their new cookery and business skills to establish their own restaurant, breaking barriers for women in the catering business.
“The business is doing well,” said Daw Ja Nan, a mother of three. “Our best sellers are the ban sai salad, and the spicy noodles garnished with sweet-smelling herbs, which makes the taste of our home so much alive in our popular noodles.”
When they first established their restaurant Ma Join Lusha Seng (meaning “origin” in Kachin), some people did not believe the enterprise would last a month. However, the two women have proved that with enough support, women too can create and sustain profit-making businesses. In the last 10 months, the two chefs have been preparing hot delicious meals, and trying new recipes that have kept their many customers happy.
After receiving a cookery and business management training course through an initiative funded by the UN Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF), the business partners received the opportunity to learn diverse ways of cooking many types of food. The new skills gave them the confidence to start their own small restaurant, outside Pa Ka Htawng Camp 3 in Kachin State. They settled in this camp with their families after an armed conflict between the Myanmar armed forces and the Kachin ethnic armed group in 2021 forced them to leave their village in Sein Lone in Man Si Township. And using their innovation, they are now able to run their business, working safely and generating an income helping them to look after their families.
"Education is important because it empowers you and makes you confident to take that bold step towards helping yourself, your family and your community..”
— Daw Htu Tawng, an entrepreneur in Myanmar
Through the CERF multi-country programme in Myanmar, UN Women and the UN Population Fund (UNFPA) are collaborating with women’s civil society organizations to use technology and innovative ways to provide life-saving assistance, build capacity to address socio-economic challenges and enhance the protection of vulnerable women and girls from risks such as child marriage, human trafficking and sexual and gender-based violence (GBV).
The multi-country programme targets 7,192 women and girls in Kachin and Rakhine states with activities under UNFPA, improving communities’ access to quality and comprehensive prevention and response services for gender-based violence. For their part, UN Women is complementing these efforts through the provision of a series of trainings that support livelihoods such as cookery; sewing; hairdressing; livestock production; other life skills and cash assistance.
In May 2022, UN Women partnered with the Finnish Refugee Council to provide livelihood support, life skills and vocational training that targeted survivors of GBV and women and girls at risk of GBV. The aim was to transfer skills that would empower women to start income-generating enterprises. Thirty women participated in a cookery and business management skills training that changed the lives of Daw Ja Nan and Daw Htu Tawng.
“The interventions have so far demonstrated the ability to help prevent displaced women from falling prey to unsafe work and working environments and selling family property to earn a living,” mother-of-two Daw Htu Tawng said.
After completing their one-month training course, the women borrowed one million Kyat (USD 500) from a relative to start their business. With a daily expenditure of 42 Kyat on ingredients, the business is now making a profit of 31 Kyat each day. Most of their clients are camp residents while others are migrant workers.
“We are now able to look after our families and also use some of the money to pay back our loan,” Daw Ja Nan said. The business partners dream of one day opening a bigger restaurant and expanding to provide specialized catering services at events such as weddings and graduation parties. Increasing their profits means a lot to the women who are passionate about their children’s education and dream of sending them to good universities in Yangon.
“Education is important because it empowers you and makes you confident to take that bold step towards helping yourself, your family and your community,” Daw Htu Tawng said. We are grateful for the support we have received and wish there could be more training opportunities to support other women to also start other types of businesses.”..."
Source/publisher:
United Nations Population Fund via United Nations Women
Date of publication:
2023-03-29
Date of entry/update:
2023-03-29
Grouping:
Individual Documents
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"YANGON, Myanmar/PORTEL, Brazil – Access to contraceptives and family planning has long been a complicated matter. But the COVID-19 pandemic made matters worse.
According to UNFPA research, disruptions in access to family planning services and supplies led 12 million women in 115 countries to lose access to birth control – and to as many as 1.4 million unplanned pregnancies.
For many, the coronavirus crisis reinforced the need for innovative solutions to the global problem of unmet need for modern family planning. Around the world, UNFPA met this urgent necessity with invention. Below, check out two new technological tools helping to accelerate UNFPA’s progress towards achieving universal family planning – for all 8 billion people now officially on the planet.
Saúde das Manas
Even before the COVID-19 pandemic caused widespread disruptions to the provision of sexual and reproductive health services, some communities had little to no access to regular care.
In fact, visits from gynecologists had been so rare in some communities of Brazil’s Pará state that one resident said many women don’t know what they are. “It was only in 2011 that I learned that gynecologists existed,” Leiliana Pereira told UNFPA.
This could change, however, following the introduction of a new telemedical service launched in August 2020 by UNFPA and the Pará Council of Municipal Health Departments called Saúde das Manas, or Sisters’ Health.
Sisters’ Health connects women and girls in hard-to-reach areas with telemedical sexual and reproductive health care, enabling access to services like prenatal consultations, gynecological cancer screenings and family planning. The project now operates across 13 municipalities in Pará – a state encompassed by Brazil’s Amazon region, which has struggled to reduce its maternal mortality rate.
In and around Portel, a city in Pará, taboos surrounding family planning run deep and misinformation is hard to squash. Ms. Pereira, who lives in Portel, said many in her community, especially those in the countryside, lack adequate information about contraceptives. The mother-of-five was 17 when she had her first child. "It was not planned – it happened," she said.
Earlier this year, she went for an appointment with a gynecologist at one of Saudé das Manas’ outposts in Portel with the objective of restarting use of contraceptives. Seated next to telemedicina nurse Stephanie Monteiro in her hometown, Ms. Pereira video chatted with a physician.
She is one of nearly 14,000 women that Saúde das Manas has reached. And with the project’s organizers exploring the possibility of expansion, she will not be the last.
“I hope that this continues, not only for me but for all women who need a doctor,” Ms. Pereira said. “The gynecologist is the women's doctor because they know our needs.”
Baykin 2
Similar concerns were seen in Thura’s community in Myanmar. “There is social stigma existing in our community to speak about sexual and reproductive health, especially concerning adolescents and youth. People are too shy to talk about it,” says the 15-year-old girl.
And like in Brazil, taboos were just one obstacle getting in the way of access to sexual and reproductive health information. Before the COVID-19 pandemic, UNFPA collaborated with partners to facilitate in-person awareness sessions on such issues. But after the virus began its global spread and Myanmar’s political instability led to restrictions on young people’s movements, these conversations were forced to migrate to a safer space – online.
Enter the Baykin 2 app: a virtual learning platform designed to introduce young people in Myanmar to critical information on sexual and reproductive health and rights, gender equality, gender-based violence and other subjects.
“For some young people, they feel comfortable and safe via this virtual platform and raise their issues openly for our support. We are so happy to see their interest and active participation going forward,” says Marie Stope Myanmar Programme Coordinator Aung Pike Tun.
The Baykin 2 app was designed to introduce adolescents and young people in Myanmar to key topics on sexual and reproductive health, gender equality and gender-based violence, among other topics. Games and visuals help adolescents learn about their bodies and rights.
Since its official launch in June 2022, Baykin 2’s user base has significantly expanded, according to UNFPA Myanmar. Half of its users are 10-24 years old; meanwhile some parents have created accounts for their children.
Baykin’s English translation is "being safe", which matches the ultimate goal of the app – to help young people gain the knowledge they need to exercise their rights and avoid the risk of unintended pregnancy, unsafe abortion, gender-based violence and other life threatening complications.
“Sexual and reproductive health information saves the lives and future of young people,” says 23-year-old Mya Kalyar Kyaw. “This is not a luxury. This is our fundamental right.”..."
Source/publisher:
United Nations Population Fund via "Reliefweb" (New York)
Date of publication:
2022-11-29
Date of entry/update:
2022-11-29
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
UNFPA (United Nations Population Fund), Public Health, The discussion on humanitarian assistance to Burma
Language:
more
Description:
"YANGON, Myanmar— “There is social stigma existing in our community to speak about sexual and reproductive health especially concerning adolescents and youth. People are too shy to talk about it. Since we have grown up under this shadow, we don’t even know that young people have the right to access sexual and reproductive health information,” said Thura, 15, a local youth from Yangon.
Young people in Myanmar face different social and cultural barriers to get right information about sexual and reproductive health and rights. Without having access to sexual and reproductive health information including family planning, young people tend to experience consequences such as unwanted pregnancy and unsafe abortion, leading to other life-threatening complications. According to 2014 Myanmar Population and Housing Census, the fertility rate of females aged 15-19 was 33 births per 1,000 women. Comparing to urban areas, the teenage fertility is higher in rural areas of states and regions. The data highlights the needs to enhance protection and promotion of sexual and reproductive health and rights of women and young people in remote places and in areas undergoing humanitarian crisis.
The COVID-19 pandemic and political crisis has exacerbated the situation. “Movement restrictions and security concerns hinder young peoples’ access to information and services. How can our rights be fulfilled under these situations? We young people feel like we are lost,” said Thura.
UNFPA, the United Nations sexual and reproductive health agency, works closely with partner organizations in Myanmar to enhance protection and promote sexual and reproductive health and rights of women and young people. In delivering its mandate of sexual and reproductive health and rights, overarching framework of the International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) Programme of Action and its follow-up convention of ICPD+25, addressing adolescent sexual and reproductive health issues, including unwanted pregnancy, unsafe abortion and sexually transmitted diseases, through the promotion of responsible and healthy reproductive and sexual behavior and reducing adolescent pregnancies are also core areas of UNFPA’s work.
UNFPA, in collaboration with partner organizations and civil society organizations CSOs, facilitates access to sexual and reproductive health for adolescents and young people through innovative approaches. Aung Pike Tun, Programme Coordinator of Marie Stope Myanmar said, “Previously, we provided sexual and reproductive health awareness (in-person) sessions for young people at our youth corner. Due to COVID-19 pandemic and security concern, we adapted the situation and transformed these in-person awareness sessions into comprehensive online learning space. With the support of local youth networks and initiatives, we are able to connect virtually with many young people from different states and regions and provide SRHR awareness and information that they need. It is a huge step-up. For some young people, they feel comfortable and safe via this virtual platform and raise their issues openly for our support. We are so happy to see their interest and active participation going forward.”
With the support from Global Affairs Canada, UNFPA Myanmar has launched Baykin 2 mobile application, partnering with 360ed team. Integrating with Augmented Reality (AR), Baykin 2 app is designed to introduce adolescent and young people in Myanmar to key topics on sexual and reproductive health & right, gender equality, gender-based violence and other youth related contents. This application integrates learning and gaming to increase the engagement of young users and provide better visuals for learning about their bodies and rights. It additionally seeks to equip adolescents and young people with knowledge and tools to be aware of and thus less vulnerable to gender-based violence.
Dr. Peter Kivunike Mukasa, SRHR Programme Specialist of UNFPA Myanmar said, “UNFPA as a Sexual and Reproductive Health Lead Agency, is working with its implementing partner organizations not only to deliver life-saving SRHR and gender-based violence services for women and girls in Myanmar, but also to promote essential SRHR information and GBV awareness for adolescents and young people. To ensure their rights even during this challenging context, we have adapted to the situation quickly and acted innovatively to support them.”
Mya Kalyar Kyaw, 23, a local youth from Kayin said, “Sexual and reproductive health information does save the lives and future of young people. This is not a luxury that we want. This is our fundamental right to access SRHR information without any exception”..."
Source/publisher:
United Nations Population Fund
Date of publication:
2022-09-07
Date of entry/update:
2022-09-07
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
UNFPA (United Nations Population Fund), Public Health, Human Rights and international relations
Language:
more
Description:
"YANGON, Myanmar – With the support from Global Affairs Canada, UNFPA Myanmar has launched Baykin 2 mobile application, partnering with 360ed team. Integrating with Augmented Reality (AR), Baykin 2 app is designed to introduce adolescent and young people in Myanmar with key topics on sexual and reproductive health & right, gender equality, gender-based violence and other youth related contents such as self-defense.
Baykin 2 app integrates learning and gaming to increase the engagement of young users and provide better visuals for learning about their bodies and rights. It additionally seeks to equip adolescents and young people with knowledge and tools to be aware of and thus less vulnerable to gender-based violence.
UNFPA, the United Nations sexual and reproductive health agency, is continuously investing in adolescents and youths to realize their full potential and their rights and providing supports to meet sexual and reproductive health needs and eliminate all forms of gender-based violence..."
Source/publisher:
United Nations Population Fund
Date of publication:
2022-06-24
Date of entry/update:
2022-06-25
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
UNFPA (United Nations Population Fund), Public Health, Right to Health: reports of violations in Burma
Language:
more
Description:
"Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh, 8 February 2022 - Supported by LGED (Local Government Engineering Department) of the Government of Bangladesh, generously funded by the World Bank and implemented by Mukti Cox’s Bazar, UNFPA, the Sexual and Reproductive Health Agency, opened a new Women Friendly Space - WFS- (called in Rohingya dialect Shanti Khana), a peaceful haven for many thousands of girls and women in the refugee camps of Cox’s Bazar.
Located in Camp 15, around 5,000 women and girls will have free access to recreational activities, such as henna making, painting, drawing, hand-stitching and sewing, as well as gender-based violence awareness-raising sessions and distribution of life-saving dignity kits, containing soaps, washing powder, slippers, clothes, panties and hand sanitisers for COVID-19 protection and prevention.
“We have been on a fruitful journey with UNFPA, dating back to 2008 and working with the Bangladeshi Host community. When the influx happened, we boosted our assistance of protecting women and girls and expanded it to the Rohingya community. We welcome the opening of another space, whose function will be for women to learn about their rights, develop their skills and share their feelings, away from the eyes of men, who will not be allowed in this space” Mr. Bimal Chandra Dey Sarker, Chief Executive of Mukti Cox’s Bazar, shared.
The new Shanti Khana will provide integrated services for women and adolescent girls with case management services for gender-based violence survivors, referral pathways to specialized health interventions, midwifery and family planning services, as well as mental health and psychosocial support.
Secondly, it will be a place for capacity building of NGO caseworkers, as well as effective community mobilization through men, boys and Imams (religious leaders) engagement in preventing gender-based violence.
“Women play an integral part in the economy and in the community. They know how their community works and, if given chances and opportunities, they can actively participate and contribute to a world free of gender-based violence” Mr. Arjun Jain, Principal Coordinator of the UN Inter Sector Coordination Group (ISCG) in Cox’s Bazar highlighted “Protection of women and girls must be a priority, and community engagement, including the involvement of Rohingya community volunteers, is essential in creating a world where all women have access to health services, midwifery services and family planning ones”.
“Grateful to the World Bank for its support, providing a place of peace, relief and support to the refugee women, UNFPA believes that the Partnership with the Local Government Engineering Department is unique and an excellent one, allowing the marriage of hardware and software in a place where needed the most” Dr. Eiko Narita, UNFPA Bangladesh Representative a.i stated “As of now, there are nine operational Women Friendly Spaces, and with this funding, two additional ones have been made possible. We have another four pending in construction and for this, LGED’s support in approval would be crucial” she emphasized.
The Additional Refugee Relief and Repatriation Commissioner (RRRC office) Mr. Mohammad Shamsud Douza participated in the event: “Serving thousands of women and girls in the area, this new space will not only contribute to the well-being of women and girls, but it will benefit the community as a whole” he began “women will be able to come here to find peace, knowledge, share their stories in confidentiality with caseworkers and get midwifery services as well”.
The event saw the presence of adolescent girls and WFS caseworkers, already ready to enjoy the space on one hand and provide GBV sessions for women, midwifery services and psychosocial support on the other. “It is a safe place, men cannot enter, and girls can share their thoughts and feelings”, Asia, WFS caseworkers said.
A Tour of the newly WFS closed the event and renewed the spirit of collaboration and joint work to respond to the Rohingya protracted refugee crisis, as well as showing solidarity among the Rohingya community in the refugee camps..."
Source/publisher:
United Nations Population Fund (New York)
Date of publication:
2022-02-10
Date of entry/update:
2022-02-10
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
UNFPA (United Nations Population Fund), Rohingya (cultural, political etc.), Burmese refugees in Bangladesh
Language:
more
Description:
"Globally, nearly 1 in 3 women have been abused in their lifetime. In Myanmar, although data on Violence against Women is extremely limited, estimates are that at least 21 per cent of ever-married women have experienced spousal physical, sexual, or emotional violence and only 7.8 per cent of the 15-19 years old who experienced physical and sexual violence had sought help according to the Myanmar Demographic and Health Survey (2015-2016).
In times of crises such as humanitarian crisis, conflicts, climate disasters and the COVID-19 pandemic, the prevalence of gender-based violence increases. A new report from the United Nations, based on data from 13 countries since the pandemic, shows that 2 in 3 women reported that they or a woman they know experienced some form of violence and are more likely to face food insecurity.
A state of emergency or COVID-19 restriction measures are not an excuse for violence against women and girls. The compounded crisis in Myanmar has disproportionally affected women and exacerbated the vulnerabilities of women and girls from marginalized groups; particularly, those living in conflict affected areas and in situations of internal displacement, women living with HIV/AIDS, women with disabilities, women migrant workers, and members of the LGBTQI community.
In this context, there is an urgent need to take specific measures to ensure the protection of women and girls and to increase the availability and accessibility of quality, multi-sectoral services, including health care, justice, safety, protection and social services for GBV survivors, regardless of the political and security situation. In Myanmar this requires support for the many civil society organizations, women civil society organizations and health civil society organizations in particular, who are running prevention programming and delivering services day in and day out in often incredibly complex circumstances.
Too often survivors of violence are blamed for being abused. Too often survivors of violence are stigmatized in the community. This must stop. Survivors must be heard and believed, and perpetrators must be held accountable for their actions.
Every one of us, as a change agent, can do something to end violence against women and girls.
Today is the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women and the beginning of the 16 Days of Activism against gender-based violence. This year’s global theme for the campaign is “Orange the world: End violence against women now!”.
On this day, UN Women and UNFPA as the co-chairs of the United Nations Gender Theme Group (UNGTG) in Myanmar re-affirm the commitment of the United Nations Country Team to remain on the ground and continue to support programs that promote gender equality and the empowerment of women, and respond to the needs of women and girls, including the provision of essential services to survivors of violence, leaving no one behind.
Every woman and girl has the right to live a life free of violence and full of dignity. It is a fundamental human right. Together, we must keep to our commitments and take action to end gender-based violence now..."
Source/publisher:
UN Women and United Nations Population Fund via United Nations Myanmar
Date of publication:
2021-11-25
Date of entry/update:
2021-11-25
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
UN Women, UNFPA (United Nations Population Fund), Women's rights, Human Rights and international relations
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Description:
"UNFPA is working with local and international partner organizations to strengthen sexual and reproductive health care.
“Menstrual hygiene is essential for women and adolescent girls. Being a displaced person staying at the IDP camp, I have limited access to sanitary pads and hygiene products. Without having any income, I could not afford to buy these things unless someone gives them to me for free. Sometimes, I have to use pieces of cloth as a hygiene kit during my period. It is not hygienic and convenient, but I have no choice. Without proper menstrual hygiene support, we women are losing our dignity,” said Ei Ei, a displaced woman from one of the internally displaced person camps in Kayah State, located in the eastern part of Myanmar.
Ensuring that sexual and reproductive health and rights are an integral part of the emergency response in a humanitarian crisis is essential – it must not be overlooked. Without sufficient access to menstrual health support, women may not only suffer serious health complications, but they may also experience stigma and rejection from the community and loss of dignity. In addition, lack of menstrual health supply can limit the mobility of women and girls, thus negatively affecting their ability to access to required basic services and humanitarian support, including education, health services, and livelihood opportunities.
The Myanmar Humanitarian Needs Overview 2021, identified more than 1 million people to be in need of humanitarian assistance. This number included some 336,000 displaced people (of whom 29 per cent are women, 20 per cent are girls) in camps or IDP sites. Since then, the number of displaced people and people in need of humanitarian assistance has increased significantly due to the ongoing crises across the country. In June 2021, the Addendum to the 2021 Myanmar Humanitarian Response Plan identified an additional two million people to be assisted by the emergency response in new areas and this number is unfortunately likely to increase again.
Amid the operational challenges since February 2021, the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), with its implementing partner organizations in the country, has planned strategically and innovatively to ensure the continuation of essential sexual and reproductive health services to the vulnerable population in affected areas. With UNFPA support, one of the partner agencies has introduced the Safe Pad Pilot Project in Kayah and Rakhine States to fulfil the menstrual health and hygiene needs of vulnerable women and girls in conflict-affected areas. This pilot project also aims to promote income-generating opportunities for the local women.
“What is particularly unique about this project is – to set up a basis for the sustainable scale up of locally produced menstrual health management products for women and girls at reproductive age. It is not only just the production of anti-microbial reusable pads for safe menstrual hygiene, but it also benefits local women through a “buy-back” methodology by the organization to create income generation opportunities for them. It has dual impacts on empowering local women through livelihood support and ensuring sexual and reproductive health and rights for the women and girls at reproductive age”, said Nan, a Project Manager.
Under this pilot project, 20 local women were provided training in Kayah State and 19 women in Rakhine State. They have produced 3,600 safe pads and distributed to 900 beneficiaries in Kayah and Rakhine Sates. Targeting the population in need, women and girls from IDP camps receive menstrual hygiene management (MHM) kits comprised of Safe Pads package designed for day and night use, reusable masks, hand gel and additional essential items such as underwear, bucket, and laundry detergent and manual instructions for sustainable use of safe pad and general information on good menstrual health management.
UNFPA, the United Nations sexual and reproductive health agency, is working with local and international partner organizations to strengthen sexual and reproductive health care and ensure it remains at the center of the humanitarian and development nexus..."
Source/publisher:
UN Country Team in Myanmar via "Reliefweb" (New York)
Date of publication:
2021-11-10
Date of entry/update:
2021-11-11
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Language:
more
Description:
"UNFPA establishes mental health and psychosocial support (MHPSS) online platform to connect those who need MHPSS services and Mental Health Professionals.
“People experience different mental health and psychosocial issues due to the COVID-19 pandemic and political crisis. The range of issues may vary from stress and anxiety at one end of the spectrum to acute depression on the other end depending upon the individual’s situation. It is important that they seek and receive professional support to exercise positive coping mechanism to overcome their emotion and stress in this difficult time. My job is to provide professional mental health and psychosocial support (MHPSS) services to help people overcome the stressful situation and make them feel comfortable to handle their own issues in a positive manner,” said Dr Nyunt, Mental Health Professional.
COVID-19 & mental health and psychosocial issues
COVID-19 has a significant impact on the mental health and psychosocial condition of society. Individuals may experience anxiety and stress associated with fear of infection, fear of death, social distancing, quarantine, misinformation, and uncertainty of the future. In addition, frontline responders such as medical doctors, nurses, and midwives, who are involved in response efforts may also experience physical, personal, social, and emotional stress in carrying out their duties over an extended period. Therefore, mental health and psychosocial aspects of COVID-19 need to be considered as a priority.
Mental health and psychosocial issues have been reported as pivotal public health concerns in the Asia-Pacific region due to the COVID-19 pandemic. While it is difficult to access the comprehensive mental health data on Myanmar, an article published in BMC Public Health in January 2020 indicates that the prevalence of mental distress was 18.0% for men and women aged 18-49 years from Yangon region. The rate is higher for women (21.2%) compared to men (14.9%). Another article from Asian Journal of Psychiatry volume 61 published in 2021 refers to data from 2016 and indicates that the prevalence of reported depressive symptoms among adolescents in Myanmar is 27.2% and that of suicidal ideation is 9.4% -both of which are substantially higher than the regional averages. Data from the Mental Health Hospital in Yangon shows that the number of patients treated for mental illness in institutions increased by 58% between 2013 and 2017.
UNFPA’s support on MHPSS in Myanmar
In order to meet the rapidly growing demand for MHPSS in a timely manner, in May 2020, UNFPA established a roster of four national MHPSS experts. These certified counselors and psychiatrists have been engaged to train humanitarian actors on MHPSS, enabling community-based mental health care for the populations they support, including GBV survivors, elderly, people with disabilities, LGBTQI+, drug users, and other vulnerable populations, including people at the quarantine centres. The roster members also provide self-care sessions for service providers to improve their psychosocial well-being and share practical tips for managing difficult circumstances.
From May 2020 up to now, more than 2,700 participants from more than 30 different organizations, including local and international NGOs, UN agencies, Ethnic Health Organizations, and CSOs, attended MHPSS capacity building/self-care sessions organized by UNFPA. On call basis, MHPSS roster team also provides MHPSS services, including individual counseling, psychotherapy, and family support, for UN staff and family members.
MHPSS services through online portal
With the increasing needs for MHPSS and request from implementing partners and UN agencies, UNFPA has created the MHPSS online portal as a platform to connect those who need MHPSS services and Mental Health Professionals in May 2021. The platform is expected to meet people's needs for MHPSS services by making it more accessible to the people in Myanmar. Basic emotional support, psychological first aid (PFA), counseling, psychotherapy, and psychoeducation services are available through the portal. Mental health practitioners from the team are trained in various psychotherapy approaches, including IAT (Integrative ADAPT Therapy), EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization Reprocessing), CBT (Cognitive Behavior Therapy), and interpersonal therapy for children and adolescents. In collaboration with UNICEF, mental health practitioners for children and adolescents are also now on board.
“We have 10 mental health professionals with diverse backgrounds including clinical psychologists, psychiatrists, and professional counselors to respond to the requests through the online portal. Four of our specialists are focused on children and adolescents. On the portal, the client can select which mental health professional he/she prefers and make the appointment confidentially. For the safety and security of our service providers, we do not mention any identification of our mental health professionals such as names or phone numbers. From the establishment of this platform in May 2021 until August 2021, 97 sessions for 70 clients across Myanmar were organized,” said Adib Asrori, UNFPA’s MHPSS Programme Specialist.
Mental health and psychosocial support must be at the center of everyone’s attention
Due to the significant impact of COVID-19 on mental health and psychosocial aspects, people are beginning to realize the importance of maintaining their emotional stability and mental wellbeing. In addition, the political crisis has exacerbated mental health and psychosocial needs due to its negative impacts on movement and personal security, access to information and communication, access to basic services, livelihoods, and food security.
Dr Nyunt said, “Normally, people treat physical injuries and illness as a priority. They tend to overlook the impact on mental health and psychosocial wellbeing until they experience its severe consequences. For instance, a person with mental health and psychosocial problems is more like someone standing on the edge. When out of control, he/she can fall off anytime. We need to hold their hands until they can control themselves. This is what we as mental health professionals are doing every day.”
He added, “Mental health and psychosocial wellbeing must be at the center of everyone’s attention.”
MHPSS online portal can be accessed through the following link. Both English and Myanmar languages are available. https://www.mentalhealthsupportmyanmar.org..."
Source/publisher:
United Nations Population Fund via "Reliefweb" (New York)
Date of publication:
2021-09-29
Date of entry/update:
2021-10-01
Grouping:
Individual Documents
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Description:
"Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh, 9 September 2021 – August 2021 marked four years since almost a million Rohingya people fled to Bangladesh from neighbouring Myanmar, settling in a broad network of refugee camps in the coastal city of Cox’s Bazar. Rendered stateless, the Rohingya were seeking dignity, rights and protection from persecution. The Government and people of Bangladesh were the first responders to the crisis and even after four challenging years, they continue to generously host more than 860,000 Rohingya refugees in Cox’s Bazar district.
With the support of UN agencies and over 130 national and international NGOs, the Government of Bangladesh continues to provide life-saving assistance. All this time, UNFPA has had the honour of being a part of these efforts and continues to constantly devise new ways to respond to the varied and evolving needs of the refugees, and also support the local host communities of Cox’s Bazar.
Here are just some of the stories of the support UNFPA is providing to safeguard the sexual and reproductive health and rights of the refugees, and to help prevent and respond to gender-based violence and harmful practices against women and girls.
Safe places, emotional relief: UNFPA’s Women Friendly Spaces
As a result of the refugee crisis, Cox’s Bazar is home to some of the most vulnerable women and girls on Earth, many of whom were subjected to rape and other horrendous forms of gender-based violence in the past.
To help women and girls overcome their traumatic experiences, UNFPA supports a network of 28 Women Friendly Spaces in the camps and surrounding host communities. The Women Friendly Spaces provide women and girls a safe space where they gather to interact with each other and engage in recreational activities such as henna making, tailoring, tie-dyeing and drawing.
In addition, each Women Friendly Space employs midwives and caseworkers to provide emotional and psychosocial support and to host awareness raising sessions on crucial issues like gender-based violence, safe pregnancy and childbirth, family planning, , healthy relationships, child marriage and human trafficking.
Hamida, a 27-year-old Rohingya woman who began to attend the awareness raising sessions shortly after arriving in the camps in 2017 was immediately inspired by the new things she was learning about. “I realized that information is power and I started looking for opportunities to develop myself, as well as for ways to contribute to the collective betterment of my community,” she recalls.
In no time, she had become a teacher and mentor for other women in the camps through the Women Support Groups peer outreach initiative. The Women Support Groups are a network of thousands of female Rohingya camp volunteers, who advance the rights of Rohingya women to make autonomous choices about their bodies and lives.
“Through my efforts to help other women and girls in the camps, I have gained the respect of my community, family members and husband. At first, no one listened to me. However gradually, they started to embrace me as they understood that information gives them choices and opportunities,” Hamida proudly declares.
Family planning methods and male engagement
In addition to building the network of Women Friendly Spaces since 2017, UNFPA has been active in ensuring that family planning services remain available to women and girls in the camps. Currently, 40 partners in the UNFPA-led Sexual Health and Reproductive Working Group are collaborating to provide family planning information and services in 193 health facilities in the camps and surrounding host communities. Just between January-December 2020, almost 1.3 million condoms were distributed to men in the targeted communities, and about 135,000 women have been reached with a variety of contraceptive methods, ranging from contraceptive pills and intrauterine devices to intramuscular injectables and implants.
To ensure that family planning information reaches communities at the grassroots level, UNFPA actively collaborates with religious leaders in the camps as part of awareness raising efforts.
Nour Kolil is a Rohingya cleric working with UNFPA. “My role as an Imam is to guide young couples on achieving a healthy and fulfilling marital union,” he explains. “For this, I strongly encourage them to visit health facilities to receive more information on sexual and reproductive health and rights. My message is always about the happiness of the couples, making sure they have the ability to ensure health, education and food for their children. Managing the size of the family is also crucial.”
Through peer group counseling and courtyard meetings, special measures are also taken to ensure that information on family planning reaches men and boys in the camps. As men often carry more decision-making authority within Rohingya families, it is absolutely crucial that they are aware of the benefits of managing family size, birth spacing and women’s rights.
Midwifery services in the Women Friendly Spaces
In addition to securing the availability of family planning, significant measures have been taken to ensure that every pregnant woman in the camps has access to a safe delivery assisted by a midwife. Between 2018-2020, the number of deliveries performed in health facilities in the camps increased from 4,870 to 6,064, contributing significantly to preventing maternal deaths.
Midwifery services have also been integrated into the Women Friendly Spaces, an approach which has proven to be particularly useful during the COVID-19 pandemic with its movement restrictions and other challenges.
“Each day, I serve about a dozen women who come to our midwifery room to request family planning methods, counselling and general information on bodily health,” says Jannatul, a 24-year-old midwife working in one of the Women Friendly Spaces. “I also give advice on preventing and treating sexually transmitted infections. I am happy that the women trust me with such issues. It is because my counselling is always respectful, confidential and non-judgmental.”
Over a period of time, Women Friendly Spaces have become “go-to” places for women and girls to discuss sensitive topics.
“Since the midwifery room is always open, I find it a practical and comfortable place to consult about contraceptive methods. I like that I get to talk to another woman about women's issues,” explains Monowara, a resident of the camps who regularly visits the Women Friendly Spaces to discuss her needs with Jannatul.
Building the life-skills of adolescents through Psychosocial Support kits
In addition to ensuring the availability of comprehensive sexual and reproductive health services, UNFPA is working hard to address the various needs of the enormous youth population residing in the camps. Approximately 22 per cent of the Rohingya population in Cox’s Bazar consists of adolescents between the ages of 15 and 24.
Going through the complex psychological and physical changes of puberty is exceptionally difficult for them in the challenging conditions of the camps. To support Rohingya adolescents in making a smooth transition from childhood to adulthood, UNFPA has been providing gender-responsive life skills education in the camps since 2018. Just in 2020, almost 3,140 adolescent boys and girls participated in the programmes, equipping them with crucial skills to better cope with the daily challenges they face as adolescents in the camps.
17-year-old Mokaroma, a graduate of one of UNFPA’s life skills education programmes, cannot contain her enthusiasm as she describes the various things she learned about sexual and reproductive health, gender norms and COVID-19 during the sessions.
“Before coming to Bangladesh, I used to go to school, but I was taught little about things like the negative effect child marriage and early pregnancy have on young girls,” she shares. “After attending the learning sessions, both me and my parents now know why child marriage is harmful. I don’t want to get married now, as I want to study more. I am happy that my family fully supports me in this decision!”
As providing life skills education has been challenging during the COVID-19 pandemic, UNFPA has launched novel initiatives to ensure that the youth population can continue to cultivate these skillsets remotely. With the generous support of Australia, psychosocial support kits containing a radio and a memory card full of pre-recorded, educational radio episodes were distributed to over 2000 adolescents in 2020. The radio episodes covered topics such as gender identity, peaceful conflict resolution, healthy nutrition and menstruation.
“From the episodes, I learned the dos and don’ts of menstruation. The information on healthy foods that are good for our body during our periods was completely new to me. I actually played the session for my mother, as she never had the opportunity to learn about these things when she was young. I have also shared what I have learned with my neighbors and friends, so my whole community is benefiting from the episodes,” shares 18-year-old Maimuna, one of the recipients of the kits and participant of UNFPA’s Champions of Change life skills programme.
A possible future?
Even after four years, operating in the refugee camps continues to be challenging. COVID-19 has particularly put established ways of working to the test and made organizations rethink the way they approach humanitarian response. Despite these challenges, UNFPA has not lost its determination, and new innovations and ideas have begun to flourish.
For example, this year UNFPA has started to address lack of access to adequate menstrual hygiene products in the camps by training Rohingya women to produce their own reusable sanitary pads. UNFPA has also constantly arranged focus group discussions with women in the camps to keep track of their evolving needs and build the capacity of our staff members through training, including sessions on the Prevention of Sexual Exploitation and Abuse (PSEA).
While mobility restrictions and climate-related emergencies during the pandemic may have impeded or slowed down UNFPA’s essential operations from time to time, UNFPA’s efforts to address the ongoing crisis are currently more dynamic and creative than ever. For this, UNFPA thanks its donors including the Australian High Commission, Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration of the United States, Canada, Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office of the United Kingdom, Friends of UNFPA, Japan, New Zealand, Norway, the Republic of Korea and Sweden and United Nations Central Emergency Response Fund, all of whom have loyally continued to support UNFPA’s lifesaving work throughout these four years.
With renewed inspiration, UNFPA stands ready to push ahead despite the challenging times. Along with our many partners, we will not stop until every Rohingya person can be assured that their rights and choices are fully protected and that they have the opportunity to aspire for a better, more just future..."
Source/publisher:
United Nations Population Fund via "Reliefweb" (New York)
Date of publication:
2021-09-09
Date of entry/update:
2021-09-09
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
UNFPA (United Nations Population Fund), Burmese refugees in Bangladesh, Education abroad, Human Rights and international relations, Akha (cultural, political, economic)
Language:
more
Description:
"August 1, 2021
Joint statement from UNFPA and UN Women in Myanmar: impacts of the compounded political and health crisis on women and girls in Myanmar
Yangon – Six months since the military takeover in Myanmar, the country faces a compounded political and public health crisis, on top of intensification of conflicts, putting the lives of even more women and girls at serious risk with the deteriorating socio-economic situation adding hundreds of thousands of people to those in need of humanitarian assistance in the country who were not previously targeted for humanitarian support.
Since February 1, women and girls have been at the frontlines as leaders of civil society organizations, civil servants, activists, journalists, artists and influencers, exercising their fundamental rights to express their hopes for the future of their country. Even before the coup, women, who make up 75 per cent of Myanmar’s healthcare professionals, were at the forefront of the COVID-19 response. Now, during a tragic surge in COVID-19 cases, many women continue in their activism and serve their communities while also assuming significant responsibilities as caregivers for sick family members, and for their children’s home-based learning.
Women and children are also expected to bear the heaviest brunt of the combined crises with those most at-risk including single women, pregnant and breastfeeding women and girls, ethnic and religious minorities, older persons, people with disabilities, children and people of diverse gender identities and sexual orientations.
The impact on women workers has already been pronounced with 580,000 women estimated to have lost employment since February 1. Women and girls experience challenges to access sexual and reproductive health services due to the collapsed health system, with attacks on hospitals, financial barriers and movement restrictions further jeopardizing their health and well-being. Over 685,000 women are currently pregnant in Myanmar and it is estimated that nearly 250 preventable maternal deaths may occur in the next month alone if they are not able to access appropriate emergency obstetric care. Furthermore, the adolescence of over almost five million girls (10 to 19 years old) in Myanmar has been seriously disrupted by public-health, loss of school-year, and security-related restrictions and fears.
LGBTIQ+ populations have flagged serious concerns about their mental health and wellbeing before the coup, and these concerns are now heightened. Moreover, with continued arbitrary arrests and detainment of women and girls and people of diverse gender identities and sexual orientations, serious protection concerns persist with continued reports of sexual harassment and of sexual violence perpetrated against activists and detainees. Conflict-related sexual violence remains a key risk given recent reports on top of evidence of widespread previous allegations.
Non-governmental organizations, civil society organizations and women’s organizations/activists have been working very hard to respond to all these increasing safety, health and protection risks faced by women, girls, young people and people of diverse gender identities and sexual orientation. While the need to provide support to these population groups increases, the operational environment is becoming more and more challenging due to the ongoing conflict/insecurity as well as the COVID-19 pandemic, in addition to the banking crisis and the access restrictions.
UNFPA and UN Women as co-chairs of the UN Gender Thematic Group in Myanmar stand in solidarity with the women and girls of Myanmar and urge all stakeholders in Myanmar and abroad to listen to their voices and uphold commitments to international human rights for all people. We reiterate the UN Secretary-General’s call to release all who have been arbitrarily detained and echo the Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Sexual Violence to end all forms of violence against women and girls. We will continue to work with our partners to deliver life-saving social and health services to reach women and girls in Myanmar.....UNFPA နှင့် UN Women မှ ပူးတွဲ သတင်းထုတ်ပြန်ချက်
မြန်မာနိုင်ငံအတွင်း ပိုမိုဆိုးရွားလာသော နိုင်ငံရေးနှင့် ကျန်းမာရေးဆိုင်ရာ အကျပ်အတည်းများက အမျိုးသမီးနှင့် မိန်းကလေးများအပေါ် သက်ရောက်မှုများ
ရန်ကုန် - မြန်မာနိုင်ငံသည် စစ်တပ်မှ အာဏာသိမ်းပြီးနောက် ခြောက်လတာကာလအတွင်း နိုင်ငံရေးနှင့် ပြည်သူ့ကျန်းမာရေးဆိုင်ရာ အကျပ်အတည်းများကို ဆိုးရွားစွာ ရင်ဆိုင်နေရသည်။ ပဋိပက္ခဖြစ်ပွားမှုများ မြင့်တက်လာမှု နှင့်အတူ အမျိုးသမီးများနှင့် မိန်းကလေးငယ်များ၏ ဘဝများသည် လွန်စွာစိုးရိမ်ရဖွယ်ရှိနေပြီး လူမှုစီးပွားဆိုင်ရာ အခြေအနေများ ယိုယွင်းပျက်စီးလာခြင်းကြောင့် ယခင်က လူသားချင်းစာနာထောက်ထားမှုဆိုင်ရာ အထောက်အပံ့ပေးမှု အောက်တွင် မပါဝင်ခဲ့သည့် လူပေါင်းသိန်းချီကာ လူသားချင်း စာနာထောက်ထားမှုအကူအညီများ လိုအပ်နေပါသည်။
ဖေဖော်ဝါရီလ (၁)ရက်နေ့ ကတည်းက အမျိုးသမီးများနှင့် မိန်းကလေးငယ်များသည် အရပ်ဘက်လူမှုအဖွဲ့အစည်း ခေါင်းဆောင်များ၊ ပြည်သူ့ဝန်ထမ်းများ၊ တက်ကြွလှုပ်ရှားသူများ၊ သတင်းသမားများ၊ အနုပညာရှင်များနှင့် လူထုကိုသြဇာလွှမ်းမိုးသူများအဖြစ် ရှေ့တန်းမှနေ၍ ၄င်းတို့၏ အခြေခံအခွင့်အရေးများကို ကျင့်သုံးကာ နိုင်ငံတော်၏ အနာဂတ်အတွက် မျှော်လင့်ချက်များကို ထုတ်ဖော်ခဲ့ကြသည်။ အာဏာမသိမ်းမီကပင် မြန်မာနိုင်ငံ၏ ကျန်းမာရေး စောင့်ရှောက်မှုဆိုင်ရာ ပညာရှင်များ၏ ၇၅ ရာခိုင်နှုန်းဖြစ်သော အမျိုးသမီးများသည် COVID-19 တားဆီးကာကွယ်ရေး တုံ့ပြန်ဆောင်ရွက်မှုများတွင် ရှေ့တန်းမှ ပါဝင်ခဲ့ကြသည်။ ယခု COVID-19 ဖြစ်ပွားမှုများ တဟုန်ထိုး များပြားလာချိန်တွင် အမျိုးသမီးများစွာသည် ၄င်းတို့၏ လှုပ်ရှားဆောင်ရွက်မှုများကို ဆက်လက်ဆောင်ရွက်ပြီး ၄င်းတို့၏ လူမှုအသိုက်အဝန်းကို အလုပ်အကျွေးပြုနေကြသလို နေမကောင်းသည့်မိသားစုဝင်များကို ပြုစုစောင့်ရှောက်ရေး၊ ကလေးများ နေအိမ်အခြေပြု ပညာသင်ကြားရေး စသည့် အရေးပါသော တာဝန်များကိုလည်း ဆက်လက် တာ၀န်ယူ လုပ်ဆောင်နေကြသည်။
အမျိုးသမီးများနှင့် ကလေးငယ်များသည် နှစ်ခုပြိုင် အကျပ်အတည်းရိုက်ခတ်မှုကို အဆိုးရွားဆုံး ခံစားရဖွယ်ရှိပြီး တကိုယ်ရည်တကာယ အမျိုးသမီးများ၊ ကိုယ်ဝန်ဆောင်မိခင်နှင့် နို့တိုက်မိခင်များ၊ လူနည်းစုဖြစ်သော တိုင်းရင်းသားလူမျိုးစု၊ ဘာသာရေးအုပ်စု၊ သက်ကြီးရွယ်အိုများနှင့် မသန်စွမ်းသူများ၊ ကလေးသူငယ်များနှင့် လိင်စိတ်ခံယူမှုကွဲပြားသူများ၊ လိင်စိတ်တိမ်းညွှတ်မှု ကွဲပြားသူများသည်လည်း ပိုမိုထိခိုက်ခံစားရမည် ဖြစ်သည်။
ဖေဖော်ဝါရီလ ၁ ရက်နေ့နောက်ပိုင်း အမျိုးသမီးအလုပ်သမားများအပေါ် သက်ရောက်မှုအနေဖြင့် ခန့်မှန်းခြေ အမျိုးသမီးဦးရေ ၅၈၀,၀၀၀ ခန့် အလုပ်အကိုင်ဆုံးရှုံးကြရသည်။ ကျန်းမာရေးစနစ်ပြိုလဲခြင်း၊ ဆေးရုံများအား တိုက်ခိုက်ခံရခြင်း၊ ငွေကြေးဆိုင်ရာ အခက်အခဲများ ကြုံရခြင်းနှင့် လှုပ်ရှားသွားလာမှု ကန့်သတ်ချက်များကြောင့် အမျိုးသမီးများနှင့် မိန်းကလေးငယ်များသည် လိင်မှုနှင့် မျိုးဆက်ပွား ကျန်းမာရေး ဝန်ဆောင်မှုများရရှိရန် စိန်ခေါ်မှုများစွာ ရင်ဆိုင်ကြရသည့် အပြင် တဆက်တည်းမှာပင် သူတို့၏ ကျန်းမာသုခကိုလည်း ထိခိုက်ပျက်စီးစေသည်။ မြန်မာနိုင်ငံတွင် လက်ရှိ ကိုယ်ဝန်ဆောင်နေသည့် အမျိုးသမီးအရေအတွက် ၆၈၅,၀၀၀ ကျော်ရှိသည်။ ထိုအမျိုးသမီးများသည် သင့်တင့်လျောက်ပတ်သော အရေးပေါ်သားဖွားပြုစုစောင့်ရှောက်မှု မရရှိပါက နောက်လတစ်လထဲ၌ပင် ကြိုတင် ကာကွယ်နိုင်သည့် မိခင်သေဆုံးမှု ၂၅၀ ခန့်ရှိမည် ဖြစ်ကြောင်း ခန့်မှန်းထားသည်။ ထိုမျှသာမက မြန်မာနိုင်ငံရှိ အသက် ၁၀နှစ်နှင့် ၁၉နှစ်ကြားရှိ ဆယ်ကျော်သက် မိန်းကလေးငယ်ပေါင်း ၅ သန်းနီးပါးမှာ ပြည်သူ့ကျန်းမာရေး ထိခိုက်မှု၊ စာသင်နှစ် ဆုံးရှုံးမှုနှင့် လုံခြုံရေးဆိုင်ရာ တားမြစ်ချက်များ၊ အကြောက်တရားများကို ဆိုးရွားစွာ ရင်ဆိုင်နေရသည်။
LGBTIQ+ များသည် ၄င်းတို့ ကြုံတွေ့နေရသည့် စိတ်ကျန်းမာရေးဆိုင်ရာ စိုးရိမ်မှုများကို စစ်အာဏာသိမ်းမှုမတိုင်မီကပင် ထုတ်ဖော်ပြောကြားခဲ့ပြီး ယခုအချိန်တွင်လည်း ပိုမိုစိုးရိမ်ဖွယ် အခြေအနေ ဖြစ်လာသည်။ ထို့အပြင် အမျိုးသမီးများနှင့် မိန်းကလေးငယ်များ၊ လိင်စိတ်ခံယူမှုနှင့် လိင်စိတ်တိမ်းညွှတ်မှုကွဲပြားသူများကို မတရားဖမ်းဆီးချုပ်နှောင်ခြင်း၊ ထိန်းသိမ်းခြင်းများအား ဆက်တိုက်လုပ်ဆောင်လာမှုနှင့်အတူ တက်ကြွလှုပ်ရှားသူများနှင့် ဖမ်းဆီး ထိန်းသိမ်းခံ ထားရသူများ အား လိင်ပိုင်းဆိုင်ရာ နှောင့်ယှက်ခြင်း၊ အကြမ်းဖက်ခြင်းများအကြောင်း ဆက်တိုက် သတင်းပေးပို့တင်ဆက်မှုများသည် အထူးအကာအကွယ်ပေးရေးကို လုပ်ဆောင်ရမည်ဖြစ်ကြောင်း အလေးပေးဖော်ပြနေပါသည်။ ယခင်စွပ်စွဲချက်များနှင့် ဆက်စပ်သည့် ထိပ်တန်းသက်သေခံ အထောက်အထားဆိုင်ရာ အစီရင်ခံစာများအရ ပဋိပက္ခဆိုင်ရာ လိင်အကြမ်းဖက်ခြင်း သည် အဓိက အန္တရာယ်တစ်ခုအဖြစ် တည်ရှိနေဆဲဖြစ်သည်။
အစိုးရမဟုတ်သောအဖွဲ့များ၊ အရပ်ဘက်လူမှုအဖွဲ့များ၊ အမျိုးသမီးအဖွဲ့များနှင့် တက်ကြွလှုပ်ရှားသူများသည် အမျိုးသမီးများနှင့် မိန်းကလေးငယ်များ၊ လူငယ်လူရွယ်များ၊ လိင်စိတ်ခံယူမှုနှင့် လိင်စိတ်တိမ်းညွှတ်မှု ကွဲပြားသူများ ရင်ဆိုင်ကြုံတွေ့နေရသည့် လုံခြုံရေး၊ ကျန်းမာရေးနှင့် အကာအကွယ်ပေးရေးတို့တွင် ဘေးအန္တရာယ်ဖြစ်နိုင်မှု များပြားလာသည့်အခြေအနေကို တုံ့ပြန်နိုင်ရန် အထူးကြိုးစားဆောင်ရွက်လျက်ရှိသည်။ အဆိုပါအုပ်စုများအား အထောက်အပံ့ပေးရန်မှာ ပိုမိုလိုအပ်လာသလို လက်ရှိဖြစ်ပွားနေသော ပဋိပက္ခအခြေအနေသာမက COVID-19 ကပ်ရောဂါ၊ ဘဏ်လုပ်ငန်း အကျပ်အတည်းနှင့် အသွားအလာ ကန့်သတ်မှုများကြောင့် လုပ်ငန်းဆောင်ရွက်မှုအခြေအနေမှာလည်း တစ်စထက်တစ်စ စိန်ခေါ်မှုများ ပိုမိုများပြားလာပါသည်။
UN Gender Thematic Group တွင် ပူးတွဲသဘာပတိအဖြစ် တာဝန်ယူထားသော UNFPA နှင့် UN Women အဖွဲ့တို့သည် မြန်မာနိုင်ငံရှိ အမျိုးသမီးများနှင့် မိန်းကလေးငယ်များနှင့်အတူ တသားတည်း ရပ်တည်လျက်ရှိသည်။ ၄င်းတို့၏ အသံကို နားထောင်ကြရန်နှင့် လူသားအားလုံးနှင့် သက်ဆိုင်သော အပြည်ပြည်ဆိုင်ရာ လူ့အခွင့်အရေး ကတိကဝတ်များကို လိုက်နာဖော်ဆောင်ရန် မြန်မာနိုင်ငံအတွင်းနှင့် နိုင်ငံရပ်ခြားတွင်ရှိသော သက်ဆိုင်ရာ ဆက်စပ်ပတ်သက်သူများအားလုံးကို တိုက်တွန်းပါသည်။ ကျွန်ုပ်တို့အနေဖြင့် မတရားဖမ်းဆီးထိန်းသိမ်းထားသူများအားလုံးကို ပြန်လွှတ်ရန် ကုလသမဂ္ဂ အထွေအထွေအတွင်းရေးမှူးချုပ်၏ တောင်းဆိုမှုနှင့် အမျိုးသမီးနှင့် မိန်းကလေးများအပေါ် အကြမ်းဖက်မှုအားလုံးကို အဆုံးသတ်ရန် ကုလသမဂ္ဂ အထွေထွေ အတွင်းရေးမှူးချုပ်၏ လိင်ပိုင်းအကြမ်းဖက်မှုဆိုင်ရာ အထူးကိုယ်စားလှယ်ထံမှ တောင်းဆိုမှုကို ထပ်လောင်း ဖော်ပြလိုပါသည်။ ကျွန်ုပ်တို့သည် မိတ်ဖက်အဖွဲ့များနှင့်အတူ အသက်ကယ်ဆယ်ရေး လူမှုဘ၀ဆိုင်ရာနှင့် ကျန်းမာရေးဆိုင်ရာဝန်ဆောင်မှုများကို မြန်မာနိုင်ငံရှိ အမျိုးသမီးများနှင့် မိန်းကလေးငယ်များ ရရှိစေရန် ဆက်လက်ဆောင်ရွက်သွားပါမည်။..."
Source/publisher:
UNFPA Myanmar and UN Women Asia and the Pacific via United Nations Myanmar
Date of publication:
2021-08-01
Date of entry/update:
2021-08-01
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
UNFPA (United Nations Population Fund), UN Women, Women's rights, Articles, reports and sites relating to women of Burma, Women and Politics in Burma/Myanmar, Discrimination/violence against women: reports of violations in Burma
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"The gender profile for humanitarian action in Rakhine, Kachin, and Northern Shan States, Myanmar was first developed in 2018. The profile was based upon collective inputs and consultations with humanitarian and gender stakeholders from national and subnational levels from United Nations, International and National NonGovernmental Organizations (INGOs and NGOs), and Civil Society Organisations, with technical and coordination support from UN Women in partnership with OCHA and UNFPA. The profile has since been updated annually, and in 2021 became a joint endeavour led by the Myanmar Gender in Humanitarian Action (GiHA) Workstream, UNFPA and UN Women.
The purpose of the GiHA profile is to provide a summary overview of the overall context for gender equality and empowerment of women and girls in humanitarian action in Myanmar and to highlight key sector-specific and crosssectional gender issues, needs, gaps, response efforts taken, constraints/challenges to address these, and finally recommend strategic goals and further action needed to strengthen gender mainstreaming. The profile is aligned with the Inter-Agency Standing Committee (IASC) Policy on Gender Equality and Empowerment of Women and Girls in Humanitarian Action (2017) and the IASC Gender in Humanitarian Action Handbook (2018). It serves as a consolidated snapshot of existing datasets, research, analysis, and assessments available.
In 2020 and 2021, the COVID-19 pandemic further complicated the lives of people in humanitarian settings across the country, resulting in significant economic and health impacts. On 1 February, 2021, the Tatmadaw, also known as the Myanmar Armed Forces (MAF), seized control over the Government, declaring a year-long state of emergency and detained the country’s top representatives, along with civilian Government officials and prominent civil society members, journalists, as well as countless civilians.
Prior to the coup, humanitarian needs in Myanmar were already vast due to protracted conflict, human rights violations, displacement and natural hazards resulting in 1 million people, of whom 33% women, 19% girls and 18% boys, in need of humanitarian assistance by the 2021 Myanmar Humanitarian Response Plan. This includes 336,000 internally displaced people (of whom 29% are women, 20% girls and 21% boys - overall 70% of displaced). The largest population of persons in need are in Rakhine State with 806,000 people, and the second largest population is across Kachin State with 167,000 people in need. Women make up 53% of those in need of humanitarian assistance in Rakhine, and 48% in Kachin.
UN humanitarian actors in Myanmar have followed events in the country with concern, including reports of arbitrary detentions, arrests, use of excessive force, torture, sexual violence and harassment of protesters. The military coup has deepened humanitarian needs and conflict has intensified in multiple parts of the country, including areas that had not recently seen hostilities and triggering humanitarian needs in areas not previously targeted by humanitarian actors. UNDP has highlighted the compounding negative socio-economic impacts of the pandemic and political crisis, warning that nearly half of Myanmar’s population could be living in poverty by the beginning of 2022, with concerns that women and girls will pay the highest price. Economic disruptions from COVID19 and the consequent economic hardship increased risks of child marriage, while the closure of learning spaces disproportionately affected women’s ability to take up livelihoods as their care burdens increased.
Humanitarian response efforts have faced significant operational challenges including restricted humanitarian access, disruptions to the financial system and resulting cash shortages, heightened safety and security concerns, imposition of martial law in some areas, disruptions to telecommunications, and disruptions to supply chains and logistics. The UN Resident Coordinator and Humanitarian Coordinator in Myanmar have reaffirmed the commitment of the UN and its partners to stay and deliver humanitarian assistance and protection services to the affected populations.
The 2021 version of the GiHA profile includes an analysis of the gender-related impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic and the coup. Principles approaches and continuous community engagement are critical as is careful management of security risks and adaptation to the specificities of local context. Channels for dialogues with the de-facto authorities on safe and unhindered access are being pursued with a focus on areas of most acute need and local dynamics are being carefully observed.
Nevertheless, it is recognized that humanitarian actors in Myanmar are required to obtain travel authorization from de-facto authorities to transport and deliver humanitarian assistance, as well as to obtain relevant approvals for importation and clearance of commodities, including essential and lifesaving medications.
While the sector/cluster specific recommendations remain relevant when programming in the post-February 1 context, there will be a need for regular scanning and reflection on the gendered impact of humanitarian need as well as the impact on modalities and designs to deliver assistance given that the rapidly evolving context requires assistance in new geographical areas potentially with reliance on a smaller pool of partners who have access to affected populations.
Considering these changes in context, Kayin State has been included in the 2021 analysis. Kayin has been affected by decades of armed conflict and multiple waves of displacement and has recently seen significant increases in conflict following the military coup, and therefore capturing and documenting the gendered context for the above crisis areas is critical..."
Source/publisher:
UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, UN Women and United Nations Population Fund via "Reliefweb" (New York)
Date of publication:
2021-07-27
Date of entry/update:
2021-07-27
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), UNFPA (United Nations Population Fund), Women's rights
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1.33 MB (44 pages)
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"Yangon, MYANMAR— “I am the mother of three children. As a housewife, I have to rely on my husband’s income. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, we are earning less and less, and it barely make ends meet. No more food for extra head in the family,” said Yamin, a local woman who lives in the slums of Yangon city. The pandemic and current political crisis make difficult for the people like Yamin to access the family planning services. It exacerbates existing barriers to access and use of sexual and reproductive health and rights information and services for women and girls. She added, “With lack of the access to family planning services, I am scared of getting pregnant. I know there are a lot of women out there suffering the same situation like me. We are losing our rights and choices.”
Quality health care services are compromised.
Globally, the COVID-19 has disrupted health care systems of the countries, particularly in the area of sexual and reproductive health. It has seriously affected families who want to continue their family planning or childbearing. About 12 million women across the world experienced disruptions to family planning services according to UNFPA research (March 2021).
In Myanmar, the population of women is 53.2% of total population according to 2019 Myanmar’s Inter-censal survey. Adolescent fertility rate is 20.3 births per 1,000 women aged 15-19 while total fertility rate (TFR) is 2 children per women aged 15 to 49. Infant mortality rate is 31 deaths per 1,000 live births. 16 % of currently married women have an unmet need for family planning according to Demographic and Health Survey (2015-16). These are the data collected just before the pandemic. There are growing concerns that the COVID-19 pandemic and the political crisis in the country could have extensively compromised the access to essential health care services for women and girls including those living in conflict-affected areas.
Breaking the stigma and empowering women.
Discrimination, stigma, stereotypes and cultural taboos in communities pose significant barriers in accessing quality sexual and reproductive health care services and information.
Ma Hnin, a midwife working in Kyauktaw, Rakhine State said, “While working in rural areas, I see a lot of social issues in sexual and reproductive health. People do not want to talk about it as they assume as a social taboo. They are too shy to consult with experts.” it also does not help that men think family planning is women’s matter. They tend to believe that it has nothing to do with them. She continued, “We need to break this stigma and empower women to speak up for their rights and choices.”
Adapt to the pandemic and respond with action.
Regarding providing essential health services, the COVID-19 pandemic not only has an adverse impact on the beneficiaries, it also has increased issues and challenges for the services providers on the ground. “Due to the pandemic, our mobile delivery services for the women and girls in remote areas have to adapt the situation. We cannot operate as usual. In some cases, we have to limit the numbers of clients per day on priority basis, and sometimes, reduce the numbers of visits to certain locations,” said Dr. Tun who is working with an NGO in Rakhine state.
Also, the ongoing banking crisis has made it even more difficult for NGOs across Myanmar to access funds to deliver services.
However, no matter how challenging the situation is, essential health services for women and girls cannot be stopped. Dr Tun continued, “We adapt. And we respond.”
UNFPA’s call on the global action for the rights and choices of women and girls.
UNFPA, the United Nations sexual and reproductive health agency, works with local and international partner organizations to strengthen comprehensive efforts to ensure universal access to sexual and reproductive health care and advocate to ensure sexual and reproductive health and rights remain at the centre of development.
On the occasion of World Population Day 2021, UNFPA Executive Director, Dr Natalia Kanem calls on global and national actors; “On this Day, let us take action to close these gaps, because sexual and reproductive health services are essential. Even if health systems are understandably strained, these services cannot wait. Any further delays will curtail the health and well-being of women and girls, consequences that can last a lifetime. Let us work together to uphold the right to decide when and if to have a family and let us stand up for the rights and choices of all women and girls.”
It is important that women and girls are empowered to exercise their rights and choices under any kind of settings including conflicts and emergency situation. They must have control over their body not only in terms of autonomy but also through advances in various areas such as health and education, economics and safety. In Myanmar, while progress has been made towards gender equality, social norms continue to entrench patriarchy and even more so in the context of COVID and conflict, leading to significant inequalities among men and women in access to economic opportunities and health services. Sustained gender inequality is a proven contributor to gender-based violence.
The only way is through rights and choices!
Daw Sein, a local woman from the IDP camp in Rakhine, who received sexual and reproductive health care services from UNFPA implementing partner said, “Regardless of where we are, me and my husband decide together how many children we will have, when to have them and which contraceptive methods to use. We have equal rights to make our choices.” Ensuring women and men are able to exercise their reproductive health rights no matter the context, and that they are able to access reproductive health services without any barriers, is essential towards achieving the commitments of ICPD+25 and Sustainable Development Goals.
This feature story is to commemorate World Population Day 2021. This year’s theme is “Rights and Choices are the Answer: Whether baby boom or bust, the solution lies in prioritizing the reproductive health and rights of all people.” With this annual commemoration, we salute all the individuals and sexual and reproductive health organizations who are working for the rights and choices of women and girls across the world..."
Source/publisher:
United Nations Population Fund (New York)
Date of publication:
2021-07-11
Date of entry/update:
2021-07-11
Grouping:
Individual Documents
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