UN Foundation Announces Press Fellowship to Guatemala to Focus On Women’s Health and Rights

The United Nations Foundation today announced a fellowship to Guatemala for a select group of journalists who write for U.S.-based outlets to focus on sexual and reproductive health and rights during the week of March 27^th, 2017.

In close coordination with the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), international and local non-government organizations, government ministries and other partners with in-country expertise, the fellowship will offer unparalleled opportunities to learn directly from community health workers, reproductive health experts, and officials from the Ministry of Health and the United Nations.

Participating journalists will observe family planning service delivery, comprehensive sexuality education, gender-based violence prevention and response, and initiatives to prevent unintended adolescent pregnancy and support maternal and child health. Journalists will also have the opportunity hear directly from girls, women and their families.

In Guatemala specifically, there have been incredible efforts to address the health and rights of girls and women, particularly for indigenous peoples that tend to be the most marginalized. While there has been progress, the impacts of the Zika virus have cast a new light on long existing inequalities related to access to critical sexual and reproductive health services, education and protection from violence. Guatemala continues to have one of the highest adolescent pregnancy rates in Latin America with severe implications for girls and women’s ability to plan their futures and thrive.

“We are at a critical point in time for sexual and reproductive health and rights globally. Traveling with the UN Foundation to Guatemala will allow journalists to explore these dynamics first-hand, and to meet the girls, women, families, community health workers, and UN experts who are striving for change,” said Seema Jalan, Executive Director of the UN Foundation’s Universal Access Project.

This fellowship is intended for journalists who write for U.S. outlets and do not have regular access to key experts in Guatemala, but are interested in sexual and reproductive health and rights globally, gender equality, international development, and the work of the United Nations.

The application deadline is March 1, 2017. To apply, click here. For more information please contact sjiwani@unfoundation.org

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About the United Nations Foundation

The United Nations Foundation builds public-private partnerships to address the world’s most pressing problems, and broadens support for the United Nations through advocacy and public outreach. Through innovative campaigns and initiatives, the Foundation connects people, ideas, and resources to help the UN solve global problems. The Foundation was created in 1998 as a U.S. public charity by entrepreneur and philanthropist Ted Turner and now is supported by philanthropic, corporate, government, and individual donors. Learn more at: www.unfoundation.org.