Erbil, Iraq; 27 August 2018 - The European Union continues its support to UNFPA in Iraq through a EUR 5 million contribution to sustain reproductive health and clinical management of rape services across Iraq.
The United Nations estimates that around 825,000 women of reproductive age are in need of humanitarian assistance in Iraq. The delivery of health care services in both conflict-affected areas and Internally Displaced People's hosting areas has been severely impacted, as a result of the three-year devastating war against the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL).
With this funding, UNFPA will support comprehensive emergency obstetric care in six hospitals in Telafar, Hawija, Qaim, Hammam Aleel, Qayarra and Shirqat, Basic Emergency Obstetric Care, in four facilities in Beiji, Ana, Qayarra airstrip and Sunoni, five reproductive health clinics in Jadaa, Salameya and Hamman Al-Aleel camps, and 26 RH clinics in West Anbar, West Ninewa, North Salahuddin and Kerbala.
"The EU will continue to provide critical medical assistance in Iraq. Facilitating access to essential reproductive health services for displaced population and assisting victims of gender-based violence are top European priorities in Iraq,” Mr Christos Stylianides, European Commissioner for Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Management, said.
"The new EU contribution is much appreciated as it will go a long way in addressing the serious shortfalls in reproductive health services resulting from the wide destruction of Iraqi hospitals and health facilities," said UNFPA Executive Director Dr. Natalia Kanem. "This will also allow UNFPA to continue providing health facilities with urgently needed medical supplies and services, and ensuring that tens of thousands of women and girls can enjoy quality reproductive health services.”
The EU has been a strategic partner to UNFPA in Iraq since 2015 with a total contribution of EUR 21 million to the Fund's reproductive health and gender-based violence interventions.
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UNFPA, the United Nations Population Fund, delivers a world where every pregnancy is wanted, every child birth is safe and every young person's potential is fulfilled.
For more information or media inquiries please contact: Salwa Moussa, Communications Specialist, smoussa@unfpa.org
About EU Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid (DG ECHO)
The European Union and its Member States are the world's leading donor of humanitarian aid.
Relief assistance is an expression of European solidarity with people in need all around the world. It aims to save lives, prevent and alleviate human suffering, and safeguard the integrity and human dignity of populations affected by natural disasters and man-made crises. The European Commission ensures rapid and effective delivery of EU relief assistance through its two main instruments: civil protection and humanitarian aid. Through its Civil Protection and Humanitarian aid Operations department (ECHO), the European Commission helps millions of victims of conflict and disasters every year. With headquarters in Brussels and a global network of field offices, the department provides assistance to the most vulnerable people on the basis of humanitarian needs. For more information, please visit the European Commission's website.
