Maternity, paternity and parental leave, as well as policies to support breastfeeding in the workplace, are a fundamental part of comprehensive social protection systems and early childhood development strategies.

The economic fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic could push up to 86 million more children into household poverty by the end of 2020, an increase of 15 per cent, according to a new analysis released today by Save the Children and UNICEF.

In Colombia, maternal and child health indicators have improved since the conflict, however a pattern of inequality is observed in the municipalities most affected by the armed conflict.

Investing in human capital—the sum of a population’s health, skills, knowledge, and experience—can strengthen a country’s competitiveness in a rapidly changing world. Building human capital prepares work forces for the more highly skilled jobs of the future, which can drive more sustained growth and transform the trajectory of economies.

The international statistics community has continued to work together, in partnership with national statistical offices and systems around the world, to ensure that the best quality data and statistics are available to support decision making during and after the current crisis.

While COVID-19 originated as a health emergency, its impact on food security is also providing fertile ground for a protection crisis in Mozambique and Zimbabwe, disproportionately affecting the most vulnerable, especially girls.

While the COVID-19 pandemic will increase mortality due to the virus, it is also likely to increase mortality indirectly. This study estimates the additional maternal and under-5 child deaths resulting from the potential disruption of health systems and decreased access to food.

While the prevalence of undernourishment has declined in Bangladesh, there still are 26 million food-insecure people in the country. Cox’s Bazar alone has 695,000 people that are severely food-insecure with over 34 percent of the population living under the food consumption poverty line.

Ongoing efforts to contain an Ebola outbreak in the east of the country have diverted attention and resources from already enfeebled healthcare facilities which are dealing with several deadly endemic diseases.