80th UNGA must act to stop regressive pushbacks against health and gender

By committing to Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) at United Nations General Assembly (UNGA 2015), all government leaders had promised health and wellbeing (SDG-3) and gender equality (SDG-5) by 2030 “where no one is left behind.” Two-third along the way in 2025, writing on the wall is clear: promises are not being kept.

[video] Gender equality and human right to health are inextricably linked, says UN Special Rapporteur on Right To Health

Will Nepal's leadership on health spur more action on SDG-3 globally?

Nepal has demonstrated commendable progress on a range of health indices, despite myriads of challenges. Nepal is among the least developed countries currently, but due to its sustained and growing progress on a range of sustainable development indices, it is all set to do away with this tag in 2026.

SHE & Rights | Abortion rights are human rights

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[Click here to register] Ahead of International Safe Abortion Day (28 September) and World Contraception Day (26 September), SHE & Rights session on 5th September 2025, Friday, would be held on the theme: "Abortion rights are human rights."

Are health services sensitive to needs of young persons in all their diversities?

[हिंदी] How many healthcare facilities have sign language or braille interpretation, ramps or other acutely needed support for people with different forms of disabilities? Even health awareness and disease prevention campaigns are seldom in sign language, braille or visual communication medium, says Nishant Kumar, Coordinator of Y-PEER Nepal and Member, Working Group on Disabilities and 2030 Agenda.

[video] UNGA 2025: Only 64 months left to deliver on SDG-3 and SDG-5: It is time for Accountability

Will world leaders at UNGA act on urgent interconnected threats posed by NCDs and AMR?

World leaders will meet at the upcoming 80th United Nations General Assembly and UN High Level Meeting on Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs) next month. But would they take stronger action to prevent NCDs and antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is yet to be seen. The draft text that would be up for their discussion next month is sadly weak and disappointing given the threat NCDs (and AMR) poses to global health and SDGs.

UNGA 2025: Only 64 months left to deliver on SDG-3 and SDG-5: It is time for Accountability

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[Watch the recording] Governments committed to deliver on Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in 2015. As we cross the two-thirds mark this year on the road towards delivering on Agenda 2030, let us review where are we on the promises of gender equality and human right to health.

Rohingya women carry not just a story of pain but a plan for change

"In the Rohingya refugee communities, especially with whom I work, the progress on Sustainable Development Goal (SDG)-3 (health and wellbeing) and SDG-5 (gender equality) has been deeply uneven and fragile - there have been small but significant steps forward," said Noor Fatima, Specialist in Education Policy and Equity, Rohingya Maìyafuìnor Collaborative Network.

United action is warranted for antimicrobial resistance which threatens everyone

[watch the recording] When misuse and overuse of medicines is making infections difficult or impossible to treat, then are not  all of us at risk? rightly asks Bhakti Chavan, a survivor of extensively drug-resistant TB or XDR-TB (one of the severest forms of TB which has very limited treatment options) and a member of World Health Organization (WHO) Task Force of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) Survivors.

[video] SDG-3 & SDG-5 under youth lens

[video] Antimicrobial resistance: The silent pandemic - let media break the silence

Not capitalist but economically, socially and ecologically just order can deliver on SDGs

"Anti-rights and anti-gender pushes are driven by political, patriarchal, conservative, and religious bodies that frame wrong understandings of gender as a ‘threat to the social good’. They make it (wrongly) seem that any progressive position on justice- whether it is social, racial, gender, sexual, economic, disability, climate, or ecological- is threatening and destructive to the so-called 'dominant global order.' But we, particularly those of us in the Global South, have to understand it very clearly that this global order is white supremacist, capitalist, and patriarchal, that sustains itself through division, fear-mongering, and the wrong beliefs that ‘a market will fix anything and will fix everything.’ And we know that it does not”, said Dr Angelique V Nixon.

Prevention revolution and policy harmonisation are critical to end AIDS

[हिंदी] Despite having science-based tools for HIV combination prevention, there were 1.3 million people who got newly diagnosed with HIV in 2023 - and also in 2024 - hardly any decline between the two years. Despite having lifesaving antiretroviral therapy to help every person living with HIV healthy and well (and virally suppressed - which also ensures there is zero risk of HIV transmission because treatment works as prevention), 630,000 people died of AIDS-related illnesses in 2023 - and also in 2024 - hardly any decline between the two years. We clearly need a prevention revolution to drastically bring down new HIV infections as well as a lot more needs to be done to reduce AIDS-related deaths. 'Business as usual' is clearly not an option.

SHE & Rights | SDG-3 and SDG-5 under youth lens

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Ahead of International Youth Day and International Day of World's Indigenous Peoples, and in lead up to UN General Assembly where SDG-3 and SDG-5 both are under review this year, be welcome to join us in SHE & Rights session on the theme: "SDG-3 and SDG-5 under youth lens."

Protect the lifelines of youth and community-led HIV programmes

Youth-led, rights-based and gender transformative HIV response is key. “Community-led programmes are lifelines of the HIV response, reaching those most in need. As international aid shrinks, these lifelines are the first to disappear. We must protect them,” said UNAIDS. One such lifeline is youth-led programmes for HIV prevention and treatment. We need to protect it.

Person-centred care is the gateway to health for all

The irony of current times is that despite the writing on the wall "health is a fundamental human right," the ground reality cannot be farther from the truth. Over 70% people die of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) - a significant number of them are preventable. An infectious disease like TB, which is preventable and curable, continues to be the deadliest infectious disease worldwide - especially in the Global South. When HIV combination prevention should be a reality, along with treatment as prevention, over 630,000 people died of AIDS-related illnesses in 2024 - and 1.3 million were newly diagnosed with HIV in 2024 (hardly any change when compared with 2023 data). If every life matters, then why is A for accountability, missing from global health?

[video] Connecting the dots: HIV, sexual and reproductive health, rights and justice, and SDGs

Remove systemic blockers to enable access for women to economic and labour markets

Unless we remove systemic discrimination, disadvantages and patriarchal barriers, how would we ensure that women and gender diverse peoples in all their diversities are equitably and justly able to access economic markets and labour markets? Economic justice is critical cog-in-the-wheel for development justice.

SHE & Rights | Connecting the dots: HIV, sexual and reproductive health, rights and justice, and SDGs

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No health, gender and economic justice without ending wars, invasions and genocides

[हिंदी] While health, gender and other sustainable development goals are reeling under severe funding cuts, governments of richer nations are increasing defence budgets. More shocking is that same governments who are raising spending on militarisation, are the ones committing to ‘peace’ at a global meet on financing for development and refusing on debt cancellation for the Global South nations.

Will we-the-quails unite to lift the net or wither away the gains made in AIDS response?

Let us refresh the old gold Buddhist tale of The Quail and the Net: “Long ago a flock of quails lived in a forest. Everyday a hunter would cast a net and trap many of them. But eventually, a wise quail told the rest that if they worked together, they could lift the net collectively at the same moment and escape as one. Next time the hunter tried to capture them, quails moved in unison, raising the net and flying off together. Unity is strength,” said Eamonn Murphy, Director of UNAIDS for Asia Pacific and Central Asia and Eastern Europe regions around the world’s largest conference on HIV science (13th International AIDS Society Conference on HIV Science).

No health without rights, says Shobha Shukla SDG-3 Lead Discussant at UN meet

[watch the recording] Health and gender equality are indivisible and fundamental human rights. "Right to health cannot be dislocated from gender equality and human rights. We have to ensure that gender equality and human right to health are recognised as fundamental human rights in all countries,” said Shobha Shukla, who was the Lead Discussant for SDG-3 (health and wellbeing) at the United Nations intergovernmental High Level Political Forum (HLPF 2025) at UN HQ in New York (14-23 July 2025). She was speaking on behalf of Asia Pacific Regional Civil Society Engagement Mechanism.

[video] SDG3 Lead Discussant at UN High Level Political Forum (HLPF 2025) Shobha Shukla speaks on human right to health, gender justice and development justice

Reforming global financial architecture is critical for gender equality and right to health

While governments have committed to deliver on Sustainable Development Goals by 2030, inequalities, injustices and deadly divide between the Global North and Global South nations (and within rich and poor nations) has jeopardised progress on SDG goals and targets – including gender equality and right to health – both of which are fundamental human rights.

Richest 1% people have enough new wealth to end annual poverty 22 times over

Recent funding cuts on health, gender equality and human rights have given a sudden blow to a range of important services for the most underserved communities. But solution is not as simple as suggesting low- and middle-income countries to increase ‘domestic investment on health and gender’ or find ‘innovative ways to financing.’

[video] Did 4th Financing for Development deliver on gender equality and feminist agenda?

[video] It is time for Africa to end TB and AIDS epidemics and lead the world

Cambodia is 2nd Asian country to rollout long-acting injectable HIV prevention option

Watch CNS Live with Patricia Ongpin of UNAIDS

After Thailand, Cambodia becomes the second Asian country to rollout long-acting and injectable options to protect oneself from getting infected with HIV. United Nations health agency (formally known as World Health Organization or WHO) had first issued its guidelines in 2022, asking countries to deliver long-acting injectable Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP), using cabotegravir medicine, as part of comprehensive approach to HIV prevention.

SHE & Rights: Did 4th Financing for Development deliver on gender equality and feminist agenda?

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The ninth session of SHE & Rights (Sexual Health with Equity & Rights) will be organised before World Population Day on the theme: "Did 4th Financing for Development meet-outcomes deliver on gender equality and feminist agenda?"

2nd Edition of SHE & Rights Media Awards 2025

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Will governments firewall public health from tobacco industry's lies and deceptive tactics?

A new WHO report launched in June 2025, warrants stronger measures to save lives from deadly tobacco and nicotine products and hold industry liable

[video] First-ever rollout of long-acting injectable cabotegravir Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) in Cambodia