International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics

Investments in women's health are crucial for humanity's future, a US congresswoman has said.

Tanzanian publication the Daily News has issued an editorial calling for under-age marriages in the country to be outlawed.

The newspaper said, amid recent press reports, that more and more young girls were dropping out of school to get married and state progress to try to eradicate the practice is "painfully slow".

More work needs to be done to combat the problems caused by child marriage in Bangladesh, India and Nepal, according to a new report.

Plan shared the findings of its study carried out by the International Center for Research on Women at the 57th annual Commission on the Status of Women at the United Nations in New York.

A number of Ugandan civil society organisations led by the Centre for Health, Human Rights and Development (CEHURD) are to take their maternal health case to appeal in the Supreme Court after they lost their hearing in the Constitutional Court last June.

African heads of state have met to renew their commitment to reducing the maternal mortality rate on the continent and meeting their Millennium Development Goal 5 (MDG 5) targets.

The politicians gathered at the Ethiopian capital of Addis Ababa for the African Union Summit on Sunday (January 27th), reports the Inter Press Service.

Many young girls in the UK are opting for surgery that reshapes their genitalia, according to new research.

NHS figures show that 343 of these operations were conducted on girls under the age of 14 in the past six years.

Health outcomes for women and children around the world can be improved if world leaders choose to take action, Unicef has stated.

According to Anthony Lake, executive director of the body, it is "simply wrong" that millions are dying every year when there is the knowledge and resources available to prevent their deaths.

Women in Malawi are under intense pressure to give birth to lots of children, the country's president has said.

According to Joyce Banda, females often have up to eight children even though they cannot afford to look after them, Sky News reports.

The World Health Organization (WHO) is chairing a conference in London on what steps can be taken to improve women's health in the developing world.

Making more contraception options available to females in poorer countries has been named as a particular priority at the Family Planning Summit, which is taking place today (July 11th)

Amnesty International has released its 2012 Regional Overview of Africa.

The report found that the widespread uprising seen in the north of the continent has resonated with people in the sub-Saharan region, but there are significant socioeconomic and cultural barriers preventing a similar spring occurring there.