UNFPA 'continuing to combat fistula'

The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) says more than 12,000 women around the world have received treatment since the introduction of its Campaign to End Fistula in 2003.

In addition, more than 25 countries have integrated fistula into relevant national policies and plans, and at least 38 have completed a situation analysis of prevention and treatment, it says.

UNFPA has been stepping up attempts to raise awareness of the condition and the risks it poses to many women in the developing world.

Last October, United Nations secretary-general Ban Ki-Moon presented the first-ever report about fistula to member states, outlining efforts to end obstetric fistula and help achieve Millennium Development Goal Five to raise standards of maternal health.

UNFPA says: "The devastation of obstetric fistula affects some two million women across the developing world, with approximately 50,000 to 100,000 new cases occurring every year. UNFPA aims to eliminate this condition."

Earlier this week, Australian urogynaecologist Dr Hannah Krause told Christian Today that the lack of public awareness about obstetric fistulae in the developing world is "a silent tragedy".