UNFPA urges all to commit to ending fistula now

The UN population agency has called upon countries to make a commitment to end debilitating fistula now.

UNFPA Executive Director Dr Natalia Kanem made the call in a statement on the International Day to End Obstetric Fistula on Wednesday.

“It is time we end the needless suffering caused by fistula, in keeping with the 2030 Agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals,” she said.

“Let us commit to putting the furthest behind first and ensuring human rights, well-being and dignity for all. UNFPA is committed to ending fistula within a generation, and we call upon the world to join us in this bold endeavour.”

Poor women who lack access to healthcare during childbirth mostly suffer ‘obstructive fistula’, which is a childbirth injury caused by prolonged obstructed labour.

A fistula is a hole between the vagina and the bladder or rectum, through which urine or stool leaks continuously.

It usually happens when women do not have access to quality emergency obstetric care services and deliver at the hands of unskilled attendants.

According to a recent study done by ICDDR’B, there are 19,755 cases of obstetric fistula in Bangladesh, two-thirds of which are among women between 15-49 years of age.

The UNFPA chief said pregnancy and childbirth should be among the happiest of occasions in a woman’s life.

“Unfortunately, this is not the case for many of the world’s poorest and most marginalised women. Obstetric fistula, a childbirth injury caused by prolonged, obstructed labour without prompt medical attention, is silently robbing millions of women and girls of their health, hope and dignity,” she said.

“The condition often leaves the woman with chronic incontinence and usually results in the death of the child.”

Kanem said fistula, which has been virtually eliminated in wealthier countries, is a serious human rights violation, a reflection of health systems’ failures, and a tragic sign of global social injustice and inequity.

The global Sustainable Development Goals are a bold and aspirational call to leave no one behind, especially those most marginalised, forgotten, and voiceless.

The theme of this year’s International Day to End Obstetric Fistula, “Leaving no one behind: let us commit to ending fistula now!”, underscores the stark reality that failing to eliminate fistula jeopardizes the world’s chances of attaining many of these goals, she said.

“Many fistula survivors, like Amina Mba from Cameroon, are girls who become pregnant while still physically immature.”

“After being married off as a child, Amina became pregnant at 13 and developed a fistula due to obstructed labour.”

“The condition left Amina incontinent, and the stigma left her alone to fend for herself, after being abandoned by her husband and family,” Kanem said as an example.

Since 2003, UNFPA which is globally campaigning to end fistula, supported nearly 100,000 life-transforming surgeries to heal the physical and psychological wounds of fistula survivors.

That includes Amina, who was healed last year after living with fistula for seven years.

“Yet, more than two million women and girls worldwide still suffer from the condition,” the executive director said.