BUENOS AIRES, Mar 29 2012 (IPS) – A novel research study in Argentina explored women s knowledge and beliefs about cervical cancer, in the provinces with the highest mortality from this highly preventable form of cancer, to design more effective policies. Although there are now effective tools to prevent cervical cancer, and vaccination against human […]
Category: Wellness
Modern Obstetrics and Midwives Need to Join Forces
RIO DE JANEIRO, May 4 2012 (IPS) – María dos Prazeres de Souza has lost count of the number of births without a single death she has attended as a midwife, an occupation that there is renewed interest in strengthening in traditional communities in Brazil where state services are not available or are not entirely […]
Will Water Dry Up at Summit on Sustainable Development?
UNITED NATIONS, Jun 11 2012 (IPS) – The headline in a New York newspaper last March captured the essence of a future potential threat to political stability the world over: U.S. Report Sees Tensions Over Water. The study, a collective vision of the U.S. intelligence community, warned that during the next 10 years, many countries […]
Silenced by U.S., Sex Workers Speak from Kolkata
Sex workers march through a street in the Indian city Kolkata to condemn U.S. denial of visas to attend an AIDS conference. Credit: Sujoy Dhar/IPS. KOLKATA, Jul 26 2012 (IPS) – Bare-chested and beaming in the company of many like him, London-based male sex worker Thierry Schaffauser wipes the beads of sweat trickling down his […]
Taking Justice to the Neighbourhoods in Argentina
BUENOS AIRES, Sep 17 2012 (IPS) – The Argentine government has opened legal aid centres in slum neighbourhoods, to provide a range of services, from assistance for immigrants and victims of domestic violence to dental care services. “Many of the situations can be solved by picking up the telephone,” said Ariel Pereira, coordinator of the […]
Wrangling Begins Over New Sustainable Development Blueprint
UNITED NATIONS, Oct 26 2012 (IPS) – As the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) limp towards their target date of 2015, the United Nations is shifting its focus to another long-term action plan: a new set of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Indigenous baby and mother in Chihuahua, Mexico. Social movements want indigenous rights and gender equity […]
Anti-gay Stigma Hinders Bid to Lower Côte d’Ivoire’s HIV Rate
Clinique de Confiance was the first clinic in Côte d’Ivoire to begin targeting men who have sex with men. Credit: Robbie Corey-Boulet/IPS ABIDJAN , Dec 1 2012 (IPS) – When Emmanuel Kokou, a 28-year-old sex worker, moved from his native Togo to Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire in 2010, he knew there was a good chance that […]
Cheaper Medicine a New Year’s Gift for Salvadorans
SAN SALVADOR, Feb 1 2013 (IPS) – After years of delays and obstacles, a law regulating the pharmaceutical market has come into effect in El Salvador, giving its people access to medicines at more reasonable prices, with discounts of over 50 percent for some drugs sold in high volumes, like diabetes medication. The Medicines Law […]
Water Shortage Hits Pacific Women
There are many demands on a communal water tap in the Lord Howe Settlement in Honiara in the Solomon Islands. Credit: Catherine Wilson/IPS. HONIARA, Solomon Islands, Apr 8 2013 (IPS) – The Solomon Islands, a developing island nation in the south-west Pacific Islands, has one of the highest urbanisation rates in the region, and the […]
OAS Chief Calls for “Long-Awaited” Debate on Drug Policy
Women and children from the village where the Esparza family was murdered by soldiers in Mexico’s “drug war” demand justice outside the schoolhouse.Mónica González /IPS WASHINGTON, May 25 2013 (IPS) – Following the release of a major draft report on drug policy in the Americas, the secretary-general of the Organisation of American States (OAS), Jose […]