The 8th March 2010 is International Women's Day.  We are calling for women's rights to be respected on campaigns we support:   

Read our report by our Guatemalan team.  It highlights the appalling conditions for the largely female workforce in the country's factories.

Meanwhile, almost half a million women every year die of preventable pregnancy-related illnesses. We are backing the Action for Global Health's plea for the government to make sure the Millenium Development Goals are met to reduce this. 

We have been forced to suspend our healthcare programmes in Darfur due to fighting.  Our international staff have been evacuated from the area until safe access is restored.

Dr Jerome Larche, head of mission in Sudan is very concerned: "We urge the Sudanese government and the UN to give us the security assurances required to re-enter the area immediately. Our assessment teams urgently need access before this already catastrophic humanitarian disaster gets any worse. In the meantime we are preparing for an emergency intervention."

Our operation in Haiti continues with over 65 expatriate staff and 340 local staff. Surgical work has now ceased but we are now running 25 mobile clinics in addition to other programmes which continue to help victims of the earthquake.