Thanks for stopping by. This DFID Bloggers site is now closed and will no longer be updated regularly. However, all the blogs that appeared here will be archived if you want to look back at any of our posts. Why …
Yesterday I returned to a hospital where I worked many years ago. I used to gaze across the Thames from the window at St Thomas’ to the Houses of Parliament, not knowing they would have much direct relevance to me. …
I called her today, the phone rang twice and she picked it up the third time. Like always the conversation started with: “How are you?” The 44-year-old calmly answered my call. “I am well, just calling to say hi,” I reply …
As the world celebrates Human Rights Day, Rachel Jewkes, Director of the What Works to Prevent Violence Global Programme, and Director of the South African Medical Research Council’s Gender and Health Research Unit unveils 18 innovations that are working to …
If you were to ask me for a country that has undergone real change in the last quarter of a century, I would be hard pushed to think of a greater example than South Africa. I’ve been to South Africa …
When I was travelling in Kenya recently, I had a graphic reminder that gender-based violence and HIV is right there in front of us in many African countries; we just don’t all notice it all the time. I went through …
The Girl Summit 2014 was a big deal in the UK. It was the culmination of months of hard work by DFID, UNICEF and Girl Hub. It was attended by Prime Ministers, Presidents and Cabinet Ministers. Hundreds of young people …
Returning from Tanzania’s geographically central but small capital city Dodoma to the coastal mega-city of Dar es Salaam, I reflected upon this slightly surreal experience. I was on board the only scheduled flight, a small 12 seater plane cruising at …
Though it may not seem obvious, access to clean energy and women’s empowerment especially in the developing world are intrinsically linked. Collecting firewood, for example, can make a woman or girl vulnerable to attack while she’s outside her village searching. …
Imagine your life if you were married at 15, against your will, to an abusive husband. It’s the same for almost all the women you know. Your education came to an abrupt end once you were married, and you’re not …
When you think of Somalia, you probably think of Black Hawk Down, Al Shabaab terrorism and piracy. But if you’re born a girl in Somalia, you face so many other risks, both severe and everyday. Decades of war and humanitarian …
