The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) announced on Friday that a lack of funding is forcing the closure of many programs that support women and girls in Sudan.
The fund has been compelled to reduce its services for survivors of gender-based violence and has already closed 11 out of 61 safe spaces that offered counseling, medical treatment, and legal referrals for rape survivors.
In a statement, UNFPA confirmed that while it continues to provide reproductive health and protection services, recent funding cuts have forced it to withdraw from more than half of the 93 health facilities it had been supporting.
The agency stated that it must shut down several safe spaces and programs that serve women and girls in the most vulnerable conditions, with only 25 percent of its humanitarian appeal funded this year.
UNFPA called for greater allocation of resources and attention to underfunded crises around the world, including Sudan, stressing that millions of women and girls must not be left vulnerable to violence.
Currently, UNFPA supports 63 safe spaces offering shelter, psychosocial support, and medical referrals for survivors of gender-based violence. However, only one in four centers providing clinical care to rape survivors is operating at full capacity.
