Posted on 8 March, 2014

Photo by Jean Pierre Amigo

From Rhoda, 24 years old, in South Sudan: “I was going to the health clinic in Bor town during my pregnancy. When we had to flee the area, I ran for my life, but being eight months pregnant, it was not easy. This was the toughest time of my life. My husband was stuck in Juba and I was in the bush convinced I was going to lose our child. One night, my mother and I got into one big boat with 100 others crossing to Awerial county. …The journey was awful, lying in dirty water mixed with animal feces. When we arrived to Minkaman, my mother found a small area with a few trees, big enough for the two of us to settle. Soon I started having some persistent pains and my mum helped me deliver a baby boy.” Saturday is International Women’s Day. On that day, and every day, thousands of women worldwide will leave their homes to flee war or persecution. The fact that they are women makes their ordeal even more harrowing. Read this and other stories: http://bit.ly/1fLR5fE

Photo by Yann Libessart

From Margaret Barclay, MSF midwife: “In the Philippines, the (Typhoon Haiyan) disaster destroyed everything and people did not know whether health care was accessible or not. The first woman who delivered with us in Tacloban would have died if she had not received care. …She was very sick, had been displaced by the typhoon and was living in a tent. Her labor was obstructed and she had also developed pre-eclampsia, a hypertensive disorder, which is a severe complication of pregnancy.” Saturday is International Women’s Day. On that day, and every day, thousands of women worldwide will leave their homes to flee war or persecution. The fact that they are women makes their ordeal even more harrowing. Read this and other stories: http://bit.ly/1fLR5fE

Photo by Karl Nawezi/MSF

Taghry and Masaya, along with six children, were among the 15,000 people who fled the conflict in Mali in January 2013 and sought safety in neighboring Mauritania. They arrived with nothing other than the clothes on their backs and are now completely dependent on humanitarian aid….On arriving in Bassikounou, an ultrasound confirmed Taghry was pregnant with quadruplets. The MSF medical team made the quick decision to perform a caesarean section. Taghry gave birth to three small but healthy boys and one healthy girl. At first, they are simply called Baby 1, 2, 3 and 4. Saturday is International Women’s Day. On that day, and every day, thousands of women worldwide will leave their homes to flee war or persecution. The fact that they are women makes their ordeal even more harrowing. Read this and other stories: http://bit.ly/1fLR5fE