The World Council of Churches (WCC), along with their partner Geneva for Human Rights, created a report based on input received during visits to Angola and Madagascar in 2022 and 2024. In both reviews, many recommendations were made which have relevance to the issues raised by WCC.
Those issues included gender-based violence, rights of the child (particularly access to education, freedom from violence, early marriage, and child labour), people with disabilities, and access to health.
Addressing Women’s Health Issues
A WCC and partner visit to Madagascar in October 2022 was to meet WCC member churches and learn more about the issue of obstetric fistula in Madagascar. Obstetric fistula, a severe injury which can occur during childbirth, not only affects women's health but also gravely undermines their dignity and quality of life. It affects millions of women around the world – mainly in sub-saharan Africa and south Asia.
At the last Universal Periodic Review of Madagascar in November 2019, no specific recommendations were made about obstetric fistula, which was indicative of the alarming lack of attention by the mechanisms of the UN human rights system to this serious but largely hidden human rights violation. Accordingly, WCC welcomes and attaches particular significance to the recommendation concerning obstetric fistula, made by the Government of Mali, during the review of Madagascar at the most recent review in January 2025.
“It was extremely encouraging to hear the recommendation from Mali, explicitly mentioning the issue of obstetric fistula”, said Jennifer Philpot-Nissen, WCC program executive for Human Rights and Disarmament.“We hope that this reference will be the beginning of the end of the deafening silence in the Human Rights Council about this most tragic condition for women and their families. We call upon other Governments to add their voices in efforts to end obstetric fistula”
A delegation from WCC visited Angola January 2024 to learn more about the situation of obstetric fistula in Angola, and how the churches can help prevent this condition from occurring. At that time, the WCC had newly released a “Guide for Churches on the Prevention of Obstetric Fistula.”
Human Rights Workshop Held in Angola
The visit provided direct insights into the situation for human rights in Angola. The WCC delegation hosted a workshop in Luanda with church partners - adults, youth and children (girls and boys), where the purpose and function of the Universal Periodic Review was explained, and participants were invited to share their concerns and recommendations for human rights in Angola.
Ahead of the WCC delegation arrival, Geneva for Human Rights and other partners visited several clinics and hospitals in different provinces in Angola, and spoke to medical staff including midwives, doctors and surgeons, organizations working to help women dealing with obstetric fistula and recovering from fistula surgery, and such women themselves. They visited cities and villages in the provinces of Bié, Huíla, and Cuanza Sul.
How Can You Help
The World Council of Churches is an ecumenical partner supported by the Interdenominational Cooperation Fund, one of the United Methodist Church’s seven apportionment funds. Through this fund, United Methodists share in the global work of building Christian unity, confronting injustice, and lifting up voices too often ignored.
