In December 2012, the UN General Assembly adopted resolution 67/147, designating 23 May as the International Day to End Obstetric Fistula, with support from the UN Population Fund; the day was first observed in 2013. Obstetric fistula is a serious childbirth injury caused by prolonged or obstructed labor without timely emergency care, resulting in chronic incontinence that often leads to social stigma, isolation, and poverty for affected women. Although the condition is almost entirely preventable through adequate maternal healthcare and treatable through surgery in most cases, it still affects hundreds of thousands of women each year, primarily in developing countries with weak health systems. The day mobilizes political and financial support for providing reconstructive surgery to survivors and improving access to maternal healthcare in underserved regions, while combating the social stigma associated with the condition through awareness campaigns led by international and local health organizations.