On Tour with Reproductive Health and Family Planning Champions

Oct. 12, 2011 – With generous funding from the Packard Foundation, CEDPA was able to bring the voices of grassroots women champions to cities across the U.S. After the Strengthening the Voices of Reproductive Health and Family Planning Champions workshop, four participants stayed behind to commence a speaking tour emphasizing the importance of U.S. support for family planning and reproductive health services.

The first stop was at the Union League Club in Chicago at a luncheon sponsored by theInternational Women’s Associates and Heartland International. The participants, Azzah Nofly, Jane Godia, Nana Amma Oforiwaa Sam, and Olive Mtema, painted a picture of the challenges faced to access reproductive health and family planning in their countries, illustrating with stories of women in need.

Azzah (pictured above), the assistant reproductive health manager for the Ministry of Health in Zanzibar, gave examples of some of the successful life-saving programs her government created with assistance of foreign funding. She also provided examples of the drastic regression that occurs when that funding is cut off.

Jane (pictured below), an editor for African Woman and Child Features Service in Kenya, shared with the audience a journalist’s perspective. She explained how media can dispel myths and misconceptions about family planning and reproductive health when they are well informed. She also explained that most are not. Jane said the media needs training to be able to tell these stories properly and that type of training is not a line item in her country’s budget.

Jane Godia addresses the challenges women in Kenya face trying to access family planning and reproductive health services at PATH in Seattle.

Nana elaborated on how local nongovernmental organizations are pressuring their governments to take responsibility for their own reproductive health and family planning programs. As an advocacy coordinator for the Planned Parenthood Association of Ghana, she understands that each country must take ownership of their programs. However, she warned there must be weaning strategies in place to maintain the progress made thus far.

Olive, the policy and advocacy advisor for Futures Group based in Lilongwe, Malawi, spoke from the point of view of a country most people do not know. She told of a program her organization implemented in a few areas of the country with tremendous success; however, funding for the program ended. She explained how there is an unmet demand for reproductive health and family planning.

The speakers were applauded by a very enthusiastic audience of over one hundred people. There were many questions for the speakers during the Q&A. The questions touched on male involvement, what each country needed most and what others could do to help.

The tour continued in Chicago with events at the Chicago Council for Global Affairs and the University of Chicago. Then, the group flew to Seattle for events with the University of Washington, the Seattle World Affairs Council and PATH.

The speakers were greeted with a warm and receptive audience at each stop. They provided the public with an opportunity to get first-hand knowledge and answers about why support for international family planning and reproductive health is necessary.

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