Lyn Thomas has held various posts in IPPF where she has worked since 1980.

These posts have been administrative, programmatic and managerial, initially with an emphasis on reproductive health programme development in Southern Europe. 

Her appointment as Regional Director in 1990 coincided with the political changes that occured throughout Eastern & Central Europe and the former United Soviet Socialist Republic (USSR).

From that time until 2002 she worked to establish non-governmental organisations in more than 20 countries in this Region, with a specific emphasis on Romania and Russia. 

Throughout the Region, as the Regional Director, she undertook extensive consultations and negotiations with ministers of health and education, government officials and health professionals, motivating them to provide support, leadership and also to volunteer their time to Member Associations. 

She has been a technical consultant to the UK Department for International Development (DFID) on reproductive health programmes in Russia and she was a member of the World Health Organization (WHO) Europe Regional Advisory Panel and on the editorial board of WHO’s Entre Nous.

In 2002 she was appointed to the position of Deputy Director General of IPPF, based at our Central Office in London. 

She is the Chief Operations Officer of the Federation and in addition, oversees the work of the Safe Abortion Action Fund.