Palestinian Family Planning and Protection Association (PFPPA) combines political advocacy with community family planning services and information, education and communication (IEC) activities.
Efficient service delivery and relevant training are seen as the main areas where PFPPA can make an effective contribution.
Other goals are the improvement of women's status, in collaboration with women's committees, and population education for young people.
Between 10% and 25% of married women of reproductive age are estimated to use contraception: the PFPPA provides services to more than half of them.
PFPPA seeks the integration of family planning in primary health care with a special focus on maternal and child health and breastfeeding, targeting low income groups.
Collaboration and co-ordination with voluntary and international agencies involved in health, education and other social services is seen as the key to efficient service delivery.
Creating awareness, training medical staff and women's involvement are also very important.
In the long term, we intend to become a training institution for medical staff, midwives and health educators.
A decade of political instability has slowed down our work. However, we have succeeded in changing people's attitudes, albeit slowly.
Our strategies promote:
- continuity through efficient service delivery in our own clinics
- collaboration with UNWRA (United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East)
- extension of services in Gaza
- improvement of women's legal and socio-economic status and opportunities
- youth education and information to prepare them for adulthood
- creating awareness and training
Awareness will be created by broadcasting three films on family planning, nutrition and hygiene and other areas of health education.
One aspect of this project involves close collaboration and co-ordination with the Palestinian Agricultural Relief Association to identify and train village motivators.
A new women's programme is aimed at empowerment. At a recent meeting in the small hill village of Tkooi, close to Bethlehem, a psychological counsellor led a discussion on women's oppression, psycho-physiological problems and stress at one of the fortnightly meetings in the village, organized by a PFPPA field worker.
In another initiative, women had gathered in the mosque of a nearby village to hear a lawyer, brought in by the PFPPA, explain women's economic and property rights - rights of which many have been entirely unaware.
In Gaza, a youth programme is well under way: 18-25 year olds have been recruited from student, community and sports organizations in five areas of the Strip to form discussion groups which have raised issues ranging from:
- the rights and wrongs of polygamy
- the need for segregation in education
- the role of family planning in the context of Muslim family life
- relations between the sexes both before and after marriage
PFPPA targets 60 community development workers and health educators to promote family planning/maternal and child health knowledge to their clients both in clinics and during home visits.
In addition, a three-day training session will be provided to 25 paramedicals from the UNRWA and the Red Crescent Society.