Member Associations

Guinea-Bissau is one tenth the size of its neighbour Guinea-Conakry, but its people suffer equally distressing sexual and reproductive health (SRH) problems. The Associação Guineense para o Bem Estar Familiar was established in 1993 to address the major issue in family planning: equipping couples to make active, informed choices about the number of children they would have, and when they would have them.   Since then, the Member Association’s work has expanded to embrace a full range of SRH concerns. It provides young people with information, education and communication (IEC) and behaviour change communication (BCC) around sexual and reproductive health; it works on the prevention, diagnosis and management of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) includind HIV; it provides post-abortion care and support; it provides care for victims of gender-based violence (GBV); and it advocates strongly at government level for legislation to prevent GBV. Associação Guineense para o Bem Estar Familiar achieved these results through a small but committed team that operate over hundred service points, including static clinics and community-based service points. Despite the relatively small size of the organization, it is growing rapidly with strong central support from IPPF, influential government partnerships, and backing from non-governmental organizations including UNFPA.

LLAVES is a non-profit organization founded in 1999 by Allan Dunaway and Rosa Gonzalez in response to the particular needs of people living with HIV, specifically in the defense of the human rights of this population. LLAVES has developed expertise in the area of communication and uses it as a vehicle for primary and secondary prevention of HIV and other STIs, human rights advocacy, political advocacy, promotion of values, as well as the involvement of other key actors in the response to the epidemic, and its territorial areas of work are regional, national and international. LLAVES seeks to enhance the availability and quality of access to and use of key information, products and services for development that contribute significantly to improving the lives of people living with HIV and other vulnerable groups. The advocacy developed by LLAVES has been instrumental in achieving access to comprehensive care for people living with HIV, as well as a legal framework such as the special HIV Law and its reform. LLAVES has also been active in the development and implementation of the Five Year Plan on HIV and Human Rights: Reducing Human Rights Related Barriers to Access to HIV Services, an ambitious plan that aims to reduce legal, policy, scientific and community gaps. It comprises seven program areas, aimed at strengthening programs to protect and promote human rights, because human rights-related barriers impede the reach, use and impact of comprehensive HIV prevention and care services.   Instagram Twitter