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Philippines

Articles by Philippines

rajah-outreach-team
13 September 2023

Championing Change: A Community-Led Approach to HIV Services in the Philippines

Located in the bustling heart of Iloilo City is the RAJAH Community Centre, a dynamic hub with a meaningful mission. RAJAH stands for "Raising Awareness for Junior Advocates on HIV." Established in 2019 by the Family Planning Organization of the Philippines (FPOP), this centre provides a safe space for HIV testing and support services, free from stigma.  The centre provides counselling and a range of supportive initiatives tailored to its diverse community. What sets this centre apart from other HIV diagnostic and treatment facilities is its unique operational model, primarily driven by volunteers. Many of these volunteers are part of the LGBTIQ+ communities they serve.  Mona Liza S. Diones, the Chapter Program Manager of FPOP Iloilo, noted that a significant number of potential clients still hesitate due to fears associated with visiting a treatment facility. “At RAJAH, we're working to change this perception by providing essential services that promote comfort and eliminate prejudice.”  The centre is a crucial service point that complements existing facilities run by local government units. In partnership with the Department of Health, it provides continuous HIV services, including telemedicine, mobile clinics, and the distribution of essential items such as PrEP (Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis) and condoms. PrEP is an oral pill that reduces the risk of contracting HIV from sex by about 99% when taken correctly. Onsite HIV testing is available for individuals aged 15 and above, following the guidelines of the HIV and AIDS Policy Act in the Philippines, which allows those between 15 to 18 to access testing without parental or guardian consent.  As of January 2023, the Philippines recorded 110,736 cases of HIV. The number of people with HIV is projected to rise by 200%, from 158,400 in 2022 to 364,000 by 2030. 

SPRINT
26 April 2022

SPRINT: Sexual and reproductive health in crisis and post-crisis situations

  The SPRINT Initiative provides one of the most important aspects of humanitarian assistance that is often forgotten when disaster and conflicts strike: access to essential life-saving sexual and reproductive health services. We build capacity of humanitarian workers to deliver essential life-saving sexual and reproductive health services in crisis and post-crisis situations through the delivery of the Minimum Initial Service Package (MISP) for reproductive health in emergencies.   Through funding from the Australian Government's Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT), our SPRINT Initiative has brought sexual and reproductive health to the humanitarian agenda, increased capacity and responded to a number of humanitarian emergencies. Australia has funded the SPRINT initiative since 2007. Since then, the SPRINT initiative has responded to 105 humanitarian crises and worked with partners in 99 countries. SPRINT has reached over 1,138,175 people, delivering 2,133,141 crucial SRH services, and continues to respond to ongoing emergencies. In each priority country, we work with an IPPF Member Association to coordinate and implement life-saving sexual and reproductive activities. Through these partnerships, SPRINT helps strengthen the enabling environment, improve national capacity and provide lifesaving services during times of crisis. You can read more about IPPF Humanitarian’s Programme here. Australia's location in the Indo-Pacific provides DFAT with a unique perspective on humanitarian action. Australia is committed to helping partner governments manage crisis response themselves. This is done through building the capacity of the national government and civil society to be able to respond to disaster. DFAT also works with experienced international partners to prepare for and respond to disasters, including other donors, United Nations agencies, the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement and non-government organisations.          

Humanitarian camp, Philippines
31 October 2021

COP26: “For women and girls especially, we need sweeping, systemic change”

Guest perspective by Shiphrah Belonguel, Feminist Activist & Writer/researcher, Philippines Growing up in typhoon-prone, archipelagic Philippines, I have no shortage of mental images to associate with climate change and its crushing impacts on people’s lives and livelihood. I’ve seen entire cities flooded, call centers set up to receive donation pledges and rescue alerts, and people stranded on the roofs of their homes waiting for rescue or crowded at evacuation centers waiting in anxiety. More recently, I have gotten to know more gendered impacts of typhoons and other climate disasters. I’ve come to understand that women and gender minorities are often the ones who have to adjust to keep their families together during disaster. They also become vulnerable to sexual harassment and violence in evacuation centers and humanitarian set-ups in the aftermath. Impact on rural communities Living in urban centers most of my life, I would hear people lament over drainage systems as if climate-related disasters were merely a problem of infrastructure. I hadn’t realized then how much of this discussion would leave some of the most vulnerable populations out of the conversation, particularly those who are living in rural areas. For rural women, specifically, climate change is also a health problem. As the ones who have to spend the most time out in the fields, they are vulnerable to heat strokes, skin problems, and eye irritation. For those engaged in other livelihood activities like weaving, experiencing weather that swung between rain and hot weather can be disruptive as weaving is usually done outdoors and as a community. Rural women make up some of the communities whose livelihood and well-being are tied to their ecosystems, such as peasant, fisherfolk, and Indigenous peoples’ communities. When climate change and environmental degradation result in loss of livelihood, women are often forced to migrate and work in informal, exploitative, and unregulated labor sectors, significantly eliminating their access to public and quality health care systems. In many communities, women have also stood to be environmental defenders against land grabbers and extractive industries that come in to commodify their ecosystems and contribute to the worsening of the climate crisis. Currently, the Philippines is known to be one of the deadliest countries for land and environmental defenders in the world and the deadliest in Asia. Intense weather brings additional barriers to healthcare Clearly, the impacts of the climate crisis are gendered. The sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) of women and gender minorities are also at risk. Those living in contexts with weak and uneven public healthcare systems may be unprepared for additional barriers to accessing sexual and reproductive health information and services that will be brought about by more intense weather conditions and disasters. In the Philippines where home birthing is illegal, rural women are giving birth on the way to hospitals because these are often far from their communities. For the longest time, disasters in the Philippines have been followed by a Greek chorus of politicians singing praises of the Filipino’s capacity for resilience. Thankfully, the ‘resilience’ narrative has died down in recent years. Now, more and more people are realizing the real threat of climate change and seeking accountability from the government as well as global institutions to tackle the climate crisis head-on. Optimism at a critical time for the world This week, activists from all over the world are doing just that by gathering or tuning into the UN Climate Change Conference of Parties happening in Glasgow, Scotland. While there have been many criticisms of COP26, ranging from issues related to lack of inclusivity and transparency to willful inaction on the part of Global North governments, I remain optimistic because of the engagement of activists, and particularly feminists who continue to highlight the gendered impacts of the climate crisis with a particular focus on people’s SRHR. One government leader that has earned the respect of many is Mia Mottley, the Prime Minister of Barbados, who in her speech during the opening of COP 26 urged her fellow government leaders not to compromise on targets and to ensure financing for climate change. According to her, anything else is a “death sentence”, especially on island nations like Barbados. She also posed an important question: “What have we learned from COVID?”. Indeed, our COVID-19 experience should serve as a warning as both it and climate change are sustained crises that necessitate global solutions. In terms of SRHR, we know that sexual and reproductive health services have been disrupted, if not blatantly deprioritized. This is evident in cases documented in the past year of maternal healthcare facilities converted into dedicated COVID-19 facilities and sexual and reproductive health (SRH) services, including safe abortion and post-abortion care services, in many areas suspended. Missing voices must be heard How can we make sure that in times of climate disaster, this will not be the case? SRHR and climate justice activists should work together to propose solutions that will address the needs of the most vulnerable among us. SRHR activists have to resist racist and anti-poor population control narratives and climate justice activists should continue to emphasize gender and human rights in the climate agenda. We need to listen to the missing voices at COP26, the ones that are out in their communities, defending their land and environment, who are at once impacted by the climate crisis and gender inequality. We need to call for sweeping, systemic changes so women, girls, and gender minorities are able to make decisions for their bodies, health, and lives, free from discrimination, violence, and the threat of disaster. We need to center discussions around justice and accountability as women in the global south contribute the least to the crisis but make up some of the most affected populations. Women have been carrying the burden of care and compromising their health and lives for too long. Governments and institutions should follow their example and take leadership now.

Photo of ACT!2030 young activists
07 February 2017

ACT!2030

IPPF collaborates with UNAIDS and The PACT to implement ACT!2030 (formerly ACT!2015), a youth-led social action initiative which engages young people in 12 countries with advocacy and accountability around the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and other SRHR agreements/frameworks. ACT!2030 was initiated in 2013 as a way to increase youth participation in the negotiations leading up to the adoption of the post-2015 development agenda, and for two years focused on establishing alliances of youth-led and youth-serving organisations in 12 countries across the world. The project is currently in Phase 4, which runs until the end of 2017, and aims to establish youth-led, data-driven accountability mechanisms to ensure youth engagement with the implementation of the SDGs and build an evidence base for advocacy. Ultimately, Phase 4 of ACT!2030 seeks to identify, assess and address key policy barriers to young people’s sexual and reproductive data by using existing data, supplemented by youth-collected data, to advocate and lobby for policy change. This phase involves four main activities: indicator advocacy (persuading decision makers to adopt youth-friendly SRHR and HIV indicators, including on things like comprehensive sexuality education (CSE) and access to youth-friendly services, into national/global reporting mechanisms); evidence gathering (creating national databases on quality of and access to youth-friendly services and CSE); communications (transforming this data and evidence into communications pieces that can be used to advocacy and lobby at national and international level); and global exchange (facilitating global visibility to share advocacy and engagement learnings and increase youth-led accountability in global and regional processes). ACT!2030 is implemented by national alliances of youth organisations in 12 countries: Algeria, Bulgaria, India, Jamaica, Kenya, Mexico, Nigeria, Philippines, South Africa, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe.  

Infrared image of the Typhoon taken by NOOA http://www.noaa.gov/

Urgent appeal: Typhoon Haima strikes the Philippines

Another dangerous tropical cyclone has emerged in the Pacific Ocean. The Typhoon Haima hit the northern part of the Philippines and considering the strength of the storm this cyclone will have had a high humanitarian impact.   Please make a donation now. As of reporting time, a total of 18,157 families (90,589 individuals) were evacuated. Initial reports from the Cordillera Region show that 113 houses were damaged. With the strength and extent of the destruction, it is most likely that health and birthing facilities and schools were severely affected. In the rush to provide shelter and food in a crisis, the health and protection needs of pregnant women and young families are often overlooked. When the Typhoon struck approximately one in five women will have been pregnant.  Without access to the right health care, we expect 20 per cent of them will incur complications during the delivery. Your donation will help us save lives.  Having established partnerships in 170 countries, IPPF is one of the first responders when a crisis occurs. Helping the hardest-to-reach areas, particularly women and girls, we are often the only health providers there. The International Planned Parenthood Federation, working through the Family Planning Organization of the Philippines (FPOP), is responding to this crisis. We have worked together since 1969 and in recent years we have saved countless lives following Typhoon Haikui, Bopha, Trami and Haiyan. FPOP is working closely with the local government and international relief agencies to ensure that no women or her family is left behind and put at risk during this crisis. Nandy Senoc, FPOP’s Executive Director said “While we don’t yet know the full extent to the devastation, we are mobilizing our health workers and volunteers, to provide lifesaving services. As a volunteer organization, we are there before, during and after the crisis strikes. We are ready to respond now. For many women and girls in these affected areas, access to our essential health and protection services could mean the difference between life and death. I would like to thank you for supporting IPPF’s work and for standing by women and girls during difficult times like this. Your generosity today will help us support more women and girls as this crisis unfolds." With your support we reach over 2.2 million clients in crisis settings annually in all corners of the world.

FPOP and IPPF-SPRINT staff working with displaced people in the Philippines

IPPF-SPRINT provides humanitarian assistance in conflict affected areas of North Cotabato, Philippines

Aug 2, 2016: New Delhi: Manila: The International Planned Parenthood Federation through its humanitarian wing, the SPRINT Initiative, is providing humanitarian assistance in the conflict-affected areas of Cotabato in the Philippines. The armed conflict between the Government of the Philippines (GPH) and the secessionist Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) has lasted for more than five decades and has displaced around a million people in central Mindanao, Philippines. According to reports dated April 2016, the armed conflict has escalated, creating concerns over a protracted crisis and the vulnerability of women and girls. The conflict has internally displaced farmers who are living in the hinterland communities of the province of North Cotabato, namely in the municipalities of Makilala, Magpet, Kabacan and Tulunan. The SPRINT Initiative project will reach out to 25 affected villages or barangays located in geographically isolated and depressed areas, thereby making access to healthcare an extremely rare thing. As per the assessments done by IPPF’s East and South East Asia and Oceania Region office’s (ESEAOR) Member Association, the Family Planning Association of Philippines (FPOP), access to Sexual and Reproductive Health (SRH) services in these villages is very limited. “IPPF-SPRINT and FPOP will coordinate the implementation of this project with (the) UNFPA centre in Mindanao throughout the 4-month period from August to November, 2016. The Minimum Initial Service Package (MISP) will be implemented on-the-ground. IPPF-SPRINT will reach out to around 15,000 beneficiaries in the area and will provide crucial and life-saving SRH services. An amount of AUD 50,000 has been mobilised for the response,” said Aditi Ghosh, Director, IPPF-SPRINT. This humanitarian response is being funded by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) under the Australian government. “FPOP is a part of the UN cluster system, particularly Health and Protection clusters in the national level. FPOP will also coordinate the humanitarian response with UN regional centres covering affected areas. The North Cotabato Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (DRRMC) will also play a key role in implementing the MISP,” said Nora Murat, Regional Director, IPPF-ESEAOR. IPPF-SPRINT will work on prevention and management of the consequences of sexual violence, reduction of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) including HIV transmission, prevention of excess maternal and neonatal mortality and morbidity, plan for the provision of comprehensive SRH services and integrate into primary health care as the situation permits.   Apart from the above, orientation on MISP and Risk Management for implementing partners and project staff/volunteers will be undertaken.     Contact info: Murali Kunduru: [email protected] Jayamalar Samuel: [email protected] Media Contact: Rhea Chawla: [email protected] www.ippf-sprint.org   The SPRINT Initiative is a Sexual and Reproductive Health (SRH) Programme in Crisis and Post-Crisis Situations. SPRINT ensures access to essential lifesaving SRH services for women, men and children in times of crises, a time when services are most needed yet are not prioritised or recognised by key humanitarian responders.   The SPRINT Initiative saves lives and delivers on behalf of the Australian Government aid program (DFAT: Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade), which aims to provide more effective preparedness for and response to disasters and crises.   The Initiative is managed by the International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF) and represents its commitment to increasing access to SRH services for crisis-affected populations. The International Planned Parenthood Federation is a global service provider and a leading advocate of sexual and reproductive health and rights for all. It is a worldwide movement of national organisations working with and for communities and individuals.  

Family Planning Organization of the Philippines

The Family Planning Organization of the Philippines (FPOP) is the largest and most prominent non-governmental family planning organization in the Philippines. It seeks to secure universal access to quality family planning information education and services, with a view to enabling people to make active personal decisions about their sexual and reproductive health (SRH).

FPOP aims to mobilize public support for the individual’s right to practise family planning and as a result, a major target is young people. Additionally, there is a real need in the Philippines for men to take a more active role in family planning and parenting, and FPOP is at the forefront of developing and implementing strategies to achieve this objective.

It operates more than 1,100 services points, including 29 permanent and 27 mobile clinics and has a network of over 1,000 community-based distributors/community-based services (CBDs/CBSs). Clinics provide voluntary surgical contraception, reversible contraception, medical and laboratory services, and fertility awareness advice. The delivery models which FPOP has developed have been adopted and replicated by public health authorities, and FPOP has significant advisory input to the national SRH policy agenda.

 

rajah-outreach-team
13 September 2023

Championing Change: A Community-Led Approach to HIV Services in the Philippines

Located in the bustling heart of Iloilo City is the RAJAH Community Centre, a dynamic hub with a meaningful mission. RAJAH stands for "Raising Awareness for Junior Advocates on HIV." Established in 2019 by the Family Planning Organization of the Philippines (FPOP), this centre provides a safe space for HIV testing and support services, free from stigma.  The centre provides counselling and a range of supportive initiatives tailored to its diverse community. What sets this centre apart from other HIV diagnostic and treatment facilities is its unique operational model, primarily driven by volunteers. Many of these volunteers are part of the LGBTIQ+ communities they serve.  Mona Liza S. Diones, the Chapter Program Manager of FPOP Iloilo, noted that a significant number of potential clients still hesitate due to fears associated with visiting a treatment facility. “At RAJAH, we're working to change this perception by providing essential services that promote comfort and eliminate prejudice.”  The centre is a crucial service point that complements existing facilities run by local government units. In partnership with the Department of Health, it provides continuous HIV services, including telemedicine, mobile clinics, and the distribution of essential items such as PrEP (Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis) and condoms. PrEP is an oral pill that reduces the risk of contracting HIV from sex by about 99% when taken correctly. Onsite HIV testing is available for individuals aged 15 and above, following the guidelines of the HIV and AIDS Policy Act in the Philippines, which allows those between 15 to 18 to access testing without parental or guardian consent.  As of January 2023, the Philippines recorded 110,736 cases of HIV. The number of people with HIV is projected to rise by 200%, from 158,400 in 2022 to 364,000 by 2030. 

SPRINT
26 April 2022

SPRINT: Sexual and reproductive health in crisis and post-crisis situations

  The SPRINT Initiative provides one of the most important aspects of humanitarian assistance that is often forgotten when disaster and conflicts strike: access to essential life-saving sexual and reproductive health services. We build capacity of humanitarian workers to deliver essential life-saving sexual and reproductive health services in crisis and post-crisis situations through the delivery of the Minimum Initial Service Package (MISP) for reproductive health in emergencies.   Through funding from the Australian Government's Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT), our SPRINT Initiative has brought sexual and reproductive health to the humanitarian agenda, increased capacity and responded to a number of humanitarian emergencies. Australia has funded the SPRINT initiative since 2007. Since then, the SPRINT initiative has responded to 105 humanitarian crises and worked with partners in 99 countries. SPRINT has reached over 1,138,175 people, delivering 2,133,141 crucial SRH services, and continues to respond to ongoing emergencies. In each priority country, we work with an IPPF Member Association to coordinate and implement life-saving sexual and reproductive activities. Through these partnerships, SPRINT helps strengthen the enabling environment, improve national capacity and provide lifesaving services during times of crisis. You can read more about IPPF Humanitarian’s Programme here. Australia's location in the Indo-Pacific provides DFAT with a unique perspective on humanitarian action. Australia is committed to helping partner governments manage crisis response themselves. This is done through building the capacity of the national government and civil society to be able to respond to disaster. DFAT also works with experienced international partners to prepare for and respond to disasters, including other donors, United Nations agencies, the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement and non-government organisations.          

Humanitarian camp, Philippines
31 October 2021

COP26: “For women and girls especially, we need sweeping, systemic change”

Guest perspective by Shiphrah Belonguel, Feminist Activist & Writer/researcher, Philippines Growing up in typhoon-prone, archipelagic Philippines, I have no shortage of mental images to associate with climate change and its crushing impacts on people’s lives and livelihood. I’ve seen entire cities flooded, call centers set up to receive donation pledges and rescue alerts, and people stranded on the roofs of their homes waiting for rescue or crowded at evacuation centers waiting in anxiety. More recently, I have gotten to know more gendered impacts of typhoons and other climate disasters. I’ve come to understand that women and gender minorities are often the ones who have to adjust to keep their families together during disaster. They also become vulnerable to sexual harassment and violence in evacuation centers and humanitarian set-ups in the aftermath. Impact on rural communities Living in urban centers most of my life, I would hear people lament over drainage systems as if climate-related disasters were merely a problem of infrastructure. I hadn’t realized then how much of this discussion would leave some of the most vulnerable populations out of the conversation, particularly those who are living in rural areas. For rural women, specifically, climate change is also a health problem. As the ones who have to spend the most time out in the fields, they are vulnerable to heat strokes, skin problems, and eye irritation. For those engaged in other livelihood activities like weaving, experiencing weather that swung between rain and hot weather can be disruptive as weaving is usually done outdoors and as a community. Rural women make up some of the communities whose livelihood and well-being are tied to their ecosystems, such as peasant, fisherfolk, and Indigenous peoples’ communities. When climate change and environmental degradation result in loss of livelihood, women are often forced to migrate and work in informal, exploitative, and unregulated labor sectors, significantly eliminating their access to public and quality health care systems. In many communities, women have also stood to be environmental defenders against land grabbers and extractive industries that come in to commodify their ecosystems and contribute to the worsening of the climate crisis. Currently, the Philippines is known to be one of the deadliest countries for land and environmental defenders in the world and the deadliest in Asia. Intense weather brings additional barriers to healthcare Clearly, the impacts of the climate crisis are gendered. The sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) of women and gender minorities are also at risk. Those living in contexts with weak and uneven public healthcare systems may be unprepared for additional barriers to accessing sexual and reproductive health information and services that will be brought about by more intense weather conditions and disasters. In the Philippines where home birthing is illegal, rural women are giving birth on the way to hospitals because these are often far from their communities. For the longest time, disasters in the Philippines have been followed by a Greek chorus of politicians singing praises of the Filipino’s capacity for resilience. Thankfully, the ‘resilience’ narrative has died down in recent years. Now, more and more people are realizing the real threat of climate change and seeking accountability from the government as well as global institutions to tackle the climate crisis head-on. Optimism at a critical time for the world This week, activists from all over the world are doing just that by gathering or tuning into the UN Climate Change Conference of Parties happening in Glasgow, Scotland. While there have been many criticisms of COP26, ranging from issues related to lack of inclusivity and transparency to willful inaction on the part of Global North governments, I remain optimistic because of the engagement of activists, and particularly feminists who continue to highlight the gendered impacts of the climate crisis with a particular focus on people’s SRHR. One government leader that has earned the respect of many is Mia Mottley, the Prime Minister of Barbados, who in her speech during the opening of COP 26 urged her fellow government leaders not to compromise on targets and to ensure financing for climate change. According to her, anything else is a “death sentence”, especially on island nations like Barbados. She also posed an important question: “What have we learned from COVID?”. Indeed, our COVID-19 experience should serve as a warning as both it and climate change are sustained crises that necessitate global solutions. In terms of SRHR, we know that sexual and reproductive health services have been disrupted, if not blatantly deprioritized. This is evident in cases documented in the past year of maternal healthcare facilities converted into dedicated COVID-19 facilities and sexual and reproductive health (SRH) services, including safe abortion and post-abortion care services, in many areas suspended. Missing voices must be heard How can we make sure that in times of climate disaster, this will not be the case? SRHR and climate justice activists should work together to propose solutions that will address the needs of the most vulnerable among us. SRHR activists have to resist racist and anti-poor population control narratives and climate justice activists should continue to emphasize gender and human rights in the climate agenda. We need to listen to the missing voices at COP26, the ones that are out in their communities, defending their land and environment, who are at once impacted by the climate crisis and gender inequality. We need to call for sweeping, systemic changes so women, girls, and gender minorities are able to make decisions for their bodies, health, and lives, free from discrimination, violence, and the threat of disaster. We need to center discussions around justice and accountability as women in the global south contribute the least to the crisis but make up some of the most affected populations. Women have been carrying the burden of care and compromising their health and lives for too long. Governments and institutions should follow their example and take leadership now.

Photo of ACT!2030 young activists
07 February 2017

ACT!2030

IPPF collaborates with UNAIDS and The PACT to implement ACT!2030 (formerly ACT!2015), a youth-led social action initiative which engages young people in 12 countries with advocacy and accountability around the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and other SRHR agreements/frameworks. ACT!2030 was initiated in 2013 as a way to increase youth participation in the negotiations leading up to the adoption of the post-2015 development agenda, and for two years focused on establishing alliances of youth-led and youth-serving organisations in 12 countries across the world. The project is currently in Phase 4, which runs until the end of 2017, and aims to establish youth-led, data-driven accountability mechanisms to ensure youth engagement with the implementation of the SDGs and build an evidence base for advocacy. Ultimately, Phase 4 of ACT!2030 seeks to identify, assess and address key policy barriers to young people’s sexual and reproductive data by using existing data, supplemented by youth-collected data, to advocate and lobby for policy change. This phase involves four main activities: indicator advocacy (persuading decision makers to adopt youth-friendly SRHR and HIV indicators, including on things like comprehensive sexuality education (CSE) and access to youth-friendly services, into national/global reporting mechanisms); evidence gathering (creating national databases on quality of and access to youth-friendly services and CSE); communications (transforming this data and evidence into communications pieces that can be used to advocacy and lobby at national and international level); and global exchange (facilitating global visibility to share advocacy and engagement learnings and increase youth-led accountability in global and regional processes). ACT!2030 is implemented by national alliances of youth organisations in 12 countries: Algeria, Bulgaria, India, Jamaica, Kenya, Mexico, Nigeria, Philippines, South Africa, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe.  

Infrared image of the Typhoon taken by NOOA http://www.noaa.gov/

Urgent appeal: Typhoon Haima strikes the Philippines

Another dangerous tropical cyclone has emerged in the Pacific Ocean. The Typhoon Haima hit the northern part of the Philippines and considering the strength of the storm this cyclone will have had a high humanitarian impact.   Please make a donation now. As of reporting time, a total of 18,157 families (90,589 individuals) were evacuated. Initial reports from the Cordillera Region show that 113 houses were damaged. With the strength and extent of the destruction, it is most likely that health and birthing facilities and schools were severely affected. In the rush to provide shelter and food in a crisis, the health and protection needs of pregnant women and young families are often overlooked. When the Typhoon struck approximately one in five women will have been pregnant.  Without access to the right health care, we expect 20 per cent of them will incur complications during the delivery. Your donation will help us save lives.  Having established partnerships in 170 countries, IPPF is one of the first responders when a crisis occurs. Helping the hardest-to-reach areas, particularly women and girls, we are often the only health providers there. The International Planned Parenthood Federation, working through the Family Planning Organization of the Philippines (FPOP), is responding to this crisis. We have worked together since 1969 and in recent years we have saved countless lives following Typhoon Haikui, Bopha, Trami and Haiyan. FPOP is working closely with the local government and international relief agencies to ensure that no women or her family is left behind and put at risk during this crisis. Nandy Senoc, FPOP’s Executive Director said “While we don’t yet know the full extent to the devastation, we are mobilizing our health workers and volunteers, to provide lifesaving services. As a volunteer organization, we are there before, during and after the crisis strikes. We are ready to respond now. For many women and girls in these affected areas, access to our essential health and protection services could mean the difference between life and death. I would like to thank you for supporting IPPF’s work and for standing by women and girls during difficult times like this. Your generosity today will help us support more women and girls as this crisis unfolds." With your support we reach over 2.2 million clients in crisis settings annually in all corners of the world.

FPOP and IPPF-SPRINT staff working with displaced people in the Philippines

IPPF-SPRINT provides humanitarian assistance in conflict affected areas of North Cotabato, Philippines

Aug 2, 2016: New Delhi: Manila: The International Planned Parenthood Federation through its humanitarian wing, the SPRINT Initiative, is providing humanitarian assistance in the conflict-affected areas of Cotabato in the Philippines. The armed conflict between the Government of the Philippines (GPH) and the secessionist Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) has lasted for more than five decades and has displaced around a million people in central Mindanao, Philippines. According to reports dated April 2016, the armed conflict has escalated, creating concerns over a protracted crisis and the vulnerability of women and girls. The conflict has internally displaced farmers who are living in the hinterland communities of the province of North Cotabato, namely in the municipalities of Makilala, Magpet, Kabacan and Tulunan. The SPRINT Initiative project will reach out to 25 affected villages or barangays located in geographically isolated and depressed areas, thereby making access to healthcare an extremely rare thing. As per the assessments done by IPPF’s East and South East Asia and Oceania Region office’s (ESEAOR) Member Association, the Family Planning Association of Philippines (FPOP), access to Sexual and Reproductive Health (SRH) services in these villages is very limited. “IPPF-SPRINT and FPOP will coordinate the implementation of this project with (the) UNFPA centre in Mindanao throughout the 4-month period from August to November, 2016. The Minimum Initial Service Package (MISP) will be implemented on-the-ground. IPPF-SPRINT will reach out to around 15,000 beneficiaries in the area and will provide crucial and life-saving SRH services. An amount of AUD 50,000 has been mobilised for the response,” said Aditi Ghosh, Director, IPPF-SPRINT. This humanitarian response is being funded by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) under the Australian government. “FPOP is a part of the UN cluster system, particularly Health and Protection clusters in the national level. FPOP will also coordinate the humanitarian response with UN regional centres covering affected areas. The North Cotabato Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (DRRMC) will also play a key role in implementing the MISP,” said Nora Murat, Regional Director, IPPF-ESEAOR. IPPF-SPRINT will work on prevention and management of the consequences of sexual violence, reduction of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) including HIV transmission, prevention of excess maternal and neonatal mortality and morbidity, plan for the provision of comprehensive SRH services and integrate into primary health care as the situation permits.   Apart from the above, orientation on MISP and Risk Management for implementing partners and project staff/volunteers will be undertaken.     Contact info: Murali Kunduru: [email protected] Jayamalar Samuel: [email protected] Media Contact: Rhea Chawla: [email protected] www.ippf-sprint.org   The SPRINT Initiative is a Sexual and Reproductive Health (SRH) Programme in Crisis and Post-Crisis Situations. SPRINT ensures access to essential lifesaving SRH services for women, men and children in times of crises, a time when services are most needed yet are not prioritised or recognised by key humanitarian responders.   The SPRINT Initiative saves lives and delivers on behalf of the Australian Government aid program (DFAT: Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade), which aims to provide more effective preparedness for and response to disasters and crises.   The Initiative is managed by the International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF) and represents its commitment to increasing access to SRH services for crisis-affected populations. The International Planned Parenthood Federation is a global service provider and a leading advocate of sexual and reproductive health and rights for all. It is a worldwide movement of national organisations working with and for communities and individuals.  

Family Planning Organization of the Philippines

The Family Planning Organization of the Philippines (FPOP) is the largest and most prominent non-governmental family planning organization in the Philippines. It seeks to secure universal access to quality family planning information education and services, with a view to enabling people to make active personal decisions about their sexual and reproductive health (SRH).

FPOP aims to mobilize public support for the individual’s right to practise family planning and as a result, a major target is young people. Additionally, there is a real need in the Philippines for men to take a more active role in family planning and parenting, and FPOP is at the forefront of developing and implementing strategies to achieve this objective.

It operates more than 1,100 services points, including 29 permanent and 27 mobile clinics and has a network of over 1,000 community-based distributors/community-based services (CBDs/CBSs). Clinics provide voluntary surgical contraception, reversible contraception, medical and laboratory services, and fertility awareness advice. The delivery models which FPOP has developed have been adopted and replicated by public health authorities, and FPOP has significant advisory input to the national SRH policy agenda.