Member Associations

The Association Congolaise pour le Bien-Etre Familial (ACBEF) opened its doors for the first time in 1987. Then it was a small operation dedicated to attending to the sexual and reproductive health (SRH) needs of the urban poor. 25 years later, ACBEF reaches out to the whole country through a network of over 100 community-based distributors (CBDs) backed by static clinics and permanent staff. In addition, ACBEF relies on over 1,000 volunteers, including fully-trained peer educators and a Youth Action Movement.  ACBEF provides a comprehensive range of services covering integrated family palnning, voluntary counselling and testing (VCT), prevention and management of HIV and AIDS, post-abortion care, antenatal and post-natal care, youth-friendly education and information projects, contraceptive and laboratory services. Stigma and taboos around HIV and AIDS are strong in Congo, and ACBEF is engaged in major re-education and sensitization on this front. ACBEF aims its work at a wide public, with particular emphasis on young people (aged 25 and under), internally displaced people, sex workers and women of child-bearing age. Work occurs in both rural and urban areas. With high visibility in the national media, ABCEF is making major inroads in SRH in a very difficult environment. ABCEF works in close partnership with the government’s ministries of Health, Foreign Affairs, and Gender, and with non-governmental organizations (NGOs) including Jeunesse Action Sida. ABCEF receives financial support from the European Union, UNFPA and the Congolese Government.   Website: http://www.acbef.org/

Set up in 1957, the Mauritius Family Planning & Welfare Association (MFPWA) was one of the earliest organizations in Africa focusing on family planning issues. As the nation struggled to find a way to address pressing population issues, a group of advocates formed MFPWA and started to provide services directly to women. Today, the organization caters to the sexual and reproductive health (SRH) needs of the whole community. It also has particular strands of activity relating to specific groups including sexually abused children, elderly people and marginalized populations on Rodrigues Island.  Through 2 permanent facilities, and a private sector-supported daycare centre, MFPWA’s 15 staff and 550 volunteers deliver services including family planning, the prevention and management of HIV and AIDS through voluntary counselling and testing (VCT), support for people living with HIV/AIDS, infertility management, antenatal and post-natal care, post-abortion care, the diagnosis and treatment of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and screening for cancers of the reproductive systems. The Member Association also operates peer-educator-led outreach programmes targeting hotels, export processing zones and popular tourist hot spots.  MFPWA has played a critical role in promoting the integration of family life education into the national school curriculum and its powerful, informed advocacy has been influential in shaping government legislation on SRH, particularly in relation to HIV and AIDS. MFPWA partners with and advises government departments which address health, quality of life, women’s rights, child development, family welfare, social security and youth and sports. MFPWA works with a large number of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) including the Mauritius Council of Social Service, the Mauritius Alliance of Women, PILS (People living with AIDS), SOS Pauvrete, the National Women’s Council, the Senior Citizen Council and Link. Donors include the Indian Ocean Commission and UNFPA. Website: http://mauritiusfamilyplanning.com