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.

The Vietnam Family Planning Association (VINAFPA) complements and supplements the Vietnamese government’s family planning programme, by providing direct services and information, education and communication (IEC) programmes. Over recent years, the country has experienced falling levels of fertility and reduced maternal and child mortality. VINAFPA has played a vital role in delivering these improvements. The organization runs over 1,350 distinct service points, including: 19 permanent clinics, 21 mobile facilities and a ground force of over 1,200 community-based distributors (CBDs). These CBDs are VINAFPA-trained individuals, living in a particular locality, who distribute supplies and offer advice and information. The intensity and impact of their work is borne out by the numbers. Currently, the unmet need for contraception rate runs at 5%, but VINAFPA is working hard to improve this.