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Abortion healthcare worker
news item

| 23 September 2019

IPPF joint statement at HRC42

Co-sponsored by Catholics for Choice, Center for Health and Gender Equality (CHANGE), Center for Reproductive Rights, Centro de Promoción y Defensa de los Derechos Sexuales y Reproductivos (PROMSEX), CHOICE for Youth and Sexuality, Danish Family Planning Association (Sex og Samfund), DSW (Deutsche Stiftung Weltbevoelkerung), Fundación Mexicana para la Planeación Familiar, A.C. (Mexfam), ILGA World, International Women's Health Coalition (IWHC), International Campaign for Women's Right to Safe Abortion, International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF), IPPF/Africa Regional Office, Irish Family Planning Association, Le Planning Familiar, Mujer y Salud Uruguay (MYSU), Planned Parenthood Federation of American (PPFA), Plan International, Profamilia Colombia, Rutgers, Sex og Politikk, Sexual Rights Initiative (SRI), Swedish Association for Sexuality Education (RFSU), and Women's Link Worldwide. This year we celebrate the 25th anniversary of International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) and its Program of Action (PoA), a landmark moment for human rights, where 179 countries recognized that reproductive rights are part of existing human rights, and marked a shift to a human rights-based approach to population and development policies, with a focus on ensuring health, equality, empowerment and rights for all while upholding the principles of non- violence, and non-discrimination. Critically, it recognized the centrality of the indivisible, interdependent, and interrelated nature of human rights to issues of population and sustainable development, in line with the UDHR and the Vienna Declaration. Since then, Member States have repeatedly reaffirmed their commitments to the ICPD PoA, including in the 2030 Agenda, and Treaty Monitoring Bodies (TMBs) have significantly built on the rights delineated in the PoA and furthered human rights standards pertaining to sexual and reproductive rights. However, while some progress in implementation has taken place, too much remains to be done. Therefore, we welcome the Nairobi Summit on ICPD+25 which will once again bring together Member States and different stakeholders to mobilize the political will and financial commitments urgently needed to implement the ICPD Agenda, putting the voices and rights of women and girls at the center of conversations, and meet the 3 zeros: zero gender-based violence, zero unmet need for family planning, and zero preventable maternal deaths. As we approach September 28th, the International Safe Abortion Day, whose theme for 2019 is “abortion is healthcare,” we cannot ignore that legal and policy barriers to safe abortion make unsafe abortion one of the global leading causes of maternal mortality*,  which in most cases are preventable if all people, especially women and adolescents, have access to safe, legal abortion.  Let’s not deny the evidence: safe abortion saves lives. If Member States are serious about ending maternal mortality, the legal, policy, social, cultural and economic barriers to access safe abortion must be addressed. We urge all Member States to make meaningful, measurable national commitments in Nairobi to increase access to safe and legal abortion, in accordance with their legal obligations under international human rights law, in an effort to reach zero preventable maternal deaths, and to commit to report on progress in its implementation. (*Lisa B Haddad, MD, MA, and Nawal M Nour, MD, MPH, Unsafe Abortion: Unnecessary Maternal Mortality, Rev Obstet Gynecol. 2009 Spring; 2(2): 122–126, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2709326/; Su Mon Latt, Allison Milner & Anne Kavanagh, Abortion laws reform may reduce maternal mortality: an ecological study in 162 countries, BMC Women's Health 2019 19(1) https://bmcwomenshealth.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12905-018-0705-y. See also Medecins Sans Frontiers, 2019 Unsafe abortion: a forgotten emergency, https://www.msf.org/unsafe-abortion-forgotten-emergency-womens-health; Susheela Singh, Lisa Remez, Gilda Sedgh, Lorraine Kwok and Tsuyoshi Onda, Guttmacher Institute, Abortion Worldwide 2017: Uneven Progress and Unequal Access (2018) https://www.guttmacher.org/report/abortion-worldwide-2017)

Abortion healthcare worker
news_item

| 23 September 2019

IPPF joint statement at HRC42

Co-sponsored by Catholics for Choice, Center for Health and Gender Equality (CHANGE), Center for Reproductive Rights, Centro de Promoción y Defensa de los Derechos Sexuales y Reproductivos (PROMSEX), CHOICE for Youth and Sexuality, Danish Family Planning Association (Sex og Samfund), DSW (Deutsche Stiftung Weltbevoelkerung), Fundación Mexicana para la Planeación Familiar, A.C. (Mexfam), ILGA World, International Women's Health Coalition (IWHC), International Campaign for Women's Right to Safe Abortion, International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF), IPPF/Africa Regional Office, Irish Family Planning Association, Le Planning Familiar, Mujer y Salud Uruguay (MYSU), Planned Parenthood Federation of American (PPFA), Plan International, Profamilia Colombia, Rutgers, Sex og Politikk, Sexual Rights Initiative (SRI), Swedish Association for Sexuality Education (RFSU), and Women's Link Worldwide. This year we celebrate the 25th anniversary of International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) and its Program of Action (PoA), a landmark moment for human rights, where 179 countries recognized that reproductive rights are part of existing human rights, and marked a shift to a human rights-based approach to population and development policies, with a focus on ensuring health, equality, empowerment and rights for all while upholding the principles of non- violence, and non-discrimination. Critically, it recognized the centrality of the indivisible, interdependent, and interrelated nature of human rights to issues of population and sustainable development, in line with the UDHR and the Vienna Declaration. Since then, Member States have repeatedly reaffirmed their commitments to the ICPD PoA, including in the 2030 Agenda, and Treaty Monitoring Bodies (TMBs) have significantly built on the rights delineated in the PoA and furthered human rights standards pertaining to sexual and reproductive rights. However, while some progress in implementation has taken place, too much remains to be done. Therefore, we welcome the Nairobi Summit on ICPD+25 which will once again bring together Member States and different stakeholders to mobilize the political will and financial commitments urgently needed to implement the ICPD Agenda, putting the voices and rights of women and girls at the center of conversations, and meet the 3 zeros: zero gender-based violence, zero unmet need for family planning, and zero preventable maternal deaths. As we approach September 28th, the International Safe Abortion Day, whose theme for 2019 is “abortion is healthcare,” we cannot ignore that legal and policy barriers to safe abortion make unsafe abortion one of the global leading causes of maternal mortality*,  which in most cases are preventable if all people, especially women and adolescents, have access to safe, legal abortion.  Let’s not deny the evidence: safe abortion saves lives. If Member States are serious about ending maternal mortality, the legal, policy, social, cultural and economic barriers to access safe abortion must be addressed. We urge all Member States to make meaningful, measurable national commitments in Nairobi to increase access to safe and legal abortion, in accordance with their legal obligations under international human rights law, in an effort to reach zero preventable maternal deaths, and to commit to report on progress in its implementation. (*Lisa B Haddad, MD, MA, and Nawal M Nour, MD, MPH, Unsafe Abortion: Unnecessary Maternal Mortality, Rev Obstet Gynecol. 2009 Spring; 2(2): 122–126, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2709326/; Su Mon Latt, Allison Milner & Anne Kavanagh, Abortion laws reform may reduce maternal mortality: an ecological study in 162 countries, BMC Women's Health 2019 19(1) https://bmcwomenshealth.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12905-018-0705-y. See also Medecins Sans Frontiers, 2019 Unsafe abortion: a forgotten emergency, https://www.msf.org/unsafe-abortion-forgotten-emergency-womens-health; Susheela Singh, Lisa Remez, Gilda Sedgh, Lorraine Kwok and Tsuyoshi Onda, Guttmacher Institute, Abortion Worldwide 2017: Uneven Progress and Unequal Access (2018) https://www.guttmacher.org/report/abortion-worldwide-2017)

Global HIV Prevention Coalition
news item

| 10 December 2018

Statement: The Global HIV Prevention Coalition

Joint statement by Dr Alvaro Bermejo and Professor Sheila Tlou, the co-chairs of the Global HIV Prevention Coalition welcoming the Global Partnership to Eliminate all forms of HIV-related Stigma and Discrimination:  "Addressing stigma and discrimination remains at the core of ensuring effective scaled HIV prevention programmes and HIV programmes overall. Efforts and investments to eliminate stigma and discrimination, which are violations of human rights, remain insufficient. The Global HIV Prevention Coalition and the actions on comprehensive prevention programmes, addressing biomedical, behavioural and structural issues, called for in the 2020 HIV Prevention Roadmap include stigma and discrimination.     People face discrimination every day based on who they are, who they love or what they do or how old they are. Human rights challenges, including stigma and discrimination, denial of sexual and reproductive health and rights, punitive approaches and misuse of criminal law remain key barriers to an effective HIV prevention response.    The Global HIV Prevention Coalition looks forward to working closely with GNP+, UN Women, UNDP and the UNAIDS Secretariat to accelerate global action towards the elimination of HIV-related stigma and discrimination to help close prevention, testing, and treatment gaps."

Global HIV Prevention Coalition
news_item

| 10 December 2018

Statement: The Global HIV Prevention Coalition

Joint statement by Dr Alvaro Bermejo and Professor Sheila Tlou, the co-chairs of the Global HIV Prevention Coalition welcoming the Global Partnership to Eliminate all forms of HIV-related Stigma and Discrimination:  "Addressing stigma and discrimination remains at the core of ensuring effective scaled HIV prevention programmes and HIV programmes overall. Efforts and investments to eliminate stigma and discrimination, which are violations of human rights, remain insufficient. The Global HIV Prevention Coalition and the actions on comprehensive prevention programmes, addressing biomedical, behavioural and structural issues, called for in the 2020 HIV Prevention Roadmap include stigma and discrimination.     People face discrimination every day based on who they are, who they love or what they do or how old they are. Human rights challenges, including stigma and discrimination, denial of sexual and reproductive health and rights, punitive approaches and misuse of criminal law remain key barriers to an effective HIV prevention response.    The Global HIV Prevention Coalition looks forward to working closely with GNP+, UN Women, UNDP and the UNAIDS Secretariat to accelerate global action towards the elimination of HIV-related stigma and discrimination to help close prevention, testing, and treatment gaps."

Medical abortion commodities database
news item

| 27 September 2018

New global medical abortion database launched to increase safe abortion access for women

The International Planned Parenthood Federation today launched www.MedAb.org – the Medical Abortion Commodities Database, which houses information on the availability of quality misoprostol, mifepristone and co-packaged mifepristone and misoprostol (combipacks) at national level.  The www.MedAb.org database is a resource for public health professionals seeking information to inform policy and use in reproductive health care programmes. These include public health and service delivery managers, staff involved in safe abortion programmes, donors funding projects on safe abortion and maternal health, policy analysts, clinical service providers and supply chain logisticians. IPPF worked closely with Gynuity Health Projects and Concept Foundation to develop this database to help increase the availability of and access to safe abortion care.  www.MedAb.org includes information on brands of mifepristone, misoprostol or combipacks that are registered and available in a country and – for brands of misoprostol and combipacks – have sufficient and objective evidence to indicate they are of good quality.  Dr Alvaro Bermejo, IPPF Director-General, said: “A woman controlling her body is a woman controlling her life and building her future. Access to safe and legal abortion saves lives. This means working to enable those on the frontline to give women more options when they need it most. We are delighted to launch this database. It will enable those working on safe abortion to identify, select and procure quality commodities that can be used to provide women with safe medical abortion services.”  The database provides collated information on the products that are available in each country. It does not provide counselling, clinical assessments, dosing regimens or other information that is essential for a quality medical abortion service as defined and implemented by IPPF.   As a leading advocate and service provider for safe and legal abortion, IPPF has compiled a list of resources and guidance to complement the database related to global abortion laws and policies, WHO guidelines on safe abortion and access to other organizations working to make abortions safe. Links to these resources are available in the External Resources section of www.MedAb.org.   The database initially includes information on medical abortion commodities in 89 countries; it will be updated regularly with information on commodities in additional countries, and to reflect changes as necessary. IPPF welcomes feedback, information and updates on the availability of quality medical abortion commodities.  For more information, or to provide feedback and updates, please contact [email protected].

Medical abortion commodities database
news_item

| 28 September 2018

New global medical abortion database launched to increase safe abortion access for women

The International Planned Parenthood Federation today launched www.MedAb.org – the Medical Abortion Commodities Database, which houses information on the availability of quality misoprostol, mifepristone and co-packaged mifepristone and misoprostol (combipacks) at national level.  The www.MedAb.org database is a resource for public health professionals seeking information to inform policy and use in reproductive health care programmes. These include public health and service delivery managers, staff involved in safe abortion programmes, donors funding projects on safe abortion and maternal health, policy analysts, clinical service providers and supply chain logisticians. IPPF worked closely with Gynuity Health Projects and Concept Foundation to develop this database to help increase the availability of and access to safe abortion care.  www.MedAb.org includes information on brands of mifepristone, misoprostol or combipacks that are registered and available in a country and – for brands of misoprostol and combipacks – have sufficient and objective evidence to indicate they are of good quality.  Dr Alvaro Bermejo, IPPF Director-General, said: “A woman controlling her body is a woman controlling her life and building her future. Access to safe and legal abortion saves lives. This means working to enable those on the frontline to give women more options when they need it most. We are delighted to launch this database. It will enable those working on safe abortion to identify, select and procure quality commodities that can be used to provide women with safe medical abortion services.”  The database provides collated information on the products that are available in each country. It does not provide counselling, clinical assessments, dosing regimens or other information that is essential for a quality medical abortion service as defined and implemented by IPPF.   As a leading advocate and service provider for safe and legal abortion, IPPF has compiled a list of resources and guidance to complement the database related to global abortion laws and policies, WHO guidelines on safe abortion and access to other organizations working to make abortions safe. Links to these resources are available in the External Resources section of www.MedAb.org.   The database initially includes information on medical abortion commodities in 89 countries; it will be updated regularly with information on commodities in additional countries, and to reflect changes as necessary. IPPF welcomes feedback, information and updates on the availability of quality medical abortion commodities.  For more information, or to provide feedback and updates, please contact [email protected].

Guttmacher 2017 report on abortion
news item

| 21 March 2018

IPPF welcomes the release of Guttmacher's report on abortion

IPPF welcomes the release by the Guttmacher Institute of a new report highlighting ongoing disparities in abortion rates and access to safe abortion care between developing and developed regions.  These data provide valuable information for organizations like IPPF working to improve access to sexual and reproductive health and rights. A key finding from the study is that, although the global annual abortion rate has fallen between 1990-1994 and 2010-2014, a larger decline occurred in developed countries (where abortion is generally legal and available), but rates have not changed significantly in the developing world, where abortion laws are often restrictive. This demonstrates that restricting access to safe legal abortion does not reduce the number of abortions but rather pushes abortions underground, leading to risks to women’s health and lives. Legality alone does not guarantee access. Governments need to ensure policies are implemented and guarantee a favourable environment where all women - regardless of their ability to pay, age or marital status - can access safe abortion care free of stigma and discrimination.  While abortion is a very safe procedure when done in accordance with recommended guidelines, health complications from unsafe abortion - while less serious due to increased access to post-abortion care and increased availability of misoprostol - continue to affect millions of women each year. Developing regions also continue to be disproportionally affected by unsafe abortion, with nearly all deaths due to unsafe abortion occurring in developing countries, the highest number occurring in Africa. As of 2014, at least 22,800 women still die each year worldwide from complications of unsafe abortion; and 6.9 million women in developing regions are treated for complications from unsafe abortions. Very importantly, the study outlines how high levels of unmet need for contraception contribute to higher rates of unintended pregnancy in developing regions, the main reason that women undergo abortion. This shows the relevance of organizations like IPPF working to prevent unintended pregnancy through modern contraceptive services, promote comprehensive sexuality education and eliminate sexual violence and coercion. At the same time, IPPF recognizes that there will always be a need for safe abortion services and will we continue to increase access to safe abortion care through our service delivery outlets while advocating for the decriminalization and de-stigmatization of abortion.  Manuelle Hurwitz, Director of Institutional Delivery, IPPF  

Guttmacher 2017 report on abortion
news_item

| 21 March 2018

IPPF welcomes the release of Guttmacher's report on abortion

IPPF welcomes the release by the Guttmacher Institute of a new report highlighting ongoing disparities in abortion rates and access to safe abortion care between developing and developed regions.  These data provide valuable information for organizations like IPPF working to improve access to sexual and reproductive health and rights. A key finding from the study is that, although the global annual abortion rate has fallen between 1990-1994 and 2010-2014, a larger decline occurred in developed countries (where abortion is generally legal and available), but rates have not changed significantly in the developing world, where abortion laws are often restrictive. This demonstrates that restricting access to safe legal abortion does not reduce the number of abortions but rather pushes abortions underground, leading to risks to women’s health and lives. Legality alone does not guarantee access. Governments need to ensure policies are implemented and guarantee a favourable environment where all women - regardless of their ability to pay, age or marital status - can access safe abortion care free of stigma and discrimination.  While abortion is a very safe procedure when done in accordance with recommended guidelines, health complications from unsafe abortion - while less serious due to increased access to post-abortion care and increased availability of misoprostol - continue to affect millions of women each year. Developing regions also continue to be disproportionally affected by unsafe abortion, with nearly all deaths due to unsafe abortion occurring in developing countries, the highest number occurring in Africa. As of 2014, at least 22,800 women still die each year worldwide from complications of unsafe abortion; and 6.9 million women in developing regions are treated for complications from unsafe abortions. Very importantly, the study outlines how high levels of unmet need for contraception contribute to higher rates of unintended pregnancy in developing regions, the main reason that women undergo abortion. This shows the relevance of organizations like IPPF working to prevent unintended pregnancy through modern contraceptive services, promote comprehensive sexuality education and eliminate sexual violence and coercion. At the same time, IPPF recognizes that there will always be a need for safe abortion services and will we continue to increase access to safe abortion care through our service delivery outlets while advocating for the decriminalization and de-stigmatization of abortion.  Manuelle Hurwitz, Director of Institutional Delivery, IPPF  

Dutch SRHR
news item

| 28 February 2018

IPPF and Rutgers coordinate the first-ever SRHR pre-conference at AIDS2018

The International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF) and Rutgers are leading the coordination of the first-ever pre-conference focussed on sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) ahead of the 22nd International AIDS Conference (AIDS 2018) in Amsterdam this year. With the Netherlands, a long-standing champion and supporter of SRHR, AIDS 2018 provides the perfect opportunity to help guarantee the health, rights, and general well-being of all people, including women and girls, people living with HIV, and key populations. While poor sexual and reproductive health and HIV share common root causes, the respective responses to HIV and to SRHR remain largely unaligned and uncoordinated. Now more than ever there is a need for joint action, but this need remains under-appreciated, inadequately resourced, and insufficiently leveraged for the greater good. The one-day pre-conference on 21 July 2018 will be organized for up to 100 participants and aims to create a vibrant and inclusive platform on which to: Foster thematic learning and networking focused on this integration Facilitate global connections Further unite HIV and SRHR responses to achieve the ambitious targets set within the Sustainable Development Goals – including lessons learned on the impact of the Global Gag Rule You can download the Pre-Conference Roadmap.

Dutch SRHR
news_item

| 28 February 2018

IPPF and Rutgers coordinate the first-ever SRHR pre-conference at AIDS2018

The International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF) and Rutgers are leading the coordination of the first-ever pre-conference focussed on sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) ahead of the 22nd International AIDS Conference (AIDS 2018) in Amsterdam this year. With the Netherlands, a long-standing champion and supporter of SRHR, AIDS 2018 provides the perfect opportunity to help guarantee the health, rights, and general well-being of all people, including women and girls, people living with HIV, and key populations. While poor sexual and reproductive health and HIV share common root causes, the respective responses to HIV and to SRHR remain largely unaligned and uncoordinated. Now more than ever there is a need for joint action, but this need remains under-appreciated, inadequately resourced, and insufficiently leveraged for the greater good. The one-day pre-conference on 21 July 2018 will be organized for up to 100 participants and aims to create a vibrant and inclusive platform on which to: Foster thematic learning and networking focused on this integration Facilitate global connections Further unite HIV and SRHR responses to achieve the ambitious targets set within the Sustainable Development Goals – including lessons learned on the impact of the Global Gag Rule You can download the Pre-Conference Roadmap.

Monika Dragojlovic, volunteer at H.E.R.A. in Macedonia
news item

| 23 June 2017

Small grants for youth-led projects tackling abortion stigma

IPPF is committed to tackling abortion stigma at the individual, community, institutional and legal levels. This year, thanks to the Packard Foundation, we are pleased once again to be offering funding for youth-led projects tackling abortion stigma. These grants (of up to $2000 USD) are available for young people (under 25) working or volunteering in IPPF Member Associations. Abortion stigma will look different and have different solutions in every community. If you’re passionate about reproductive rights and have an idea for a project to tackle abortion stigma in your community, please download the application form and guidance. The deadline for applications is Sunday 16 July 2017 and all applications will need to be approved by Member Associations before being sent to [email protected] English Application Form Guidance French Application Form Guidance Spanish Application Form Guidance   See examples of inspiring projects we have supported in the past.    

Monika Dragojlovic, volunteer at H.E.R.A. in Macedonia
news_item

| 23 June 2017

Small grants for youth-led projects tackling abortion stigma

IPPF is committed to tackling abortion stigma at the individual, community, institutional and legal levels. This year, thanks to the Packard Foundation, we are pleased once again to be offering funding for youth-led projects tackling abortion stigma. These grants (of up to $2000 USD) are available for young people (under 25) working or volunteering in IPPF Member Associations. Abortion stigma will look different and have different solutions in every community. If you’re passionate about reproductive rights and have an idea for a project to tackle abortion stigma in your community, please download the application form and guidance. The deadline for applications is Sunday 16 July 2017 and all applications will need to be approved by Member Associations before being sent to [email protected] English Application Form Guidance French Application Form Guidance Spanish Application Form Guidance   See examples of inspiring projects we have supported in the past.