IPPF hosted a G7 Ministerial Roundtable entitled Empower Women and Girls, Empower Humanity: Bodily Autonomy and Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR).

The roundtable facilitated a meaningful dialogue on the importance of keeping SRHR commitments that G7 countries have made to the women and girls left behind, ensuring that SRHR and bodily autonomy are central to reaching Universal Health Coverage (UHC) and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). 

The roundtable was sponsored by Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office United Kingdom (FCDO) and Global Affairs Canada, with participants from UK, Germany, USA, France, Japan, Canada, Australia, India, and South Africa.

Karina Gould, Minister of International Development for the Government of Canada said:

“It is more important than ever to ensure that women and girls have control over their bodies, and do not face additional vulnerabilities, discrimination and violation of their rights. We need to see an integrated effort to better enable our health systems to respond to the pandemic while continuing to address the needs of women and their families.” 

Keiichi Ono, Assistant Minister and Director-General for Global Issues for the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs added:

“COVID-19 has exacerbated the plight of vulnerable people. Reaching the most vulnerable people first is key to realizing universal health coverage and to ensuring an effective gendered response to COVID-19 that includes Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights.”   

IPPF would like to thank those who contributed to the invigorating and inspirational event, and we look forward to continuing our collective push in ensuring bodily autonomy and SRHR remain central to UHC and the SDGs.