The World Bank: Keep Reproductive Health Paramount
April 16, 2007
The World Bank has a long history of supporting and strengthening reproductive health. This is why the reproductive health community was shocked last week when allegations surfaced that the World Bank's Health, Nutrition and Population Strategy may de-prioritize the importance of family planning and reproductive health services to development progress. Certainly we heard more substantiated rumors that references to family planning were expunged from key country development strategies, Madagascar most notably. Because these initiatives are crucial to attaining the Bank's goal of eliminating global poverty, the World Bank must maintain and reaffirm their commitment to reproductive health when they review the Health, Nutrition and Population Strategy on April 24th.
PAI Unveils the Shape of Things to Come
April 9, 2007
Investments in reproductive health programs and services can make countries healthier -more secure and peaceful, more democratic, and better able to provide for the needs of their citizens, according to a seminal new report from PAI. The Shape of Things to Come: Why Age Structure Matters to a Safer, More Equitable World examines the connections between demographics, reproductive health, international security, governance and other development issues. Programs that foster more balanced age structures-such as family planning, infant and maternal health, and girls' education-must become a cornerstone of all international development assistance.
Congress Must Face Reality: Pass the PATHWAY Act
April 2, 2007
"I just heard of effective use of condoms, but I never knew how to use them." These are the words of Juliet Awour, a Kenyan woman featured in PAI's new documentary, Abstaining from Reality: U.S. Restrictions on HIV Prevention. Neither Juliet nor her boyfriend knew how to use a condom, so he took it off during sex. As a result, Juliet became pregnant and contracted HIV the first time she had sex. Her story illuminates one of the gravest problems with a U.S. HIV prevention strategy that teaches abstinence-only: What do individuals know about HIV protection when they are no longer abstinent?
Mr. Gore Goes (Back) To Washington
March 19, 2007
This Wednesday, March 21, former Vice-President Al Gore will testify before both houses of Congress to discuss the growing threats posed by global warming. With top scientists and world leaders in agreement that human-induced climate change will have dire consequences if left unaddressed, Congress has an opportunity to address one element that Mr. Gore has consistently cited as a leading contributor to this crisis: rapid global population growth.
Elimination of Violence Against Women is Crucial to Fighting AIDS
March 12, 2007
Violence against women and the spread of HIV/AIDS are inextricably linked and must be addressed together, according to a new report released by Women Won't Wait. Every woman has the right to freedom from violence and to the highest attainable standard of health, including sexual and reproductive health and services. PAI couldn't agree more and urges governments and multilateral institutions to ensure that these fundamental human rights are fully integrated into their approach to HIV prevention.
Sexual Rights: Critical To Reproductive Health
March 5, 2007
Integrating sexual rights into family planning and reproductive health programs is essential to ensuring that people have safe and healthy sexual lives, according to a new report issued by the World Health Organization. This confirms what many sexual and reproductive health and rights advocates have known for years: A comprehensive, rights-based approach to reproductive health that includes non-judgmental, culture and gender sensitive services is the most effective way to improve reproductive health around the world.
Women's Empowerment in the Spotlight
February 26, 2007
This week, delegates to the U.N.'s 51st Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) will begin meeting to evaluate progress on gender equality, identify challenges, set global standards and formulate concrete policies to promote gender equality and advancement of women worldwide. PAI urges the delegates to examine the core issues that result in these horrible acts and honor previously agreed-to international commitments. These issues are symptoms of a deep-rooted tradition of discrimination against and violence toward women-one that the Commission challenges and must help member states to overcome.
Rwanda Justly Prioritizes Family Planning, Success Will Come If Programs are Voluntary
February 20, 2007
PAI was heartened to see the Rwandan government announce a new national family planning program that will include the free distribution of contraceptives to women of child-bearing age and the teaching of comprehensive sex education in schools. Such political will is essential to getting reproductive health education and services to those who want and need them the most. However, as part of the family planning program, officials in Rwanda are apparently considering measures to limit family size to three children.
Bush's Budget Slashes International Family Planning
February 12, 2007
Last week, President Bush proposed a dramatic 25% reduction in funding for international family planning and reproductive health (FP/RH) programs in his federal 2008 budget request despite the fact that they are one of the most successful components of the U.S. foreign assistance program. These draconian cuts come at a time when U.S. funding for FP/RH programs is already 35% below (when adjusted for inflation) the levels of twelve years ago. In addition, the re-imposition of the Global Gag Rule in 2001 has made matters worse by forcing family planning providers in poor, developing nations to lay off staff and shut down their clinics. PAI implores the U.S. Congress to increase-rather than cripple-funding for international family planning and reproductive health as a key way to reduce global poverty and improve women's health worldwide.
Poverty Reduction Stymied by Population Growth
February 5, 2007
The world will fail to achieve the targets set in the landmark Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) unless population growth is curbed, says a new report from the United Kingdom's All-Parliamentary Group on Population, Development and Reproductive Health. The report's findings underscore the fact that access to family planning and reproductive health services is not only a fundamental right but also essential to achieving a wide-range of commonly shared goals, including eradicating poverty and hunger, reducing maternal and infant death, combating HIV/AIDS, and ensuring environmental sustainability.
