Full Access, Full Choice- Join ICRW at the International Conference on Family Planning

An estimated three million more babies would survive past year one if 120 million more women and girls had access to family planning services. Yet, family planning services are still unavailable to an estimated 222 million women worldwide who would like to delay or avoid pregnancy. With the goal of influencing positive change for family planning policies and serving as a platform for strategic turning points, the Gates Institute has convened the third annual International Conference on Family Planning in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, under the theme “Full Access, Full Choice.” Beginning today, the conference brings together thousands of researchers, policymakers, and program managers to highlight successes and identify remaining hurdles.

Earlier this afternoon, ICRW’s Dr. Suzanne Petroni (Senior Director, Gender, Population and Development) spoke at the Family Planning + Social Good event on using technology to engage youth in global movements, as well as trends in adolescent reproductive health.

During her comments, Petroni mentioned an upcoming opportunity for youth to serve as a youth commissioner on the Lancet Commission on Adolescent Health and Wellbeing. All interested people under the age of 30, particularly ages 18-24, are encouraged to apply. Preference will be given to young leaders from low and middle-income countries.  

ICRW will also participate in two more panels this week:

• Magnolia Sexton, a Program Assistant at ICRW, will present our findings on the TESFA project on Thursday, November 14. TESFA, a program run by CARE and evaluated by ICRW, works to reach married adolescent girls in Amhara, Ethiopia with reproductive health and economic empowerment options.

• On Friday, November 15^th, Suzanne Petroni will sit on a panel with the Center for Reproductive Rights, Open Society Foundations, and Ipas to discuss “The Impact of Harmful Legal and Policy Requirements on U.S. International Family Planning Assistance.” Petroni will speak about the Mexico City Policy (“Global Gag Rule”), which prohibits non-U.S. NGOs, as a condition of receiving U.S. funding, from providing, lobbying, or counseling on abortion, even with its own funding. The Mexico City Policy has also repeatedly been imposed and rescinded, causing confusion and undermining family planning efforts.

For those unable to attend the conference, you can follow @ICRW on Twitter for live updates and join the conversation using #ICFPLive.