FEATURES
Empowering Women to Improve their Health
THE STORY
The USAID | Health Policy Initiative, Task Order 1, addresses gender inequalities that prevent women from accessing the information and services they need for better health.
We have helped women establish networks to advocate for improved family planning (FP) and reproductive health (RH) services; strengthened the capacity of African religious communities and networks to respond to gender-based violence (GBV); supported the establishment of HIV-positive women’s networks; built the capacity of women and local leaders to prevent inheritance rights violations; and facilitated the expansion of the Global White Ribbon Alliance for Safe Motherhood.
RESULTS
In Guatemala, indigenous groups have rarely focused their advocacy efforts on health topics, particularly issues related to FP/RH. We have worked with representatives from indigenous women’s NGOs and civil society organizations to form an indigenous network, Red por la Salud Reproductive de la Mujeres Indigenas (Network for the Reproductive Health of Indigenous Women), to advocate for the FP/RH needs of indigenous populations and help reduce the cultural gaps between the health system and indigenous populations.
Challenges
- Some indigenous groups have cultural prejudices against FP
- Indigenous groups and FP/RH providers
often speak different languages
- FP/RH providers lack sufficient FP training
Outcome
- Formation of advocacy network
- Strengthened leadership and advocacy capacity of indigenous NGOs
- Published press release in national newspaper on International Women’s Day
- Conference declaration on RH/FP
TECHNOLOGIES
In Mali, women do not have a strong voice around FP/RH and HIV/AIDS issues. To increase their involvement in advocacy, we organized awareness-raising events in the city of Bougouni. Computer technology and data use played a compelling part in making the case for a new women’s network focused on FP/RH and HIV/AIDS.
We used the AIM and RAPID Models* from the SPECTRUM suite of computer models as advocacy tools in a training to illustrate Malian women’s vulnerability to HIV infection and high maternal mortality as a result of the lack of access to family planning.
Moved by this training and the presentations, the women decided to form a reproductive health network called the “Network of Women Leaders of Bougouni for the Advancement of Family Planning, Reproductive Health, and the Fight Against STIs and HIV/AIDS.”
*AIM = AIDS Impact Model
RAPID = Resources for the Awareness of Population Impacts on Development
RELATED INFORMATION
We can provide targeted technical assistance to build capacity, form networks, and apply analytic methods to strengthen the policy environment to improve women’s health.
Services
Tools and Methodologies
- Networking for Policy Change: An Advocacy Training Manual
- Gender Integration Index
- Gender-Based Violence Toolkit and Workshops
- Training on Constructive Engagement of Men in FP/RH
- Computer Models
- Senior International Health Economist
- Policy Analyst
- Economist, Poverty and Equity
- Health Scientist – HIV Specialist
- Country Manager