Health Workers are Central to ICPD Programme of Action’s Success

IntraHealth International strongly endorses Agenda 2030 for Sustainable Development and full implementation of the ICPD Programme of Action. Universal health coverage that includes universal, equitable access to quality sexual, reproductive, maternal, and child health information and services for all is an intrinsic global good and human right. To achieve these goals, IntraHealth focuses on engaging communities, building resilient health systems, and addressing health workforce gaps. Between 2016-2019, we partnered with governments, civil society, and the private sector to reach over 1.2 million health workers in 53 low- and middle-income countries, providing education, skill-building, and supervisory, management, and policy support. In 2018 alone, we collaborated with more than 42,000 health facilities, youth and civil society organizations, government agencies, and other local partners. In francophone West Africa, the region of the world with the lowest—but growing—use of family planning, we serve as the accelerator hub for the urban-focused Challenge Initiative, lead the Ouagadougou Partnership (OP) Coordination Unit, and implement innovative projects that integrate FP with MCH, nutrition, education, and/or HIV in Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger, Senegal, and other OP countries. We also integrate FP in programs throughout Africa and Asia, including Bangladesh, Rwanda, South Sudan, Tanzania, and Uganda. We commit to accelerating our locally tailored efforts to expand access to sexual, reproductive, maternal, and child health services, which, between 2016-2019, contributed to 700,000 new users of modern contraception and 2.2 million couple years of protection and averted nearly 800,000 unintended pregnancies and 300,000 unsafe abortions. We will continue to champion frontline health workers, support the next generation of SRH advocates and leaders, and advocate for policies and investments needed to achieve the SDGs and ICPD Programme of Action.

Modes of engagement:

• Policy and guidance
  Advocate for policies at the global and local levels that support implementation of the ICPD Programme of Action.
• Programmatic action
  Ensure IntraHealth’s programs accelerate progress in reaching universal and equitable access to SRH and MCH information and services.