On September 29, Equipop brought together some 60 mayors from the sub-region in Ouagadougou for a national workshop on monitoring the financial commitments made by mayors in favor of family planning (FP). At the end of the workshop, these local elected officials reaffirmed their firm commitment to work harder to promote FP in their respective municipalities by allocating more specific financial resources. Equilibres & Populations has been advocating since 2014 to encourage mayors to become more involved in promoting the sexual and reproductive rights and health of girls and women in the West African sub-region.
Coming from Benin, Niger, Senegal, Côte d'Ivoire, and Burkina Faso, these mayors were able to share their experiences in FP before reviewing their financial commitments to FP in their respective municipalities. From the various experiences shared during the panels, it appears that many mayors have already allocated funds for family planning (FP) services. Others are in the process of mobilizing resources, as they are convinced that the development of their municipalities requires sustainable investments in FP.
As a sign of their renewed commitment to FP and also with the aim of inviting their peers to get involved in FP promotion activities in their communities, the mayors drafted and signed the "Mayors Championing FP" manifesto : "Even small investments, combined with local expertise, can be used to develop investment initiatives to improve local health systems and social mobilization initiatives with significant impacts (recruitment of new users, increased usage rates, reduction in unmet need, availability and accessibility of contraceptive products, etc.).".
Equilibres & Populations, which has been developing technical expertise in supporting civil society organizations and local authorities in West Africa for more than 20 years, intends to continue its advocacy work with all mayors in Burkina Faso and the sub-region to ensure that family planning is better taken into account in municipal development plans (PCDs).
