Civil society organizations are key drivers of change in favor of sexual and reproductive rights and health in Côte d'Ivoire. Equilibres & Populations is launching a new project with six of these organizations to strengthen their role in promoting family planning. The initial results are very promising!
An emerging civil society on SRHR and family planning
The last country to join the Ouagadougou PartnershipIn recent years, Côte d'Ivoire has made strong commitments to sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) and family planning (FP). It should be noted that:
- A budgeted national action plan for the 2015-2020 PF is currently being implemented.
- The 2016-2020 National Health Development Plan makes FP a priority.
- A bill on reproductive health is currently being drafted.
To ensure that these commitments translate into concrete progress, civil society organizations (CSOs) have a more important role to play than ever before. However, in Côte d'Ivoire, CSOs have only recently begun to address the issue of SRHR/FP, and their capacity to engage with decision-makers remains to be strengthened.
Supporting civil society as a priority
It is within this context that Equilibres & Populations launched an 18-month project last August aimed at strengthening the role of Ivorian civil society in promoting FP and SRHR in the country. The following are brought together:
- Two youth associations: the Youth Mission for Education, Health, Solidarity, and Inclusion (MESSI) and the Ivorian Youth Network Against AIDS (RIJES).
- Two women's associations: the Association of Women Lawyers of Côte d'Ivoire (AFJCI) and LEADAFRICAINE.
- Two technical associations: the Association for Support of Urban Health Self-Promotion (ASAPSU) and the National Organization for Children, Women, and Families (ONEF).
To support these associations, Equipop has chosen to adapt its approach to supporting CSOs—developed and implemented in five other countries in the subregion through the Alliance Droits et Santé network—to the Ivorian context, with a focus on advocacy, social mobilization, resource mobilization, and administrative and financial management. As a result, associations working on SRHR and FP will be equipped to engage communities at the grassroots level and challenge decision-makers, and will be structured for greater sustainability.
Coordinated advocacy efforts currently underway
Thanks to the support provided, since last December the six CSOs have been campaigning strongly on priority issues: the inclusion of SRHR and FP for adolescents and young people at the municipal level, and the implementation of task delegation (particularly for injectables) at the community level.
Today, the collaborative working dynamic has been officially launched. The CSOs present have learned to work together and pool their skills and knowledge, supported by Equipop, which began with advocacy and administrative and financial management. In terms of advocacy, for example, the preparation and holding of a high-level meeting between the Directorate of Nursing and Maternal Care, AFJCI, and Equipop has strengthened the partners' capacity for representation and argumentation in real time. The first activities are underway, including workshops, high-level advocacy meetings, mobilizing events, and media actions.
Stay tuned!
