IWG Meeting the Challenge- Securing Reproductive Health Supplies: How to use the Materials in this Package

Publication date: 2001

R E L E V E R LE DÉFI The Interim Working Group on Reproductive HealthCommodity Security (IWG) is a collaborative effortof John Snow, Inc. (JSI), Population Action International (PAI), the Program for Appropriate Technology in Health (PATH) and Wallace Global Fund. The Working Group’s objective is to further the goals of the 1994 Programme of Action by raising awareness about the impor- tance of securing reproductive health supplies. The IWG seeks to identify the causes of failures and weaknesses in commodity systems and to spur actions and work with other stakeholders such as donors, developing country govern- ments, technical agencies and NGOs to contribute to secur- ing essential supplies for the delivery of reproductive health care. The IWG was formed in response to a meeting of the Working Group of the Global Initiative on Reproductive Health Commodity Management of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) in January of 2000. At the meet- ing, UNFPA called for the participation of a wide variety of stakeholders to address the critical issues represented by the shortfall in contraceptives around the world. Information gathered by the IWG will be shared with key stakeholders at a conference scheduled for the Spring of 2001. This conference will bring together a wide range of individuals and organizations including donors, technical agencies, service delivery programs, the private sector, non- governmental organizations and others interested in addressing the urgent need to secure reproductive health supplies for people around the world. MEETING THE CHALLENGE: SECURING CONTRACEPTIVE SUPPLIES The four organizational partners in the IWG have devel- oped a series of papers that address issues of reproductive health commodity security. Meeting the Challenge: Securing Contraceptive Supplies is the overarching theme of this first resource package of issue briefs and technical reports. Each document begins with a short overview of the topic and a summary of key findings, followed by a more detailed analysis. Those documents for which full translations into French and Spanish are available are indicated with an asterisk (*). For the remaining documents, only translations of the summaries are available. • Overview: The Need for Security in Reproductive Health Supplies* • Defining Reproductive Health Supplies: A Survey of International Programs* • Contraceptive Projections and the Donor Gap • Country Perspectives on the Future of Contraceptive Supplies • Issue Profiles: Lessons Learned from Five Countries • Contraceptive Security: Toward a Framework for a Global Assessment • Donor Funding for Reproductive Health Supplies: A Crisis in the Making • Financing Contraceptive Supplies in Developing Countries: Summary of Issues, Options, and Experience • Gauging Awareness, Assessing Concern: Focus Group Findings on Reactions to Contraceptive Supply Shortages* S E C U R I N G S U P P L I E S F O R R E P R O D U C T I V E H E A L T H Securing Reproductive Health Supplies: How to Use the Materials in This Package M E E T I N G T H E CHALLENGE John Snow, Inc. (JSI) is an international con- sulting firm working to address pressing health care issues in the United States and over 80 countries around the world. With over 20 years’ experience in hundreds of programs, JSI spe- cializes in providing management and technical assistance in the areas of reproductive health, child health, and envi- ronmental health. JSI is the lead agency implementing DELIVER, a global project funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development which focuses on improving the availability of contraceptives and other essential health products at service delivery points. JSI is headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts, and currently has offices in Washington, D.C.; Denver, Colorado; Concord, New Hampshire; and in more than 20 countries. John Snow, Inc./ DELIVER 1616 North Fort Myer Drive Arlington, VA 22209 USA Phone: (703) 528-7474 www.jsi.com / www.deliver.jsi.com Program for Appropriate Technology in Health (PATH) is an international, nonprofit, non-governmental organization dedicated to improving health, especially the health of women and children. PATH identifies, develops, and applies appropriate and innovative solutions to public health problems, particularly in low-resource settings. Founded in 1977, PATH has managed more than 950 proj- ects in over 100 countries. PATH’s headquarters are located in Seattle, Washington. PATH (Program for Appropriate Technology in Health) 4 Nickerson Street Seattle, WA 98109 USA Phone: (206) 285-3500 www.path.org Population Action International (PAI) is an independent policy group working to make clear the linkages between population, reproductive health, the environment, and development. Through research and advocacy, PAI seeks to strengthen public awareness and political and financial sup- port worldwide for population programs grounded in indi- vidual rights. At the heart of PAI’s mission is its commit- ment to universal access to family planning and related health services, and to educational and economic opportu- nities, especially for girls and women. Founded in 1965, PAI accepts no government funds. Population Action International 1300 19th Street, NW Second Floor Washington, DC 20036 USA Phone: (202) 557-3400 www.populationaction.org The Wallace Global Fund is a foundation whose mission is to catalyze and leverage critically needed global progress towards an equitable and environmentally sustainable society. Wallace Global Fund 1990 M Street NW, Suite 250 Washington, DC 20036 USA Phone: (202) 452-1530 www.wgf.org The IWG understands the importance of addressing the full range of reproductive health commodities. The group isfocusing on contraceptives first, however, due to the widespread lack of consensus within the population and repro-ductive health field regarding which commodities to include in an essential list of supplies. Moreover, there is little information on donor contributions for non-contraceptive reproductive health commodities. Through its efforts on contra- ceptive security, the IWG is working to bring together stakeholders to develop strategies for addressing the broader issues of reproductive health commodity supplies in the future. Please feel free to contact any of the Interim Working Group partners for more information. April 2001Printed on Recycled Paper

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