Dakar, Monday 17 August 2015 – Today marks the start of a three-day Parliamentary Delegation on Reproductive Health and Family Planning to Senegal gathering 10 Members of Parliament from 10 African and European countries (Belgium, Benin, Cameroon, Finland, Ivory Coast, Portugal, Spain, Switzerland, Togo and the United Kingdom) fromMonday 17 August to Wednesday 19 August 2015.
The parliamentary delegates will gain a valuable first-hand insight into Family Planning and Reproductive Health and Rights in Senegal by visiting community health centres in both rural and urban areas. Their goal is to learn from the progress made in advancing the health and wellbeing of the Senegalese population with a particular attention to women and girls. The main focus of the visit will be the political and financial responses that Senegal and its development partners are providing to address the challenges that the country is experiencing in its fights to achieve universal access to sexual and reproductive health and coverage for essential services for women and girls, including health care, sexual and reproductive health and rights, education, empowerment and financial protection.
The parliamentary delegation will hold meetings with a wide range of stakeholders including the Minister of Health and Social Action, Senegalese Members of Parliament, government officials from relevant Ministries, local authorities, financial and technical partners, civil society representatives, youth, and beneficiaries with a view to discuss on the progress made by Senegal on key indicators for Family Planning and Reproductive Health.
Budgetary allocations for Family Planning have doubled in Senegal since 2012 and new laws and policies are being implemented through a strong leadership from the Ministry of Health and Social Action and with a significant support from several partners is significant. Nevertheless, notwithstanding recent improvements, maternal mortality remains high in Senegal and universal access to reproductive health remains a challenge. The visit of the parliamentary delegation will therefore be a unique chance to learn from the lessons learned and the challenges still faced by Senegal in improving the life and health of its women and girls.
Upon return from their visit, parliamentary delegates will be expected to carry out relevant follow-up actions in their respective parliaments in order to reinforce the importance of investing in family planning and to ensure the full implementation of the ICPD Programme of Action in Senegal and worldwide.
The parliamentary visit is organized by the European Parliamentary Forum on Population and Development (EPF) in collaboration with the Ouagadougou Partnership Coordination Unit (UCPO) and with the financial support from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation.
For more information about the delegation visit please do not hesitate to contact EPF Secretariat at secretariat@epfweb.org
EPF Secretariat
Teresa Sanchez Ravina, EPF Programme Officer Teresa@epfweb.org
Vincent Villeneuve, EPF Project Consultant Vincent@epfweb.org
or
Rodrigue Ngouana | Country Liaison Officer
IntraHealth International | Because Health Workers Save Lives
Bureau du Sénégal | 85, Lot C & E, Sacré-Coeur Pyrotechnique, Dakar | BP 5328 Dakar Fann
t. (221)33 889 08 16 | m. 77 731 58 05|email: rngouana@intrahealth.org
