In the early 1950s, a group of women and men started to campaign vociferously and visibly for women’s rights to control their own fertility. Family planning as a human right challenged many social conventions. Campaigners faced great hostility to gain acceptance for things that we take for granted today. Some were imprisoned. But they emerged determined to work with different cultures, traditions, laws and religious attitudes to improve the lives of women around the world. And so, at the 3rd International Conference on Planned Parenthood in 1952, 8 national family planning associations founded the International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF). International Planned Parenthood Federation of Nigeria (IPPFN) is a private, not-for-profit organization founded in the late 1950s, with her headquarter located in Abuja, Nigeria with core objectives of promoting the adoption of child spacing and contraceptive practices among individuals and couples.
The original core mission of IPPFN, was to promote adoption of child spacing and contraceptive practices among individuals and couples. Over the years, IPPFN has evolved from this initial narrow emphasis to a broader, more comprehensive mission which takes on board the implications and needs arising from ICPD, the Beijing International Women’s Conference, the concern with adolescent reproductive health, and the HIV/AIDS pandemic. The resulting package of activities and services focuses on adolescents and young people, designed to promote, protect and enhance their sexual and reproductive health (SRH) and rights along with those of adults. Implementation of the first IPPFN strategic plan (1998-2004) significantly advanced the Federation’s ability to attract other donor (or collaborative) funding for projects and activities. We also made remarkable progress in expanding program activities and strengthening relationships with federal, state and local governments as well as NGO and private sector partners across the country. The aim was to enhance collaborative advocacy, program development and service delivery activities. We boosted in-kind and human resources from governments and strengthened our infrastructural facilities and management systems. The strategic review and planning process which produced this second strategic plan was conceived against a background of rapidly occurring changes (both national and international) to the sexual and reproductive health environment. Clearly, the process has been essential to assure our organization’s ability to remain focused, relevant and effective during the next five-year period and beyond. Equally important, the strategic review and planning process has significantly widened the consensus on the mission of IPPFN among its many stakeholders; shown how we can better attune the organization to its internal and external environments, for better performance and greater success; and clarified our options for embarking on the critical actions necessary to lead advancement of the SRH and rights movement in Nigeria, in the coming years. Through participation of IPPFN’s National Executive Committee (NEC) members, senior national, zonal and state management and staff, as well as partners (government, NGOs within and outside SRH, the private sector and donors) we made the strategic review and planning process as participatory and inclusive as it could possibly be. While the plan provides an internal source of direction, shared values, and basis for concerted action, we hope that it will also inform and enlighten our partners, supporters and donors so that together we can continue to work harmoniously to enhance SRH and rights in Nigeria and indeed Africa as a whole. |
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The major activities of IPPFN cover the following areas:
- SRH (Sexual Reproductive Health) and Rights Advocacy
- Materials Production and Distribution
- Community Mobilisation
- Training of SRH Human Resources
- Fund Raising Appeals and Campaigns
- Media Based Activities
- Behaviour Change Communication
Headquarters of IPPFN: Abuja, Nigeria
Source of Funding of IPPFN: IPPFN is funded through a mix of institutional and individual donations. Institutions include governments, non-governmental organizations, multilateral agencies, corporations, trusts and foundations. The Federation also benefits enormously from funds donated by individuals via bequests, trusts, annuities and regular giving.
Relationship between IPPFN and other NGOs
- IPPFN collaborates with other NGOs to achieve its objectives which is mainly concern with sexual and reproductive health and practice of child spacing.
- Since they are donor funded through grants from corporations, individuals and through grants, they accept donations and grants from donor NGOs to implement programmes for the betterment of the general public.
- IPPFN is a wing of the International planned parenthood federation (IPPF) which involves different countries and also represents and carry out the programmes of the international bodies in Nigeria.
Relationship between IPPFN and National Health Agencies
IPPFN work with national health agencies in area such as:
- Safe motherhood (ante-natal and post- natal care)
- Survival services ( immunization, education, nutrition and growth monitoring)
- Creating awareness on range of family planning methods.
- Screening for/management of STIs
- HIV prevention education through counselling and sexuality education
- Rape crisis management
- Laboratory Investigations
- Pre and post abortion counselling and care
- Drug and substance abuse counselling
Relationship between IPPFN and the United Nations Health Agencies
- The IPPFN work with the United Nations health agencies the use of contraception and the use condom as a means to protect against HIV and other sexually transmitted infections (STIs).
- IPPFN collaborates with the United Nations health agencies to promote women’s health in terms of sexual and reproductive health and rights.
- IPPFN assists United Nations health agencies to protects sexual rights of people, especially they are denied daily through violence, abuse and coercion, and through criminalization and discrimination.
- IPPFN’s resources are contributed to the United Nations health agencies to addressing the needs of young people, especially girls and young women are the most vulnerable group.
- IPPFN collaborates with United Nations health agencies to persuades governments and decision makers to promote sexual and reproductive health and rights, to change policy and to fund programmes and service delivery.