Resources

Young people are often denied care in societies where sex is taboo and parents can control their children’s access to medical providers. These challenges are amplified in conservative contexts where women and girls are made to feel uncomfortable when talking about contraception. The Tajikistan Family Planning Association (TFPA) has pioneered a phone application - available free of charge - that allows young people to gain crucial knowledge about modern contraception and sexually transmitted infections/HIV and connects them with health care providers. Through its innovative app, TFPA has created a safe space for young people to access stigma-free care, and to explore methods of sexual and reproductive self-care. This app has changed attitudes towards people living with STIs/HIV and inspired young people to have open and honest conversations about sexual and reproductive health care with their peers. "Before using the app, she thought STIs could only be caught by sex workers or people lacking morals, and that something like that could never happen to her or to her close friends. But now she realises that it can happen to anyone, even by accident. Now she tries to understand people who might have an STI." Young person in Tajikistan recounting an interview with a 19-year old woman as part of TFPA’s project

IPPF European Network is breaking down barriers to contraceptive freedom, helping to ensure that all people can lead safe and dignified reproductive lives. Across Europe and Central Asia, women are being denied control over their sexual and reproductive lives as a result of hostile chauvinist policies, gender inequality and social oppression. Many governments are not doing enough to ensure that women and girls have true access to contraceptive care, and it is the poorest and most marginalised who bear the brunt of this neglect. Too often, contraception is the privilege of the few, and women from low-income backgrounds are five times more likely to be forced into pregnancy through denial of care. In Eastern Europe and Central Asia, the level of modern contraceptive use (meaning all non-emergency, reversible methods) is alarmingly low. And overall in Europe, 43% of pregnancies are unintended (EPF, 2018), a result of denial of contraceptive care and of governments refusing to ensure sex and relationships education for all young people. Young people are also being let down by health care systems in which they face institutionalised stigma and discrimination when seeking contraception.  IPPF EN is working across Europe and Central Asia to break through these barriers. We are fighting to redefine contraceptive care as a policy priority and to offer stigma-free care to all, especially to those who are most in need.

People with learning disabilities have a right to be protected from sexual violence and abuse, yet 90% of them will experience sexual abuse at some point in their life, most frequently from family members or others in their close circle. Safeguarding this right can only be achieved if people with learning disabilities are empowered to protect themselves. Increasing their autonomy in relation to their sexual lives, relationships, bodies and privacy is key. But how can people with learning disabilities be expected to say no to sexual violence and abuse, if even the smallest aspects of daily life are decided for them by others? In this context, it is crucial to strengthen their overall autonomy, active participation and integration in society, and the transition from institutions to community based-care. The 2-year ‘Keep me Safe’ project aimed to empower young people with learning disabilities to protect themselves against sexual abuse and violence across Europe. It was co-funded by the European Commission Daphne III Programme. On 11-12 December 2014, IPPF Member Associations, NGOs, parents of young people with learning disabilities, decision-makers and authorities from Bulgaria, Cyprus, Germany, Ireland, Latvia, The Netherlands, Macedonia, Romania, Spain, and UK, as well as staff from the IPPF EN regional office, gathered in Madrid for its final event. Here you can download the set of Policy recommendations they developed and endorsed at the meeting. 

Every day, everywhere women have abortions. In fact, one in three women will have an abortion in their lifetime. Your sister, mother, daughter, partner, friend. Yourself. However, many countries around the world continue to restrict access to safe and legal abortion. Globally, 66 countries either prohibit abortion entirely or permit it only to save a woman's life. Approximately one quarter of the world's population resides in these countries. Too many women still do not have autonomy over their reproductive lives, and are not able to choose to end an unwanted pregnancy under safe conditions with the support of a trained provider. That is why on September 28, the Global Day of Action for Access to Safe and Legal Abortion, IPPF will join with partners across the world to call for universal access for safe and legal abortion. In our region, from Skopje to Stockholm, Tirana to Dublin, our Member Associations are marking the day with activities ranging from press conferences, advocacy workshops, public debates organised by youth activists and short movie launches to providing information and education materials to schools; dedicated social media campaigns; clinic open day with free sexual and reproductive health services, and appearing in newspapers and TV documentaries to make the case for safe and legal abortion. Criminalising abortion does not reduce the number of abortions, all it does is push abortion underground and rates of unsafe abortion increase. In fact, the lowest abortion rates in the world are in regions with some of the most liberal legal frameworks for the provision of abortion services. A woman’s right to safe, legal abortion is under threat in Europe too. The abandoning this week of a regressive anti-abortion bill in Spain is a step in the right direction and an illustration of what can be achieved through the joint action of civil society organisations. But the fact remains it should never have been on the legislature’s books in the first place. It shows that rights can be rolled back at anytime, anywhere. The women who suffer as a consequence of restrictive laws are not just numbers. Each woman who seeks an abortion does so under a unique set of circumstances. IPPF has produced a series of short films to tell the stories of some of these women. Women like Juliette from France, who just like millions of other women around the world, decided to have an abortion following an unintended pregnancy. In this video Juliette describes the challenges she faced in trying to find accurate and unbiased information about abortion, and she shares her thoughts on the role of men in the abortion process. You can watch the other videos in the series here. Unwanted pregnancies will always be a fact of life and abortions will continue. So, join us on September 28 in calling for governments to make abortion safe and legal abortion everywhere. Read a guest blog on the "state shambles" of abortion in Ireland by IFPA, IPPF's Irish Member Association here.

This series of four Report Cards explores the challenges of HIV prevention for sex workers in Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Russia. It was produced by IPPF European Network with the support of the Sex Workers' Rights Advocacy Network (SWAN) and the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA). The Report Cards are available for download here in English and Russian.