Hope Mafaranga

The third International Conference on Family Planning (ICFP 2013) ended yesterday with a Call to Action by civil society leaders for governments to prioritize family planning in the new global development framework that replaces the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) after 2015. The Call to Action was issued as five additional African and Asian governments and the United Kingdom announced commitments to expand contraceptive access and options. The Addis Call to Action on the Post-2015 Development Framework voices the perspective of civil society that the ability to plan one’s family and future is a fundamental right and a sound investment. Ensuring that women and girls are able to plan whether and when to have children means mothers and babies are more likely to survive. Additionally, when countries invest in family planning alongside health, education and gender equity, they can realize a “Demographic Dividend” for economic growth and prosperity.   “We still have leaders on

The current generation of young people is the largest in history and also at great risk for unintended pregnancy, maternal death and the life-altering consequences of becoming teenage parents. Youth themselves are speaking up to demand that family planning programs reach more of their peers and take account of their unique needs. Attendees of the 2013 International Conference on Family Planning (ICFP 2013)—many of them young women and men under age 25 spoke passionately today about the importance of providing contraceptive information and services to youth. Organized around the theme “Full Access, Full Choice,” ICFP is the largest-ever global meeting on family planning, and is taking stock of progress to ensure that everyone has the tools to plan their families and futures.   “Family planning is holistic. It gives young people the chance to stay in school, to finish their education, to start a business,” said Barwani Msiska, attending ICFP as a Youth Leader from the Republic o

Distinguished female leaders addressed the more than 3,000 attendees of the 2013 International Conference on Family Planning (ICFP 2013) today, emphasizing women’s extraordinary impact on advancing health and gender equity worldwide. In particular, female leadership is driving expanded access to family planning and contraception for women in the poorest countries, empowering them to plan their lives and realize their full potential.   ICFP 2013 is the largest-ever meeting focused on improving health and promoting women’s well-being by ensuring that all women who want to use family planning have access to accurate information and a range of options. The conference, organized around the theme “Full Access, Full Choice,” is highlighting progress since the July 2012 London Summit on Family Planning, when the global community pledged to provide 120 million more women around the world with voluntary access to contraceptives by 2020.   “Women leaders have indispensable r

  Human activity caused Kasese floods- Experts By Hope Mafaranga In Kasese   At the first sight, my eyes were charmed by the white beautiful well shaped stones, little did I know that the stones I was admiring, left people dead and others displaced. The cause was simple, the stones were forced from the mountains by man who interrupted with nature hence destroyed the environment and causing the floods in the western Uganda district of Kasese. Rebecca Nanjara the UNDP Climate Change Coordinator confirmed that human activities are responsible for most of the loss in biodiversity throughout the world. She was on 2 nd July 2013, presenting results of the Kasese floods that left 8 people dead in May this year. Nanjara said that many people are yet to suffer from disasters if human activities are not stopped from digging on the slopes of the mountains like Mt Elgon and Mt Rwenzori which are prone to landslide and has a number of rivers that are likely to continue flooding. N

The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria announced today that as part of its broad program to prevent abuse of any kind, it suspended contracts with two international suppliers of mosquito nets after uncovering evidence that they committed serious financial wrongdoing in Cambodia. The Global Fund has zero tolerance for wrongful conduct. It actively investigates and uncovers fraud, takes swift action against wrongdoers, and pursues recovery of misused funds. Committed to an exceptional degree of transparency, the Global Fund openly publishes its investigation reports. The Global Fund’s Office of the Inspector General today published an investigation report that found that between 2006 and 2011, two international suppliers paid commissions to two Cambodian officials totaling approximately US$410,000 in return for awarding contracts for insecticide-treated nets that prevent the spread of malaria. Based on recommendations of its Sanctions Panel, the Global Fund has