JHPIEGO TrainerNews™ |
Francophone Regional Postabortion Care
Conference Convened in Africa
(April 2002)
From 4-7 March 2002, 200 representatives from 14 African countries, collaborating agencies and donors convened in Dakar, Senegal, for a conference on the advancement of postabortion care (PAC) in West and Central Africa. The conference--sponsored largely by USAID's Office of Population, the Africa Bureau and regional USAID missions, as well as other donors--examined the steps needed to initiate or further expand the availability of PAC services in Francophone Africa.
Through a variety of plenary and roundtable discussions, the conference examined three topics: Policies and Advocacy for PAC services, Developing Trainer Competency, and Integration of PAC in National Reproductive Health Programs. A technical update for participants, using a "mini-university" format for sessions, focused on the three components of PAC: management of complications, provision of counseling and family planning services, and linkages to important reproductive health services. Country delegations used this information to develop action plans for the introduction or expansion of PAC services in their country. This conference was a collaborative effort of:
- JHPIEGO/TRH
- Advance Africa
- Center for Training and Research in Reproductive Health
- EngenderHealth
- Family Care International
- Intrah/PRIME II
- Ipas
- International Planned Parenthood Federation
- Policy Project
- Population Council
- Population Reference Bureau
- Support for Analysis and Research in Africa II
Project (SARA II)- World Health Organization.
For more information, please contact Amy Rial at arial@jhpiego.org or Pape Gaye pgaye@intrah.org.