Oxfam Canada

Published purpose

P002680001: The project aims to empower adolescent girls in the Philippines through the provision of comprehensive sexuality education and reproductive health services. In the Philippines, sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) issues are arguably the most significant impediment to women’s empowerment. The country has the highest fertility rate in Southeast Asia, with women in the lowest wealth quintile having an average of 5.2 children, and with over 22% of women bearing children before the age of 19. Sexual Health and Empowerment (SHE) Philippines is addressing these issues by providing at least 85,000 women and girls, men, and boys with improved access to SRHR services. SHE is expected to indirectly benefit 270,000 people situated in conflict-affected and disadvantaged regions in the Philippines. It provides institutional support to women’s rights organizations working on SRHR and gender based violence in the Philippines. The project also supports the implementation of the Government of the Philippines’ Responsible Parenthood and Reproductive Health Law. P002680002: The project aims to improve the sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) of women and girls in remote and conflict-affected regions in the Philippines. The project is supporting the Government of the Philippines in its fight against coronavirus (COVID-19), by addressing the heightened vulnerabilities of women and girls to unwanted pregnancies and gender-based violence (GBV) during the pandemic. The project aims to expand ongoing outreach services through mobile clinics for obstetric, prenatal, and postnatal care, including family planning (FP) services. These outreach services also aim to cover the procurement of dignity kits and FP commodities. The project also works to augment existing response activities, such as the procurement of personal protective equipment, the establishment of a SRHR and GBV emergency hotline, and the distribution of COVID-19 information materials. Project activities include: (1) increasing the knowledge, skills, and capacities of women, girls, and boys; (2) working with influencers to change negative social norms on SRHR and gender-based violence (GBV); and (3) enhancing the capacity of the health system to provide comprehensive and gender-sensitive health information and services. The project is supporting local women’s rights organizations in improving their organizational capacity, and their ability to conduct learning and research initiatives in support of SRHR and GBV advocacies and policies at the national and local levels. Through the project, over 86,400 women and girls, as well as men and boys, are expected to benefit from improved quality, availability, and access to SRH information and services, in line with the implementation of the Philippine Responsible Parenthood and Reproductive Health Law.