Expanding Contraceptive Choice in West Africa: Building the Capacity of Local Nongovernmental Organizations to Program Holistically

Project Brief No. 15
June 2013   

Rates of contraceptive use in West Africa are among the lowest in the world, with women reporting poor access to contraception, low levels of approval of family planning by their partners, and familiarity with few methods. With funding from the U.S. Agency for International Development, the RESPOND Project provided technical assistance to Member Associations (MAs) of the International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF) in Benin, Burkina Faso, and Togo to expand access to a wide range of family planning options. The intervention entailed six steps, which took place from April 2011 to April 2013:

1. The MAs assessed their capacity for family planning programming using RESPOND’s Organizational Capacity Assessment Tool.
2. Managers from the MAs participated in an organizational capacity-building and design workshop.
3. Providers and supervisors from the MAs received training to improve family planning services.
4. The MAs carried out holistic action plans, including mobile services, with small-grant funding.
5. The MAs conducted a second self-assessment of their capacity to deliver family planning services.
6. The MAs shared their experiences with each other at a South-to-South consultative meeting.