FP2020 is Supporting Country Progress by Identifying Strategic Priorities, Aligning Stakeholders, and Optimizing Resources
FP2020 works with countries to help them develop, implement, and monitor progress on their family planning strategies. Through collaboration with key stakeholders across the family planning community, FP2020 identifies and delivers crosscutting products, interventions, and research to expand the field in new and productive ways. Knowledge is also shared with the global community, democratizing data by making both country-specific and global-level information available to all.
The FP2020 movement is represented in countries by a network of focal points: one government-designated focal point and two donor focal points (from UNFPA, USAID, or DFID) in each commitment-making country. The focal points work with the FP2020 Secretariat and Country Engagement Working Group to identify gaps in implementation, match resources to goals, and ensure that FP2020 efforts are aligned with government priorities and existing partner programs. They also work to coordinate priorities and programs with the broader stakeholder community in- country, including civil society and advocacy organizations, service providers, and the private sector.
To expand access to contraception, governments must be strategic in how they invest limited resources among competing priorities. The development of a costed implementation plan (CIP) is one of the first steps to accelerating progress at the country level. A CIP is a multiyear roadmap designed to help governments achieve their family planning goals by the most effective, efficient means possible. USAID, UNFPA, and other FP2020 partners have assisted 20 countries to date in developing their CIPs. FP2020 tracks information on CIPs across all commitment-making countries, providing governments with increased visibility for their strategies.
Photo by: Mark Naftalin/FP2020
The FP2020 platform also helps country stakeholders and partners align to drive progress in key areas:
- coordinating in-country efforts to improve contraceptive demand and contraceptive mix forecasts;
- identifying ways to dramatically decrease contraceptive stock- outs and ensure broader access to the methods women prefer;
- mobilizing in-country financial and health system resources for commodities and service delivery;
- developing strategies to raise awareness of contraception and increase demand;
- encouraging the identification and application of best practices in family planning service delivery; and
- monitoring and reviewing progress toward goals.
FP2020 builds on existing country plans wherever possible, and coordinates with each country’s wider reproductive, maternal, newborn, child, and adolescent health (RMNCAH) and health sector plans.
KEY HIGHLIGHTS 2014–2015
The first FP2020 Focal Point Workshop in March 2015 was a watershed event, marking FP2020’s transition to more direct engagement with countries and ushering in a new era of collaboration between the major aid agencies in family planning. Held in Istanbul, Turkey, the workshop brought together focal points from USAID and UNFPA for the first time, along with government focal points from 32 commitment-making countries. They were joined by representatives from FP2020’s core conveners (UNFPA, DFID, USAID, and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation), the co-leads from each of FP2020’s Working Groups, and a dozen technical experts who delivered relevant, hands-on information during plenary sessions and one-on-one meetings with country teams.
The workshop was a unique opportunity for members of the global FP2020 movement to compare notes and take stock of progress to date. The programming was designed to be practical and action-oriented: all of the country teams developed detailed action plans to implement on their return home. The spirit of collaboration at the workshop was reflected in many of these plans, which outlined ideas for working more closely together and meeting with a wider range of stakeholders.
The workshop brought together focal points from USAID and UNFPA for the first time, along with government focal points from 32 commitment-making countries.
After the workshop the dialogue continued, as FP2020, USAID, and UNFPA followed up with country teams to discuss their specific needs and challenges. Countries that had made requests at the workshop for technical assistance were matched with expert partners by the FP2020 Secretariat. Secretariat also published a Focal Point Workshop report, created a workshop website2 where participants could continue to connect, and collaborated with the Country Engagement Working Group to develop a post-workshop action plan.
The Focal Point Workshop marked the launch of FP2020’s new website, an integrated knowledge-sharing and accountability platform: www.familyplanning2020.org. The new platform is designed to connect people, ideas, and evidence to inspire, inform, and accelerate progress for family planning. Users can read official self-reports from FP2020 partners on the status of commitments, share perspectives and submit updates on family planning progress, view country-specific family planning news and data, access Core Indicator estimates for FP2020 focus countries and regions, engage and connect with members of the global FP2020 community publicly and privately, and explore over 50 topic areas to identify, filter, and search resources on family planning.
The Focal Point Workshop also saw the unveiling of the new Costed Implementation Plan Resource Kit (CIP Resource Kit), developed by the Health Policy Project and K4Health with support from FP2020, USAID, and UNFPA. The CIP Resource Kit contains more than 20 tools to help countries plan, develop, and implement their own CIPs. These include budgeting and costing tools, a policy checklist, rights and empowerment principles, advocacy resources, tools for stakeholder engagement, technical information, financing guides, and real-world examples of CIPs from FP2020 commitment-making countries. The CIP Resource Kit is part of FP2020’s knowledge and accountability platform, and is available in both English and French: www.familyplanning2020.org/CIP.
In June 2015, Jhpiego and FP2020 cohosted the Accelerating Access to Postpartum Family Planning (PPFP) Global Meeting, in partnership with the World Health Organization (WHO), USAID, and UNFPA. This meeting marked the launch of a multilateral effort to fast-track country progress toward FP2020’s goals by reaching postpartum women, whose family planning needs are frequently overlooked. Delegations from 16 countries gathered in Chiang Mai, Thailand, for the five-day conference, which brought together family planning experts and maternal, newborn, and child health (MNCH) experts to discuss the latest technical knowledge and programming experience in PPFP. Attendees were briefed on the newly released WHO Medical Eligibility Criteria for Contraceptive Use, explored integration points between PPFP, maternal health, nutrition, and immunization, and participated in a daylong innovation workshop to reimagine and revolutionize PPFP.
Sixteen actionable country plans for implementing PPFP were drafted as a result of the PPFP Global Meeting. A follow-up series of monthly webinars, facilitated by Jhpiego and FP2020, brought participants together to share their insights and experiences in implementing their action plans.
In francophone West Africa, the Ouagadougou Partnership (OP) is leading the effort to expand family planning and reposition it as a key development strategy. FP2020 and the OP cooperate to provide streamlined support to the countries in this region, sharing focal points, action plans, and information. Both partners are working to strengthen this collaboration, and FP2020 is currently assisting the OP with the preparations for a Joint Ministerial Meeting in December 2015. In the past year FP2020 has also deepened its engagement with the francophone audience by publishing French-language versions of key resources, including the FP2020 Progress Report 2013–2014, the FP2020 Rights and Empowerment Principles for Family Planning, and the CIP Resource Kit.
