The International Women's Health Coalition, New York, USA
From the Global Women's Network
| The International Women's Health Coalition, New York, USA | |
|---|---|
| Logo: |  |
| Street address: | 333 Seventh Avenue, 6th floor |
| City: | New York |
| State or Province: | NY |
| Country: | United States |
| Location: |
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| Location coordinates: | 40° 44' 51" N, 73° 59' 34" WLatitude: 40.747403 Longitude: -73.992827 |
| Contact number: | 212-979-8500 |
| Contact email: | info@iwhc.org |
| Website: | http://www.iwhc.org/ |
| Twitter: | http://twitter.com/#!/IntlWomen |
| Facebook: | http://www.facebook.com/intlwomenshealth |
| Target: | Girls and Women |
| Organization type: | Women's network (network/coalition of people or organizations) |
| Sectors: | Education, Empowerment, Health, Reproductive Health, Reproductive Rights, Teen Pregnancy/Mothers |
Contents |
Summary
The International Women's Health Coalition (IWHC) promotes and protects the sexual and reproductive rights and health (SRRH) of all women and young people, particularly in Africa, Asia, and Latin America, by helping to develop effective health and population policies, programs, and funding.
About
The International Women's Health Coalition (IWHC) promotes and protects the sexual and reproductive rights and health (SRRH) of all women and young people, particularly in Africa, Asia, and Latin America, by helping to develop effective health and population policies, programs, and funding.
Vision
Social and economic justice, the foundations of global well-being, can only be achieved by ensuring women's human rights, health, and equality. Accordingly, IWHC envisions a world in which women:
- are equally and effectively engaged in decisions that concern their sexual and reproductive rights and health;
- experience a healthy and satisfying sexual life free from discrimination, coercion, and violence;
- can make free and informed choices about childbearing;
- have access to the information and services they need to enhance and protect their health.
Theory of Change
Global progress on SRRH requires effective participation by local leaders, advocates, service providers and, especially, women and young people. The Coalition bridges two worlds: the powerful global actors that determine policies and funding for health in low- and middle-income countries, and women and young people affected by their decisions. Persuading those who control global and national policies and budgets to invest in girls and women, particularly in vital but politically contentious matters of sexuality and gender equality, requires:
- women and youth leaders with vision, skills, and strong organizational bases who can both access mainstream institutions and mobilize civil society;
- multiple, powerful stakeholders from diverse constituencies who are willing and able to contribute to building consensus on actions for SRRH and to work together in pluralistic alliances; and
- skilled, evidence- and experience-based advocacy to generate political will for action.
Issues
IWHC's partners on the ground are using diverse strategies and approaches to promote women's health and advance women's rights in different regions of the globe. Their work—like IWHC's global work—cuts across issues and movements, shaped by the realities of women's lives and responsive to the constraints and challenges they face.
Leandro Vieira dos Santos of Brazil and Justyna Wlodarczyk of Poland share advocacy materials at an IWHC-sponsored international consultation on youth participation, held in Toronto in 2004. Youth Health and Rights
There are 1.2 billion people between the ages of 10 and 19 in the world today—the largest generation of adolescents ever. These young people are disproportionately vulnerable and face great challenges to their health and wellbeing. Many are living in societies with weak health systems, few educational and economic opportunities, limited resources to invest in HIV/AIDS prevention and reproductive health care, and strong fundamentalist opposition to providing young people with full and accurate information on their bodies, their rights, and their responsibilities. Across every region of the globe, these harsh realities have focused advocates' attention on young people's health needs and human rights, and have compelled young people themselves to take action.
Access to Safe Abortion
Globally, 179 governments have agreed that abortion should be safe and available under circumstances where it is legal. Yet each year, an estimated 20 million unsafe abortions occur worldwide. About 78,000 women, the vast majority of them in developing countries, die from the consequences of these unsafe procedures, and untold numbers suffer severe health effects. Advocates for women worldwide are building alliances to focus attention on the women who suffer, and often lose their lives, as a result of restrictive laws and policies.
Activities
IWHC shapes international policy and builds local capacity for women’s health and human rights in Africa, Asia and Latin America. We leverage our work in these two very different, but critically linked worlds – to change thinking, redirect funding and motivate action by people and institutions that can secure rights and health for women. This requires a strategy in which:
- IWHC Advocates: IWHC advocates and motivates social, political and corporate leaders to enact policy and provide funding for women’s rights and health. They take courageous stands and achieve political victories for women in nations’ capitals and the United Nations.
- IWHC Empowers: IWHC provides grants and forge professional partnerships with local leaders as they build organizations to secure women’s rights and health, primarily in Africa, Asia and Latin America. Since 1984, they have provided over $16.5 million in grants to women and youth advocates.
- IWHC Mobilizes: IWHC mobilizes women and young people, enabling them to take action to secure their rights, health and well-being. They have helped to build and sustain 75 organizations in 10 countries and create broad and powerful alliances.
- IWHC Informs: IWHC analyzes and communicates facts and pathbreaking ideas for policy improvement to powerbrokers, health professionals, influentials and other advocates. They produce and publish ideas and strategies to make public health policies work for women and girls worldwide.
Needs
