Abidjan - May 04, 2023: The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and the Embassies of the Kingdom of Belgium in Benin and Togo, Burkina Faso, Côte d'Ivoire, Senegal, The Gambia and Guinea Bissau organized on Thursday, May 04, 2023 a virtual exchange session on the vision and perspectives of action of the donor coalition for the elimination of obstetric fistula in West Africa by 2023.

Chaired by UNFPA Regional Director for West and Central Africa, Ms. Argentina Matavel, and attended by Belgian Ambassadors and Chargés d'Affaires as well as UNFPA Resident Representatives, this event aims to increase investment in advocacy, prevention, holistic care, including counseling, and social and economic reintegration of women affected by obstetric fistula.

The discussions focused on the strategic priorities of the two organizations for the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals on the one hand, then the good practices and challenges and prospects in the implementation of interventions in Benin and Togo, Burkina Faso, Côte d'Ivoire, Gambia and Togo and Senegal, Gambia and Guinea Bissau. In addition, stakeholders engaged on the coalition's roadmap and development vision and funding mechanisms for Belgium.

Obstetric fistula is one of the most serious and dangerous injuries that can occur during childbirth. It is a perforation between the vagina and the bladder and/or rectum, caused by prolonged labor, and occurs in the absence of prompt and quality obstetric care. An estimated 600,000 to 1,000,000 women and girls are living with obstetric fistula in West and Central Africa.

In 2003, UNFPA and its partners launched the global "End Fistula" campaign. With more than 55 countries involved in the global campaign, it aims to prevent and treat fistula, as well as rehabilitate and empower survivors. In keeping with its transformative mandate, UNFPA's goal is to eliminate obstetric fistula worldwide by 2030; mobilizing governments, donors, the private sector and civil society are key components of its strategy.

According to Ms. Argentina Matavel Piccin, UNFPA Regional Director for West and Central Africa, today's meeting is a forum to discuss "how we can benefit from the experience of Belgium and the donor coalition to mobilize resources for the elimination of obstetric fistula in our region and restore the dignity of women left behind.”

Recalling Belgium's commitment to funding the fight against obstetric fistula, H.E. Jean Jacques Quairiat, Ambassador of Belgium to Burkina Faso, shared the good practice of joint advocacy between the Embassy and the UNFPA office in Burkina Faso, where Belgium is the lead technical and financial partner in the health sector. This advocacy helped mobilize all partners and ministries involved, particularly the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Gender and Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The same approach has been used in Benin and Togo, where the two partners are working in symbiosis to put the fight against obstetric fistula back on the development cooperation agenda.

In his speech, the Chargé d'Affaires of the Belgian Embassy in Côte d'Ivoire, Mr. Akos Hermann, shared his country's extensive experience in international mobilization for sexual and reproductive health with initiatives like the SheDecides movement. "We remain convinced that together with UNFPA and other partners, we will help accelerate efforts to significantly reduce the impact of obstetric fistula in our partner countries in West and Central Africa," he promised.

As a reminder, the Donor Coalition to End Fistula is coordinated by Belgium. This initiative, led by the First Ladies of ECOWAS, was launched in September 2022, in Abidjan, on the sidelines of the South-South and Triangular Conference for the Elimination of Obstetric Fistula and its root causes by 2030.

The coalition's next activities aim to broaden the partnership to mobilize other donors involved or not in the fight against fistula. This will include finalizing investment cases in the target countries, building the technical capacity of stakeholders to boost routine fistula treatment, organizing obstetric fistula repair campaigns in each country, and field visits by partners. In addition, both parties agreed to strengthen high-level advocacy for resource mobilization at the local and international levels through joint activities, including the upcoming organization of a donor roundtable.

Contacts:

Jordan Sera | Advocacy and Communication Specialist |UNFPA Côte d'Ivoire |Phone: +225 07 87 75 54 03| E-mail: sera@unfpa.org