A DECADE OF LEARNINGS FOR THE NEXT DECADE OF PROGRESS

By Duff Gillespie,  Project Director, Advance Family Planning

Effective, evidence-based advocacy can increase access to quality and voluntary family planning. From its beginning in 2009, the Advance Family Planning (AFP) initiative has aimed  to demonstrate just that. Using the  SMART Advocacy[1] approach, AFP advocates have achieved nearly 3,000 advocacy wins contributed to improved family planning policies, and generated $168 million in funds from national and local governments and the private sector.

What have we learned in the last decade that can help advocates in future? We offer five lessons advocates may find useful over the next decade.

1. Devolution is a Game Changer

Context: Historically, governments centralized family planning policy and funding decisions. Today, many national governments have transferred power over family planning programs to local or regional officials. Sub-national decision-makers –  governors, legislators, district medical officers, mayors, and many others—now hold the success or failure of global and national family planning commitments in their hands. The result is a kaleidoscope of local programs and policy priorities that can spur innovation and influence neighboring decision-makers as well as those in the national government.

Learning: To be effective, advocates should continually assess the diversity of local political and socioeconomic factors and be on the lookout for local leaders ready to act.

2. Advocate for Policy Implementation

Context: Compared to 30 years ago, most countries in Africa, Asia, and Latin America have policies promoting and supporting family planning.[2] Despite these favorable policies, policy implementation faltered in many countries.

Learning: Advocates can ask decision-makers for discrete actions such as funding or regulatory change that will facilitate the government reaching their own policy goals. Indeed, government officials very often became active players in the advocacy efforts. Civil society can play a critical partnership role in helping the government achieve policy aims that it is already on record as wanting.

3. Evidence Is Not Enough

Context: Advocates often point to “evidence-based advocacy” to highlight what contributed to their advocacy successes. The reality is that most decisions are not based solely on evidence.

Learning: Advocates need to know how emotions, ethics, and relationships factor alongside evidence in developing messages. Advocates should be strong storytellers who are able to make any evidence connect to a decision-makers personal beliefs and objectives. While evidence is not everything, developing messages based on truth and data is essential to avoid running counter to existing knowledge.

4. Local Ownership is Here to Stay

Context: Development assistance is donor driven with major donors dictating who, how, and on what their funds will be spent. External donor funds make up 45 percent of family planning funds in the Global South.[3] While donors philosophically have long embraced local ownership, they are now actually, albeit slowly changing funding strategies to support locally led, indigenous non-governmental organizations (NGOs). Many of these NGOs have limited administrative capacity and fiduciary control to compete for and be able to fully implement awarded programs, i.e., effectively spend donor funds.

Learning: The transition to local ownership would significantly shorten if donors designated more resources to organizational capacity so that local organizations would be better situated to receive and administer direct donor funding.

5. Monitor Advocacy Impact

Context: Tracking outputs and outcomes of advocacy wins is often more difficult and more expensive than achieving the initial win. And therefore, there is little interest to include and fund monitoring and evaluation activities in the overall advocacy effort.

Learning: Determining if advocacy wins resulted in the desired policy and programmatic changes is essential to progress and an important way for others to replicate success.

In conclusion, AFP’s experience suggests that change in the next decade will be incremental, at the subnational or local level, and with less headline-grabbing policy implementation. There are governments that remain hostile toward many SRHR issues, which makes advocacy feel impossible. However, advocates are equipped with the ingenuity and grit to achieve change through diverse coalitions, evidence-based strategies, and stronger local advocacy organizations.

____________

[1] David-Rivera,V.,Whitmarsh, S., Gillespie, D., and Fredrick, B. (2021). SMART Advocacy User’s Guide. April 2021.

[2] United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division (2021). World Population Policies 2021: Policies related to fertility. UN DESA/POP/2021/TR/NO. 1.

[3] FP2030. (2021) FP2030 Measurement Report 2021. January 2022.

* * * * *

This article is a part of PSI’s ICFP 2022 Impact Magazine. Explore the magazine here.

Sign up to
Receive Updates

Donate to
Support Our Work

Related

OUR COMMITMENTS

The Future of Work

With overarching commitments to flexibility in our work, and greater wellbeing for our employees, we want to ensure PSI is positioned for success with a global and holistic view of talent. Under our new “work from (almost) anywhere,” or “WFAA” philosophy, we are making the necessary investments to be an employer of record in more than half of U.S. states, and consider the U.S. as one single labor market for salary purposes. Globally, we recognize the need to compete for talent everywhere; we maintain a talent center in Nairobi and a mini-hub in Abidjan. PSI also already works with our Dutch-based European partner, PSI Europe, and we’re creating a virtual talent center in the UK.

OUR COMMITMENTS

Meaningful Youth Engagement

PSI is firmly committed to the meaningful engagement of young people in our work. As signatories of the Global Consensus Statement on Meaningful Adolescent & Youth Engagement, PSI affirms that young people have a fundamental right to actively and meaningfully engage in all matters that affect their lives. PSI’s commitments aim to serve and partner with diverse young people from 10-24 years, and we have prioritized ethics and integrity in our approach. Read more about our commitments to the three core principles of respect, justice and Do No Harm in the Commitment to Ethics in Youth-Powered Design. And read more about how we are bringing our words to action in our ICPD+25 commitment, Elevating Youth Voices, Building Youth Skills for Health Design.

OUR COMMITMENTS

Zero Tolerance for Modern-Day Slavery and Human Trafficking

PSI works to ensure that its operations and supply chains are free from slavery and human trafficking. Read more about this commitment in our policy statement, endorsed by the PSI Board of Directors.

OUR COMMITMENTS

UNITED NATIONS GLOBAL COMPACT

Since 2017, PSI has been a signatory to the United Nations Global Compact, a commitment to align strategies and operations with universal principles of human rights, labor, environment and anti-corruption. Read about PSI’s commitment to the UN Global Compact here.

OUR COMMITMENTS

Environmental Sustainability

The health of PSI’s consumers is inextricably linked to the health of our planet. That’s why we’ve joined the Climate Accountability in Development as part of our commitment to reducing our greenhouse gas emissions by 30 percent by 2030. Read about our commitment to environmental sustainability.

OUR COMMITMENTS

Affirmative Action and Equal Employment Opportunity

PSI does not discriminate against any employee or applicant for employment because of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, marital status, genetic information, disability, protected veteran status or any other classification protected by applicable federal, state or local law. Read our full affirmative action and equal employment opportunity policy here.

OUR COMMITMENTS

Zero Tolerance for Discrimination and Harassment

PSI is committed to establishing and maintaining a work environment that fosters harmonious, productive working relationships and encourages mutual respect among team members. Read our policy against discrimination and harassment here.

PSI is committed to serving all health consumers with respect, and strives for the highest standards of ethical behavior. PSI is dedicated to complying with the letter and spirit of all laws, regulations and contractual obligations to which it is subject, and to ensuring that all funds with which it is entrusted are used to achieve maximum impact on its programs. PSI provides exceptionally strong financial, operational and program management systems to ensure rigorous internal controls are in place to prevent and detect fraud, waste and abuse and ensure compliance with the highest standards. Essential to this commitment is protecting the safety and well-being of our program consumers, including the most vulnerable, such as women and children. PSI maintains zero tolerance for child abuse, sexual abuse, or exploitative acts or threats by our employees, consultants, volunteers or anyone associated with the delivery of our programs and services, and takes seriously all complaints of misconduct brought to our attention.

OUR FOCUS

Diversity and Inclusion

PSI affirms its commitment to diversity and believes that when people feel respected and included they can be more honest, collaborative and successful. We believe that everyone deserves respect and equal treatment regardless of gender, race, ethnicity, age, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, cultural background or religious beliefs. Read our commitment to diversity and inclusion here. Plus, we’ve signed the CREED Pledge for Racial and Ethnic Equity. Learn more.

OUR COMMITMENTS

Gender Equality

PSI affirms gender equality is a universal human right and the achievement of it is essential to PSI’s mission. Read about our commitment to gender equality here.

Cover

01 #PeoplePowered

02 Breaking Taboos

03 Moving Care Closer to Consumers

04 Innovating on Investments

ICFP Q&A:
Let's Talk About Sex

icons8-linkedin-circled-240
icons8-twitter-circled-240