The
United Nation Population Fund (UNFPA) and partners launched a Family Planning Campaign
in URR and LRR on Saturday with the theme “Yes to Choice, No to Chance.”
It
aimed to create demand for services and raise awareness on family planning,
cervical cancer screening and HIV counseling and testing.
The
use of a multi-disease approach as an entry point to family planning helps
create a greater understanding of family planning services and commodities and
generates demand for uptake of family planning services in communities. It also
boosts registrations by new family planning acceptors in Lower River and Upper
River Regions and dispels myths around family planning and sexually transmitted
infections.
Speaking
at the campaign, Alhagie K. Kolley, National Program Officer responsible for
Reproductive Health and HIV/AIDS at UNFPA, said the campaign was about creating
awareness and making services accessible.
They
started it last November in the North Bank Region, he said, adding this time
around they chose URR to do the campaign for a few days and then proceed to
LRR.
He
said they are working with the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, UNAIDS,
National Youth Council, Gambia Family Planning Association, Reproductive and
Child Health Unit, SOS Mothers’ Clinic, Nova Scotia Gambia Association,
National Population Commission Secretariat, Network of Journalists on
Reproductive Health, Population and Development, Think Young Women, Safe Hands
for Girls, The Girls’ Agenda, He4She Gambia, and Rojalnu.
He
said the campaign was targeting young people to see how best they could attract
the attention of young people by organising a football tournament between the
young people to bring them together.
Before
the match they will make statements on Family Planning and their jerseys will
also contain messages, he added.
He
continued saying, that the young people are also very important. Looking at The
Gambia’s population it is a youthful population and by targeting young they
hope to achieve their aim.
He
said initially they wanted to do the campaign nationwide but they decided to do
it per region, adding that last November they wanted to go to Basse but it
coincided with the presidential election and it was cancelled.
He
said when you get to the health facilities you will see men accompanying their
wives or taking their children to the hospitals and they want to see more of
that.
He
said there was a time when if you talked about family planning most people
would say that it is a women’s thing, adding that the role of men is pivotal.
If men encourage their wives’ to go to the clinic for Family Planning Services.
“Some
women practice family planning without the consent of their husbands which is
not ideal; because we believe that such decisions should be taken jointly,” he
said.
“It is good for one to do birth spacing to
take care of the child and in the process the mother can also gather strength
and improve on her health status,” he stated.
Also
speaking at the campaign, Gassamanding Touray from the Gambia Family Planning
Services, said they have all the family planning commodities such as the
Implanon, Jadelle, emergency contraceptives, condoms and a lot more which are
all free for those who go for the services.
She
said they counsel you on the commodities available so that people can make a
choice for themselves.
They
are there to make demands for the commodities and services so that if they
leave, people will continue going for the services at The Gambia Family
Planning Basse branch where they will be able to access the services and
commodities.
They
are also helping people to know their status by conducting HIV counseling and
testing since, “there are still some people who are in denial as to its
existence,” she said.
She said there is also cervical cancer
screening for women and is also for free.
