Member Associations

Sexual and reproductive health (SHR) statistics for the Central African Republic are some of the poorest on the continent. The need for proper, informed, accessible, safe, stigma-free sexual and reproductive health (SRH) services is paramount. The Association Centrafricaine pour le Bien-Etre Familial (ACABEF) came into being in 1987, expressly to address the urgent need for sexual and reproductive health (SRH) services. Working intensively within communities, the organization has grown rapidly over the years and now provides sexuality education and SRH services including family planning, gynaecological counselling and care, post-abortion care, antenatal care and voluntary counselling and testing (VCT) for HIV. ACABEF operates permanent and  mobile clinics with community-based distribution sites (CBDs). In addition to full-time health personnel and administrative staff, the organization relies on the dedicated support of hundreds of volunteers, a Youth Action Movement and over a hundred trained peer educators. And ACABEF's outcomes are impressive. The majority of all services were provided to poor, marginalized, socially excluded and/or under-served people.  ACABEF works in partnership with the government ministries in charge of planning, health and family and social affairs. It benefits from the support of CISJEU and its donors include UNFPA and Population Services International. ACABEF has close working relationships include CIONGCA (which coordinates the response of all NGOs working at national level), the Central African Network of People living with HIV (RECAPEV), the Réseau des Organisations Nationales de Lutte contre le SIDA (RONALSI) and Amis d’Afrique.  

Located off the eastern coast of Africa in the Indian Ocean, Comoros is an archipelago of 4 islands at the northern end of the Mozambique Channel between northeaster Mozambique and northwestern Madagascar. At a little over 1,800 square kilometres, it’s the third smallest nation in Africa, but has over 700,000 inhabitants. It is one of the most densely populated countries on the continent. A third of the population are women of reproductive age and the absence of essential health services presents major risks to their health and survival. High fertility levels allied to low contraceptive uptake, and widespread poverty combine to drive high risks related to sexual and reproductive health (SRH). In response, the Association Comorienne pour le Bien-Être Famille (ASCOBEF) is delivering a comprehensive range of sexual and reproductive health programmes and services. These include family planning, gynaecological counselling and services, antenatal care, information, education and communication (IEC) programmes and behaviour change communications (BCC) activities to promote health-seeking behaviour. It is also playing a major advocacy role in the fight against gender-based violence, and has provided extensive victim support. The majority of ASCOBEF's clients are poor, marginalized, socially excluded and/or under-served. ASCOBEF deliver services and programmes supported by volunteers, Youth Action Movement members and peer educators. ASCOBEF works in partnership with non-governmental organizations (NGOs) including Réseau Femmes et Développement. It receives financial support from UNFPA, the Global Fund, UNICEF and the World Health Organization. Contacts Website: www.ascobef.org Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Association-Comorienne-Pour-Le-Bien-Etre-De-La-Familla-Ascobef-1514140762210292/

The Association Congolaise pour le Bien-Etre Familial (ACBEF) opened its doors for the first time in 1987. Then it was a small operation dedicated to attending to the sexual and reproductive health (SRH) needs of the urban poor. 25 years later, ACBEF reaches out to the whole country through a network of over 100 community-based distributors (CBDs) backed by static clinics and permanent staff. In addition, ACBEF relies on over 1,000 volunteers, including fully-trained peer educators and a Youth Action Movement.  ACBEF provides a comprehensive range of services covering integrated family palnning, voluntary counselling and testing (VCT), prevention and management of HIV and AIDS, post-abortion care, antenatal and post-natal care, youth-friendly education and information projects, contraceptive and laboratory services. Stigma and taboos around HIV and AIDS are strong in Congo, and ACBEF is engaged in major re-education and sensitization on this front. ACBEF aims its work at a wide public, with particular emphasis on young people (aged 25 and under), internally displaced people, sex workers and women of child-bearing age. Work occurs in both rural and urban areas. With high visibility in the national media, ABCEF is making major inroads in SRH in a very difficult environment. ABCEF works in close partnership with the government’s ministries of Health, Foreign Affairs, and Gender, and with non-governmental organizations (NGOs) including Jeunesse Action Sida. ABCEF receives financial support from the European Union, UNFPA and the Congolese Government.   Website: http://www.acbef.org/

Established in 1985, IPPF’s Member Association in Guinea-Conakry faces many stark sexual and reproductive health (SRH) challenges including some of the highest fertility and child mortality rates in the world, coupled with very low levels of contraceptive use.   The Association Guinéenne pour le Bien-être Familial (AGBEF) has mounted a vigorous response to these challenges. Through its services points (static clinics, mobile clinics, associated clinics, community-based distributors (CBDs) and community-based services (CBSs) the organization reaches out to poor and marginalized groups with a particular emphasis on young women and men, and displaced persons and refugees. The Member Association’s services include disseminating information, education and communication around sexual and reproductive health (SRH); youth-friendly SRH services; prevention and management of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and HIV and AIDS through interventions such as voluntary counselling and testing (VCT); improving access to contraceptives at community level; and advocating and mobilizing the public to demand  their SRH rights. AGBEF’s team includes volunteers, peer educators and thousand of CBDs. Its youth action movement has a membership of over 100. The Member Association partners with government departments and large international NGOs to promote and develop its work.  

The population of the Ivory Coast suffers from a litany of sexual and reproductive health (SRH) problems common to many countries on the continent: frighteningly high rates of maternal death, early pregnancies, child mortality and HIV prevalence, coupled with very low rates of contraceptive use. Additionally, instances of female genital mutilation (FGM) are frequent and the SRH and psychological repercussions that the practice presents are severe. The Association Ivoirienne pour le Bien-Etre Familial (AIBEF) was founded in 1979. It works closely with the National Population Bureau in the planning and implementation of the National Population Policy and the National Youth Policy. The government and legislators have called on the organization for advice and counsel because it is the one of the most experienced organizations in the field and has unparalleled expertise drawn from ground level experience. To complement and expand its scope, AIBEF partners with a number of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) including the Futures Group, Pathfinder International, the Population Council, John Hopkins University, John Snow International, Columbia University and Family Health International. Major donors include the European Union, IPPF’s Japan Trust Fund, The Global Fund Against TB and Malaria, Alliance International and the World Bank. Additionally, it partners with Collectif des ONG de Lutte contre le Sida en Côte d’Ivoire and RIOF – national networks whose primary objective is to increase SRH capacity. Contacts Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AIBEF-1478416299110640/

The Association Malienne pour la Protection et la Promotion de la Famille (AMPPF) was established in 1972 to tackle the family planning challenges facing the Malian people. It rapidly expanded its activity and remit to embrace sexual and reproductive health (SRH) counselling; neonatal, gynaecological, post-natal and post-abortion care; and prevention and management of HIV and AIDS, particularly voluntary counselling and testing (VCT). These figures were achieved through the strategic and focused management of a strong team which has the capacity to reach out to diverse communities across the country. AMPPF has hundreds of volunteers, a strong youth action movement and hundreds of peer educators and community-based distributors.   AMPPF is actively engaged with the planning, health, youth and family departments of the Malian government. It has strong ties with non-governmental organizations (NGOs) including Population Service International (PSI), the Conseil de Concertation et d'Appui aux ONGs, the Federation Nationale des Associations de Santé Communautaire au Mali (FENASCOM), the Association de Recherche, de Communication et d'Accompagnement à Domicile des Personnes vivant avec le VIH/SIDA (ARCAD), and SIDA. Major donors include WHO, USAID and UNFPA.