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30 June 2025 - The International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF) is proud to announce the roll out of CAB-LA (cabotegravir-long acting), a form of pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) for HIV, in Eswatini, and Malawi, and a pilot project in Lesotho - a major milestone in the fight against HIV. IPPF Member Associations (MAs) in the three countries - Family Life Association of Eswatini (FLAS), Lesotho Planned Parenthood Association (LPPA), and Family Planning Association of Malawi ( FPAM) will soon begin to distribute CAB-LA for HIV prevention to individuals who would like to use this form of HIV prevention.  CAB-LA, a long-acting injectable PrEP, is a game changer for HIV prevention. PrEP is an HIV prevention method where HIV-negative individuals take medication to significantly reduce their risk of acquiring HIV. Administered every 8 weeks, CAB-LA greatly reduces infection risk and does not rely on remembering to take a daily pill, addressing adherence challenges faced by some people using oral PrEP.  This roll-out comes when US budget cuts have severely impacted governments and organizations providing sexual and reproductive health services, HIV prevention, and humanitarian aid. These financial restrictions have significantly impacted access to essential sexual and reproductive health medications globally, compromising HIV prevention and treatment for many, especially those most in need. The arrival of CAB-LA is a major step forward in the fight against HIV/AIDS, providing longer-term protection, a more convenient option, and a discreet alternative to daily pills. Family Life Association of Eswatini, Lesotho Planned Parenthood Association, and the Family Planning Association of Malawi will be providing CAB-LA for PrEP through their static clinics and other public service delivery points. This effort underscores the vital role our MAs play in securing and delivering universal access to sexual and reproductive healthcare. For more information, please contact media@ippf.orgAbout the International Planned Parenthood Federation  IPPF is a global healthcare provider and a leading advocate of sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) for all. Led by a courageous and determined group of women, IPPF was founded in 1952 at the Third International Planned Parenthood Conference. Today, we are a movement of 158 Member Associations and Collaborative Partners with a presence in over 153 countries.  Our work is wide-ranging, and includes services for sexual health and well-being, contraception, abortion care, sexually transmitted infections and reproductive tract infections, HIV, obstetrics and gynecology, fertility support, sexual and gender-based violence, comprehensive sex education, and responding to humanitarian crises. We pride ourselves on being local through our members and global through our network. At the heart of our mission is the provision of – and advocacy in support of – integrated healthcare to anyone who needs it regardless of race, gender, sex, income, and, crucially no matter how remote.  

15th April 2025, River Nile State, Sudan - In a groundbreaking step for healthcare access in Sudan, the Sudan Family Planning Association (SFPA) has launched the country’s first mobile telemedicine clinic in River Nile State. Funded by IPPF and FCDO, this innovation brings specialist remote care to people in isolated and conflict-affected areas, reducing the need for physical travel to health facilities. The mobile telemedicine clinic trucks are equipped with high-speed Starlink satellite internet and can travel to remote and rural locations. Clients receive essential treatment on-site and can connect directly, through secure video calls, with medical specialists across Sudan and internationally, including consultants based in Europe. This initiative is part of SFPA’s broader telemedicine project, designed to ensure the continued delivery of sexual and reproductive health services to the most vulnerable populations, particularly in areas where healthcare systems have collapsed due to conflict. Ms Kawthar, Executive Director of the SFPA branch in River Nile State, noted that the launch of the mobile telemedicine clinic, in Quoz Al-Halq, marks the beginning of a new era in healthcare service delivery within the state. “This project represents a landmark moment in Sudan’s healthcare history. We face enormous challenges in reaching people affected by conflict and displacement with essential health services. But this clinic changes what’s possible. We can now deliver integrated healthcare solutions through smart technologies – we’re breaking down barriers to health.” This innovation comes as Sudan approaches the third year of a brutal conflict, which began on 15 April 2023. Over 12.5 million people have been forcibly displaced[i], and more than two-thirds of the population are in need of humanitarian aid[ii]. Rates of sexually transmitted infections and gender-based violence, including sexual violence, have risen sharply[iii]. Many clinics and hospitals have been destroyed or abandoned. There is a severe shortage of qualified medical personnel, many of whom have fled the country. Access to care has disappeared entirely in some areas.  SFPA facilities and staff have also been directly affected by the conflict, with nine of its clinics attacked, resulting in the tragic loss of volunteers and healthcare workers. Amid these challenges, SFPA managed to reach 9.8 million humanitarian clients in 2024.  The new mobile telemedicine clinic offers a leap forward in how care can be delivered. It will provide: In-person and digital health consultations Psychosocial support for survivors of gender-based violence Awareness campaigns on reproductive health and sexually transmitted infections Fully integrated digital referral system, linking primary care with specialised medical facilities. Dr Siham Gaber, Director of Digital Health Interventions and Services at SFPA, said the initiative reflects the Association’s vision to harness technology for sustainable healthcare delivery in crisis contexts. “The mobile telemedicine clinic is a significant step forward in improving access to reproductive health services. It enables remote medical consultations and connects patients with doctors and specialists without the need for long-distance travel.  This is especially important for women, youth and displaced people, who often face serious risks just to access a health facility. Now, they can get the right care where they are - safely and with dignity.” Mr El-Shafie Mohamed Ali, Executive Director of SFPA, added: “This clinic is not just a mobile health unit. It represents a comprehensive model for integrating telemedicine solutions into the provision of healthcare services. It contributes to expanding coverage and narrowing the health gap caused by conflict and insecurity.” The first phase of the project will see mobile telemedicine clinics deployed in five key states: River Nile, Red Sea, Kassala, Gedaref and Blue Nile. A second expansion phase will begin in May and aims to extend coverage across all 15 states where SFPA operates. This will ensure broader access to services for those most in need. “We remain dedicated to innovation and the scaling of digital solutions to ensure every Sudanese citizen, regardless of their location or circumstance, has access to quality healthcare,” said Mr El-Shafie Mohamed Ali. For more information and to speak to SFPA staff in Sudan, please email media@ippf.org   ------- About the Sudan Family Planning Association  The Sudan Family Planning Association (SFPA) was established in 1965 by pioneers in obstetrics and gynaecology in response to increases in maternal, neonatal and infant mortality and morbidity. As the statistics show, Sudan is a country in great need of frontline sexual and reproductive health (SRH) services. Advocacy, and undertaking information, education and communication (IEC) programs are critical. In 2024, SFPA provided 43.4 million services to 12.6 million clients (9.8 million of which were humanitarian clients) through 26 static clinics, 39 mobile clinics, 1499 community-based distributors, private physicians and associated clinics. About the International Planned Parenthood Federation The International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF) is a global healthcare provider and a leading advocate of sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) for all. We are a movement of 150 Member Associations and Collaborative Partners with a presence in over 146 countries. Building on a proud history of 70 years of achievement, we commit to lead a locally owned, globally connected civil society movement that provides and enables services and champions sexual and reproductive health and rights for all, especially the under-served. We advocate for a world where people are provided with the information they need to make informed decisions about their sexual health and bodies. We stand up and fight for sexual and reproductive rights, and against those who seek to deny people their human right to bodily autonomy and freedom. We deliver care that is rooted in rights, respect, and dignity - no matter what.  [i] https://www.unrefugees.org/news/sudan-crisis-explained/ [ii] https://humanitarianaction.info/plan/1220 [iii] https://www.unwomen.org/en/news-stories/press-release/2024/09/sudan-humanitarian-crisis-has-catastrophic-impact-for-women-and-girls-with-two-fold-increase-of-gender-based-violence   

Joint statement by FCAA, IPPF, and ILGA-World from the Kalavai Partnership31 March 2025 -  We call on policymakers, governments, and philanthropy to protect and expand HIV funding and not to turn their backs on vulnerable populations.The world is at a crossroads in the fight against HIV. For decades, dedicated investments in HIV prevention, treatment, and care have saved millions of lives and helped stabilize communities. Yet today, these gains are at risk. Critical funding from the U.S. government and other donor nations is under threat, jeopardizing the very infrastructure that has driven progress.In fact, new analyses published by amfAR and The Lancet demonstrate the catastrophic toll cuts to both the U.S. CDC Division of HIV Prevention and foreign aid from the US, the Netherlands, Britain, and other nations, predicting up to 2.9 million more HIV-related deaths before 2030 and essentially undoing all progress achieved since 2000.This crisis no longer knows borders. Now is the time to act—before we lose ground that cannot easily be regained.HIV Prevention Saves Lives—We Must Not Step BackHIV prevention is one of the most cost-effective and impactful investments in global health. It reduces new infections, alleviates the burden on healthcare systems, and safeguards the well-being of vulnerable communities. U.S. government funding for global HIV programs has been a lifeline for communities disproportionately affected by HIV, including women and children, LGBTQ people, sex workers, and people who use drugs. Yet today, political and financial pressures threaten these programs, putting lives and progress in jeopardy.HIV prevention includes a broad range of essential interventions:Access to PrEP (Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis): A highly effective HIV prevention medication that significantly reduces the risk of transmission.Comprehensive sexual health education: Ensuring individuals have the knowledge and resources to protect themselves and their partners.Harm reduction services: Including needle exchange programs and opioid substitution therapy for people who use drugs.Access to condoms and lubricants: Fundamental tools in preventing the spread of HIV and other sexually transmitted infections.HIV testing and linkage to care: Early diagnosis and immediate access to treatment are key to preventing new infections and achieving viral suppression.Mother-to-child transmission prevention: Ensuring pregnant women living with HIV have access to antiretroviral therapy to protect their newborns.HIV, Global Health Security, and Human Rights Are InseparableHIV prevention is not just about health — it is about global stability, economic resilience, and human rights.Slashing funding for HIV programs weakens public health infrastructure, rolling back decades of hard-won progress and making people worldwide more vulnerable to other global health crises.The fight against HIV is intrinsically linked to sexual and reproductive health and rights, women's health, and LGBTQ rights. For example, the lives of transgender individuals are even more at risk due to the reduction of health and human rights-based services as a result of anti-trans and anti-DEI Executive Orders.Women and girls continue to bear a disproportionate burden of the HIV epidemic, and their health hangs in the balance in the wake of funding cuts. Every week, approximately 4,000 adolescent girls and young women contract HIV, the majority of whom live in sub-Saharan Africa. Pregnant women living with HIV require consistent treatment to prevent mother-to-child transmission, yet funding shortfalls place these essential services at risk. Without sustained investment, millions of women and newborns face heightened health risks, undermining global progress toward ending HIV.Governments and donors must recognize that investing in HIV prevention is an investment in global health security. When we protect and strengthen HIV infrastructure, we also reinforce systems that respond to pandemics, reduce maternal mortality, and promote equity in healthcare.A Call to Action: The Time to Step Up is NowWe have the medical tools - including the addition of long-acting injectables - to end HIV as a public health crisis. We just need the funding and leadership.We call on policymakers in the U.S. government and donor governments worldwide to take urgent action:Sustain and increase funding for HIV prevention, treatment, and care. Public investment is essential to protect the communities most at risk and ensure that we don’t lose ground.Recognize the intersection of HIV with broader human rights issues. Supporting HIV programs also means protecting reproductive health, LGBTQ rights, and gender justice.We also call on philanthropy to lean in, not out. Now is not the time for donors to retreat. The role of private philanthropy has never been more critical in safeguarding communities and mobilizing new resources to fill funding gaps. Every investment today saves lives tomorrow.The Kalavai Initiative — a partnership of Funders Concerned About AIDS (FCAA), the International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF), Global Philanthropy Project (GPP), and ILGA World — urges all stakeholders to act with urgency. Lives are at stake. The time to protect and expand HIV funding is now.Join Us in Taking ActionPolicymakers, donors, and advocates: Stand with us to protect public health, human rights, and the future of HIV prevention. Together, we can ensure that decades of progress are not lost, and that every person — regardless of who they are or where they live — has access to the lifesaving care they deserve.About the Kalavai Partners:ILGA World is a worldwide federation of more than 2,000 organisations from over 170 countries and territories campaigning for the human rights of people with diverse sexual orientations, gender identities and expressions, and sex characteristics. https://ilga.orgThe International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF) is a global healthcare provider and a leading advocate of sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) for all. Founded in 1952, it is now a movement of 150 member associations and collaborative partners with a presence in over 146 countries. https://www.ippf.org/Funders Concerned About AIDS (FCAA) unites philanthropic leaders to pursue a shared vision of a world without AIDS. Through research, advocacy, and collaboration, we work to mobilize and grow funding for the ever-changing fight against HIV. https://www.fcaaids.org/Global Philanthropy Project (GPP) is a collaboration of funders and philanthropic advisors working to expand global philanthropic support to advance the human rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and intersex (LGBTI) people in the Global South and East. https://globalphilanthropyproject.org/

London, 26 February 2025 – The International Planned Parenthood Federation condemns the decision of the UK Government to decrease ODA (Overseas Development Assistance) from 0.5% to 0.3% of GNI, to increase defence spending from 2.3 to 2.5% of GDP by 2027. This marks the second major cut since 2021, when the UK slashed ODA from 0.7% to 0.5% of GNI—a devastating rollback of its global commitments.  This is not just a policy shift—it is a direct assault on human rights, healthcare, and the lives of the world’s most marginalised communities, steeped in the same colonial logic that has long prioritised military power over the lives and dignity of people in the Global South.  Dr Alvaro Bermejo, Director-General of IPPF said:  “The UK Government’s decision to cut life-saving aid is failing the world’s most systematically and historically marginalised communities - racialized people, women and girls, LGBTQI+ communities, refugees, and those in humanitarian crises. Let’s be clear: this will cost lives. IPPF has long been a development partner of FCDO; by betraying partner countries in the Global South, this is a missed opportunity to work together to fix systemic injustices and build lasting and trusting relationships rooted in solidarity with historically dispossessed nations and communities.”  The UK’s decision does not exist in isolation. It is part of a broader, deeply racialised system where Western powers extract, exploit, and then turn their backs on the very communities they have impoverished and destabilised. The UK is funneling money into military expansion, reinforcing the same cycles of war, displacement, and suffering that fuel global inequities.  Since January 2025, the aid and development sectors have been facing unprecedented and multiple budget cuts and freezes driven by the new Trump administration. Across the world, we have witnessed a systematic defunding of women's rights, sexual rights, and vulnerable people living in conflict zones and humanitarian crises.   The same communities are being targeted again and again: women, girls, LGBTQI+ people, migrants, and refugees—the very people most in need of support and people who are already fighting to survive in a world shaped by centuries of colonialism and racial injustice.    We call on the UK Government to reverse this decision and restore the UK aid budget to 0.7 of GNI as pledged in its election manifesto. Lives are at stake, and now more than ever, we must stand for global solidarity, not turn our backs on those who need us most.   For more information, please contact media@ippf.org - +44 7918 845944  About the International Planned Parenthood Federation   IPPF is a global healthcare provider and a leading advocate of sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) for all. Led by a courageous and determined group of women, IPPF was founded in 1952 at the Third International Planned Parenthood Conference. Today, we are a movement of 158 Member Associations and Collaborative Partners with a presence in over 153 countries.   Our work is wide-ranging, including comprehensive sex education, provision of contraceptive, safe abortion, and maternal care and responding to humanitarian crises. We pride ourselves on being local through our members and global through our network. At the heart of our mission is the provision of – and advocacy in support of – integrated healthcare to anyone who needs it regardless of race, gender, sex, income, and crucially no matter how remote.