NEWS

In Ukraine, a wave of awareness-raising activities to support Ukrainian week of family planning and reproductive health, held this year from 9th to 14th May, was organized on the initiative of the Woman Health & Family Planning Foundation in partnership with 20 regional NGOs - members of the All-Ukrainian Coalition on Reproductive Health and Family Planning in the form of numerous thematic activities for different target groups in Kyiv and oblasts.

In particular, FP Week was actively celebrated in Berdychiv and region, Vinnitsa, city of Dnipro and Novomoskovsk of Dnipropetrovsk oblast, Zaporizhia, Kirovohrad, Kyiv, Lutsk, Melitopol, Odesa, Sumy and Shostka of Sumy region, Ternopil, Uzhgorod, Kherson and Gola Prystan, Nova Kakhovka and other towns and villages of Kherson oblast; in Khmelnytsky and Kamyanets-Podil’sky, Chernivtsi and Chernihiv. Members of the Coalition in cooperation with partners - governmental and non-governmental organizations - conducted thematic competitions, quests and quizzes, lectures, workshops, street art action, literary exhibitions, round tables. Besides, participants received thematic newsletters, brochures, training materials developed and traditionally provided by WHFP Foundation.

As part of "Together Against Breast Cancer" Charity Program AVON in Ukraine Company in partnership with WHFP Foundation announced the provision of mini-grants (totally of 625 000 UAH) for regional state oncology centers. These grants will be used by medical institutions to implement the breast cancer early diagnosis and screening programs with the use of mammography. Winners of the national competition were selected by expert council, being represented by national leading oncologists, radiologists, health sector managers and civic activists – breast cancer survivors. The following regional state oncology centers – competition winners - will receive grant assistance:

1. Lviv State Oncology Regional Center of Treatment and Diagnostic;
2. Sumy Oblast Clinical Oncology Center;
3. Kherson Oblast Oncology Center;
4. Cherkassy Oblast Oncology Center;
5. Chernigiv Oblast Oncology Center.

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On April 5-6, 2017 training on the preparation of teachers of "The Right to Love" Education Course designed for young people with mental disorders was held in Kiev on the basis of Tourist Hotel. Event was organized as part of the project "Protection of sexual and reproductive rights of people with mental disabilities" being implemented by Woman Health & Family Planning Charity Foundation in cooperation with Coalition NGO under support of the Renaissance Foundation.

In February and March 2017 WHFP experts within SPECSI project implementation met with local media in Chernihiv, Kherson, Kharkiv, Ivano-Frankovsk and Poltava during Press Club meetings devoted to the topic: "Will Ukrainian state guarantee safe motherhood and childhood for the next 5 years (in the absence of the new State Program" Reproductive Health of the Nation" for the period of 2017-2021)"? Meetings with local journalists were organized by WHFP Charity Foundation in partnership with local press club within implementation of the USAID «Reproductive Health in Ukraine" Project.

Meetings were aimed to inform local media representatives about current issues and problems in the sphere of reproductive health and family planning in Ukraine, as well as a part of advocacy campaign in support of the prompt approval of the Concept and the new State Program "Reproductive health of the nation" for the period of 2017-2021.

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As part of the USAID «Reproductive Health in Ukraine" Project’s final conference, held on March 16 by WHFP, 12 journalists - winners of the competition of informational materials devoted to RH and FP issues – were announced.

The competition was organized by WHFP within SPECSI project advocacy information campaign and aimed at encouraging journalists and media to professionally cover public health issues, reproductive health, reproductive rights and family planning in Ukraine as well as successful experience of local health programs implementation.

The competition was held in four categories (three winners in each), i.e. TV program, radio program, print publication, on-line material.

On March 16, 2017 WHFP Charity Foundation organized final conference of the USAID "Reproductive Health in Ukraine" Project. The purpose of the event was to summarize and present Project developments and results in its two main areas:

• improvement of national policy environment so it becomes more favorable to FP/RH and gender sensitive;
• and increasing the civil society competence and involvement in the FP/RH programs implementation in accordance with international standards as well as support of All-Ukrainian Coalition RH / FP to promote and advocate for RH / FP.