The Women's Refugee Commission at Women Deliver
- are safe, healthy and self-reliant;
- have their human rights respected and protected; and
- inform and drive their own solutions and development
The Women's Refugee Commission’s sexual and reproductive health program is its most longstanding program. The Women’s Refugee Commission advocates for humanitarian agencies to:
- Expand access to family planning
- Improve the quality and availability of critical maternal health and newborn services
- Prevent and treat sexually transmitted infections and HIV
- Meet the sexual and reproductive health needs of adolescents
- Prevent and address gender-based violence
We work on innovative programming to improve the sexual and reproductive health of all persons affected by crises. Our initiatives encompass adolescent sexual and reproductive health, disaster risk reduction and emergency preparedness, community empowerment, alternative service delivery models, child marriage and emergency response. We identify critical gaps in sexual and reproductive health and make recommendations on solutions to better meet the needs of women and girls specifically.
The Women's Refugee Commission is committed to advocating for the inclusion of crisis-affected women, men and children in global development and humanitarian agendas. Below, please find details on the Women's Refugee Commission-sponsored concurrent sessions at Women Deliver, as well as more information about the 14th Annual Meeting of the Inter-Agency Working Group (IAWG) on Reproductive Health in Crises, directly following Women Deliver May 31 –June 1 at the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre.
Watch panels, presentations and other events LIVE here!
Follow coverage of the event on Facebook and Twitter.
Visit us at the WRC/IAWG booth in Exhibit Hall 2, Booth numbers 189, 190, 195 and 196
Exhibit Hall Hours:
Monday, 27 May 5:30-7:00 PM
Tuesday, 28 May 8:00 AM-7:00 PM
Wednesday, 29 May 8:00 AM-8:30 PM
Thursday, 30 May 8:00 AM-5:30 PM
Concurrent Sessions and Side Events
Tuesday May 28, 2013
7:00am-8:30am, Room 403
Launch of Reproductive Health Matters journal June 2014 issue “Young people, sex and relationships: miles to go and promises to keep”
Jennifer Schlecht, Women's Refugee Commission, will talk about “Early relationships and marriage in conflict and post-conflict settings: vulnerability of youth in Uganda”
11:30am-1:00pM, Room 304
Lessons from the Field: Preventing Unintended Pregnancies in Humanitarian Crises
Access to lifesaving sexual and reproductive health services, including family planning, is essential in even the earliest stages of a humanitarian crisis. Existing gaps in these services leave nearly 60 million people, currently displaced by conflict or natural disasters, extremely vulnerable. Data on existing gaps and innovative approaches will be presented.
MODERATOR: Pramila Senanayake, President, The Family Planning Association of Sri Lanka
PANEL: Basia Tomczyk, Epidemiologist, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Preliminary Findings of 2012-2013 Global Review of Reproductive Health in Crisis-affected Populations
Nadine Cornier, Senior Reproductive Health/HIV Coordinator, UNHCR
Refocusing Family Planning in Refugee Settings: Findings and Recommendations from a Multi-
Country Baseline Study with a Brief Film
Jesse Rattan, Director, CARE USA
Contraceptive Method Mixes in Emergencies in Chad, Democratic Republic of Congo and
Pakistan
Dhammika Perera, Senior Technical Advisor, International Rescue Committee
The Community-based Access to Injectables Project: Preliminary findings from Pilot
Implementation in Liberia
2:45-4:15pm, Room 402
Making Maternal and Newborn Health Safer in Humanitarian Crises
Reducing preventable maternal and newborn morbidity and mortality is essential during any humanitarian emergency. Organizations face numerous challenges in these efforts, as well as notable successes. This panel will highlight the needs of particular vulnerable groups and organizational experiences during recent emergencies.
MODERATOR: Susan Dentzer, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation
PANEL: Sandra Krause, Director, Reproductive Health Program, Women’s Refugee Commission
Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights Programs in Humanitarian Settings
Kristin Cooney, Country Portfolio Director, Management Sciences for Health
Against All Odds: Improving Women and Children’s Health in the DRC
Catrin Schulte-Hillen , Médecins Sans Frontières Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights Working
Group
Implementation of a Minimum Package of Reproductive Health Care Activities in Humanitarian
Settings
Teresita Artiaga Elegado, Program Coordinator, The Family Planning Organization of the
Philippines
Implementing MISP for Reproductive Health in Northern Mindanao, Philippines in the Aftermath
of Typhoon Sendong (International Code Name Washi)
6:30 – 8:30pm Room 8, The Prince Hotel, Kuala Lumpur
Dinner Panel: Delivering MNCH Services in Fragile and Post-Conflict States
Panelists will make short presentations on challenges faced and success achieved in the delivery of maternal, newborn, child health (MNCH) and reproductive health (RH) services in fragile states. There will be time for questions.
Objectives:
- Understand the political, economic, and health conditions of fragile states
- Understand the major barriers to and strategies for delivering MNCH and RH services in fragile states
- Understand how leadership and governance can and does play a role in saving the lives of women and children
Moderator:
Jonathan Quick: President and CEO, Management Sciences for Health (MSH)
Panelists:
Sandra Guerrier: Project Director, Haiti, Management Sciences for Health (MSH)
Hedayetullah Mushfiq: Senior Technical Advisor, Afghanistan, Management Sciences for Health (MSH)
Sandra Krause: Director, Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights, Women’s Refugee Commission (WRC)
Philippe Tshiteta: Country Representative, DR Congo, Management Sciences for Health (MSH)
Wednesday May 29, 2013
12:00 – 12:25pm, Cinema Corner
Screening of “Ensure Family Planning Services for Women, Men and Adolescents in Humanitarian Settings.” The Women's Refugee Commission has produced a 3-minute film on the urgent necessity for family planning in humanitarian settings. Watch the film to learn how family planning saves lives.
In Crisis-affected Settings
Approximately 60 million people were displaced by conflict and natural disaster in 2012. Many of them want, but do not have access to, family planning services. Persons affected by crises have the right and need to access family planning services as they work to recover, rebuild and revitalize their families and communities.
Thursday May 30, 2013
7:00 – 8:30am, Room 308
Safe Access to Firewood and Alternatives Energies (SAFE) and Protection: Empowering Women Through Clean Cookstoves and Fuels.
Organized by the Global Alliance for Clean Cookstoves and Fuels
Sandra Krause, director, WRC’s reproductive health program, will present
1:00 – 3:00pm, LOCATION TBD, KLCC
SPRINT Initiative Steering Committee
7:00 – 10:00pm, Impiana Hotel
SPRINT/IAWG Reception
* * *
Friday, May 31 – Saturday, June 1
Room 402 & 403
Fourteenth Annual Inter-agency Working Group (IAWG) on Reproductive Health in Crises Meeting
Objectives
- Review progress towards achieving the programmatic goals and future steps outlined in the Terms of Reference following the 2011 IAWG meeting held in Istanbul, Turkey.
- Share information, plan next steps and areas of coordination and collaboration for 2013-2014.
- Strengthen the regional IAWG forum for the Southeast Asia and Oceania region to share information and lessons learned across projects in the region and enable synergistic partnerships.
The meeting will bring together individuals dedicated to improving the reproductive health outcomes of those affected by conflict or natural disasters. Organizations working in reproductive health or in crisis-affected settings are encouraged to attend, including new members to the IAWG.
