ungass forum
The project Monitoring the Sexual and Reproductive Health Within the National AIDS Plans was launched in 2007 to supervise the objectives of the UNGASS-AIDS goals, aiming to improve the countries’ responses in regard to strengthening public policies and SRH services for women. The first phase (2007-2008) enjoyed the participation of 16 countries. The second phase had twelve countries (2009-2010).A special guideline was designed to collect data by civil society, the UNGASS AIDS Forum on SRH& R were established in each country and the results were validated through participatory processes with representatives from different social movements. The meetings and workshops were denominated UNGASS AIDS Forum on Sexual and Reproductive Health.
The UNGASS-AIDS Forums usually last for two to three days with intense work of strategizing and planning. Much has changed in the countries since the inception of the UA Forum platform of taking international resolutions to monitor national performance. The advocacy community started paying more attention and producing concrete information about the disparity between speech and action, discourse and implementation. The issue of women's sexual and reproductive health and rights within national AIDS plans brings about a very palpable matter in the difference of the existence of policies and their implementation.
Since its beginning the UA Forum works essentially with seed money. Its international coordination has limited resources to distribute among all other country partners for its operational budget is barely sufficient to spark the advocacy/research idea in the work of local and national leaders. We are very grateful for the vision of the Ford Foundation in financing the project and for our country partners for their tenacity in developing the process.
