Family Planning in Francophone West Africa: Progress and Challenges

There have been concerted efforts in the last 10 years to increase access to Family Planning in French-speaking West Africa. The region has been lagging behind the rest of the world and remains one of the few regions in the world with countries that still have single-digit contraceptive prevalence rates. In his presentation, Gaye will explore what governments, civil society, and the donor community have been doing to boost Family Planning uptake. He will draw from lessons learned from initiatives such as the “Ouagadougou Partnership” and the “Challenge Initiative” and offers reflections on what needs to be done to sustain recent gains and accelerate progress.

About the Speaker

Pape Amadou Gaye, President Emeritus IntraHealth International Inc.

Serving as President Emeritus of IntraHealth International, Senegal native Pape Gaye has three decades of leadership experience overseeing international health and development work in over 40 countries. Pape earned his master’s degree in business administration from UCLA, and then began his career in the Peace Corps. From there he worked with the 1984 Los Angeles Olympic Committee, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and led IntraHealth International’s regional office for West, Central, and North Africa before being appointed to CEO of the organization. He has long advocated for a greater focus on the health workforce. In May 2016 at the World Health Assembly, the WHO and member states responded to such advocacy efforts with the first-ever global health workforce strategy, Workforce 2030.

Pape is a frequent international speaker on issues related to capacity-building and the global health workforce. In the United States, his testimony on Capitol Hill during a 2014 Ebola-focused congressional hearing brought the role of frontline health workers to the fore. As a panelist during the White House Global Summit in July 2016, he urged the incoming US president to focus on international aid and human resources for health as powerful investments in our shared future. His editorials appear regularly in the Huffington Post, Devex, and other media outlets.

Resources Referenced

Pape’s Article in our September 2020 Magazine Issue: We Know What Works, So Let’s Do It: Support Family Planning