Make Way Regional and Global
.Mechanisms, policies and decision-making at regional and global levels also have an important impact on health outcomes at a national level. That is why besides implementing the programme in the five Make Way countries, we also work at the regional and global level. These are the areas we focus on:
Sufficient and sustainable finance
Despite existing regional and global commitments and goals on the financing of health, including sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR), there is a lack of flexible and sustainable funding to support public health. Bilateral donors allocate limited resources to SRHR country programmes, while the countries themselves do not have the space to invest enough resources in health – and in SRHR services in particular. We want multilateral Global Health Initiatives, international financial institutions, and development partners to support public finance for health, align with country needs, coordinate their efforts around strengthening health systems, and be transparent and accountable for their commitment to leave no one behind.
Implementation of regional and global commitments
We also want to do something about the gaps in policymaking processes and implementation, as well as the accountability of regional and global commitments. Regional and global policies are often not transferred into national policy, and are selectively implemented. This applies, for example, to the Sustainable Development Goals, the Paris Declaration on Aid Effectiveness, the Abuja Declaration, the African Union’s Agenda 2063, and the East and Southern Africa Commitments for Comprehensive Sexuality Education. We want to see all those involved at a regional and global level live up to their commitments and increase the engagement of right-holders in policymaking. And we want to see more good quality disaggregated data, as existing data tends to make heterosexuality the norm, rather than being broken down in an intersectional way.
Opening up civic space
Make Way Regional & Global wants to reverse the current limited civic space and aims to improve civil society organisations’ capacity for regional and global engagement. These organisations need the resources (both financial and technical) to engage in regional and global advocacy spaces, which are often restricted or controlled and difficult to navigate.
Creating an inclusive counter–narrative
Conservative societal norms pose a major challenge for Make Way’s goals. Opposition to these goals can influence laws and policies, their implementation, and the allocation of funding. That creates conflict with more progressive SRHR positions. There is also an increased use of narratives, language and tactics to stigmatise and discriminate against minoritised groups and their SRHR needs. By raising awareness around intersectionality in a growing group of civil society organisations, we want to create a network of allies to jointly take up intersectional SRHR advocacy and create a strong counter–narrative that is truly inclusive.
Coordinator
Wemos
Collaborating partners
- Share-Net Netherlands – share-net.nl
- GFF Hub
- CHOICE for Youth & Sexuality – choiceforyouth.org
- African Population and Health Research Centre (APHRC) – aphrc.org
- Eastern Africa National Networks of AIDS and Health Service Organisations (EANNASO) – eannaso.org
- SRHR Africa Trust (SAT)
