Planned Parenthood Surpasses Ambitious Commitment through Clinton Global Initiative to Reduce Health Inequities Among Youth

For Immediate Release: Sept. 19, 2016

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Planned Parenthood Supported Partners to Reach Millions of Young People with Sexual and Reproductive Health Information and Services Globally, More than Twice its 2012 Goal

New York, NY — At the start of 2016 Clinton Global Initiative (CGI) Annual Meeting, Planned Parenthood Federation of America announced the achievement of its ambitious 2012 commitment to help address the persistent global inequities young people face in accessing sexual and reproductive health care — reaching more than double the amount of youth and adolescents in its original goal.

 

As part of Planned Parenthood’s CGI Commitment to Action, Planned Parenthood Global has supported partners to reach more than two million adolescents and youth with sexual and reproductive health information and services since 2012, more than twice its original goal. Last year alone, Planned Parenthood Global supported partners in training more than 1,300 Youth Peer Providers to provide basic contraceptive counseling and consistent contraceptive access to their friends, classmates and peers across Africa and Latin America. The effort was also completed in support of the United Nations Secretary-General’s Every Woman Every Child initiative.

 

“Planned Parenthood is proud to be making good on our promise to help create the healthiest generation ever,” said Cecile Richards, president of Planned Parenthood Federation of America. “Youth are our present and our future. Yet, young people across the globe are too often unable to access quality health care, threatening their ability to build the future they want and chase their dreams. Planned Parenthood’s fulfillment of our CGI commitment demonstrates our long-term vision to ensure everyone—no matter where they live— has access to the care and information they need.  And this is only the beginning. We will be announcing a new commitment soon.”

 

As part of its commitment, Planned Parenthood also helped address the gaps facing young people around the world by nominating and sponsoring youth in the United States through two fellowship programs. Fellows attend United Nation and other international meetings, design global health campaigns on college campuses and in their home communities, and travel to and work with Planned Parenthood Global’s country programs.

 

"I learned so much by being a Planned Parenthood Global Youth Ambassador," said Lisa Balland, a Community Health Educator with Planned Parenthood Association of Utah and a former Planned Parenthood Global Youth Ambassador. "After visiting a community group in Abuja, Nigeria, I was able to learn — and successfully apply — new ways of reaching young people in my own community in the U.S. with lifesaving information and services."

 

Through digital outreach, Planned Parenthood also continues to bring real-time global health policy information to young people across the U.S. through its websites and social media platforms, which receive 6 million visits each month. In fulfilling its 2012 commitment through these activities, Planned Parenthood has built on its success in serving and mobilizing a national network of young people in the U.S.

 

“You cannot promote sustainable development without investing in young people,” said Latanya Mapp Frett, Executive Director of Planned Parenthood Global. “Planned Parenthood Global is proud to have achieved our CGI commitment, and is committed to continue to invest in young people in the U.S. and around the world.”

 

A CGI commitment must present a new idea or approach to a major challenge; outline a specific approach to a problem; and have specific quantitative or qualitative goals that can be monitored to evaluate progress over time. At the 2016 Annual Meeting, Planned Parenthood Global will announce a new commitment to support educators, activists, and providers to work together in coalition as champions for health and rights in their societies.

 

Follow Planned Parenthood Global on Twitter (@ppglobe) for updates from the 2016 Clinton Global Initiative Annual Meeting and beyond.

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About Planned Parenthood Federation of America

Planned Parenthood is the nation’s leading provider and advocate of high-quality, affordable health care for women, men, and young people, as well as the nation’s largest provider of sex education. With approximately 650 health centers across the country, Planned Parenthood organizations serve all patients with care and compassion, with respect and without judgment. Through health centers, programs in schools and communities, and online resources, Planned Parenthood is a trusted source of reliable health information that allows people to make informed health decisions. We do all this because we care passionately about helping people lead healthier lives.

 

About Planned Parenthood Global

For more than 40 years, Planned Parenthood Global, the international arm of PPFA, has been working overseas to ensure that women, men, and young people in some of the world’s most neglected areas have access to the health care they need to control their bodies and their futures. By partnering with local advocates, medical service providers, and youth leaders and helping to build sustainable networks and organizations, we find innovative ways to deliver critical services and fight for more inclusive laws and policies.

 

About the Clinton Global Initiative

Established in 2005 by President Bill Clinton, the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI), an initiative of the Clinton Foundation, convenes global leaders to create and implement solutions to the world's most pressing challenges. CGI Annual Meetings have brought together 190 sitting and former heads of state, more than 20 Nobel Prize laureates, and hundreds of leading CEOs, heads of foundations and NGOs, major philanthropists, and members of the media. To date, members of the CGI community have made more than 3,500 Commitments to Action, which have improved the lives of over 430 million people in more than 180 countries.

For more information, visit clintonglobalinitiative.org and follow us on Twitter @ClintonGlobal and Facebook at facebook.com/clintonglobalinitiative.​