IPPF presented the following Awards for Outstanding Courage at the General Assembly in the following categories:
- Outstanding individual contribution by a volunteer to the advancement of sexual and reproductive health and rights
- Outstanding individual contribution by a young person to the advancement of sexual and reproductive health and rights
- Outstanding collective contribution by a Member Association to the advancement of sexual and reproductive health and rights
- Outstanding individual contribution by a staff member of a Member Association to the advancement of sexual and reproductive health and rights
- Outstanding public contribution to sexual and reproductive health and rights
Congratulations to the following Member Associations who have made outstanding contributions to promote and progress the realisation of SRHR; to create an atmosphere of hope and celebration.
Award Recipients 2019:
Outstanding individual contribution by a volunteer to the advancement of sexual and reproductive health and rights: Dr Safieh Shahriari Afshar, a longtime volunteer who has worked with government, religious institutions and civil society to address the hardships resulting from sanctions on Iran.
Outstanding individual contribution by a young person to the advancement of sexual and reproductive health and rights: Erasmo Mbemba, from the Family Planning Association of Malawi (FPAM). He was a key figure in developing the Youth Manifesto and has led SheDecides in Malawi, as well as being one of the 25X25 for SheDecides.
Outstanding collective contribution by a Member Association to the advancement of sexual and reproductive health and rights: FPA Sri Lanka, for its impressive application and website, as well as its work on HIV/AIDS despite environmental and financial obstacles, to be collected by Tashaya Anuki Premachandra youth representative of FPA Sri Lanka and Don Gunawardena, Member of the Nominations and Governance Subcommittee; President Aruni and ED Tushara will join via link.
Outstanding individual contribution by a staff member of a Member Association to the advancement of sexual and reproductive health and rights: Liai Siitia, Executive Director, Samoa Family Health Association. Liai turned around the MA to become one of the leading SRH organizations in the country, with a focus on marginalized groups and maternal mortality.
Outstanding Award for Contribution to sexual and reproductive health and rights (Non-IPPF Volunteer): Monica Carrillo. Activist, feminist and journalist, Monica works at the intersection of race and ethnicity, with a particular commitment to marginalized groups.
Award recipients 2022:
Category 1
Outstanding individual contribution by a volunteer to the advancement of sexual and reproductive health and rights – Judith Maffon Gbehinto, Benin.
The President of L’Association Béninoise pour la Promotion de la Famille (ABPF), Judith is one of the key players who has promoted the development of the MA, which has flourished. With a reformist and forward-looking vision, she initiated governance reform of the Association; and has secured funding and support from new partners, including the Dutch Embassy, Rutgers, Engender Health and Memsisa.
Category 2
Outstanding individual contribution by a young person to the advancement of sexual and reproductive health and rights – Alice Ackermann, France
Alice exemplifies youth leadership both through her values and actions. Alice mobilised a youth revolution leading into what is now IPPFs historic governance reforms. She brought people together across age, gender, sexuality, and ethnicity to make a dramatic and impactful change that will ensure IPPF holds closer to its organisational integrity and values. Today, as a board member of Mouvement Français pour le Planning Familial (MFPF) she continues her brave work pushing the MA to take bold stance on sexual and reproductive health rights, including transgender rights.
Category 3
Outstanding collective contribution by a Member Association to the advancement of sexual and reproductive health and rights – Afghan Family Guidance Association; award to be accepted by Executive Director Najibullah Samim
AFGA’s courageous work in sustaining access to essential SRH information and care in an increasingly fragile and challenging environment has been exemplary and testimony of what can be achieved through sheer dedication, and hard work. This is ever more true with the return of the Taliban. This award serves as a recognition of women staff and volunteers who risk their lives every day to support our organizational mission.
Category 4
Outstanding individual contribution by a staff member of a Member Association to the advancement of sexual and reproductive health and rights
Joint winners – Aberram Tata, Kiribati; Ms Jackie Edmond, Chief Executive Director of the NZ Family Planning to accept award in person
Jonathan Trinidad, Aruba
Abe is a young person who’s grown with the MA and is a driving force behind the inclusion of young people at decision making level. His contribution at the Kiribati National Youth Council has brought to light the issues around SRH and access that young people face. He has established one of the only Humanitarian Youth Clubs in Kiribati and the Pacific, bringing together like-minded young people, disadvantaged young people from the LGBTQI and disability community to implement activities to for young people who are out of school or who have no access to SRH information and services.
Jonathan truly has SRHR and above all CSE at heart which motivated him to reinvent and redesign the entire CSE program for Aruba. He established a partnership between the Family Planning Association and the local teacher’s institute, leading the development of Aruba’s first CSE curriculum, which is provided to 55% of all local primary and secondary schools on the island each year. As a true believer in sustainability, he helped pioneer FPA’s Social Enterprise, which accounted for 27% of FPA’s total 2021 income.
Category 5
Outstanding public contribution to sexual and reproductive health and rights
The Polish Women’s Strike, accepted by Marta Lempart
The Polish Women’s Strike arose in 2016, when thousands of citizens marched across Poland against a bill to ban abortion. It has worked tirelessly since then to build a fight the dismantling of human rights, democracy and the rule of law by the country’s extremist, ultra-conservative government. Women’s Strike activists persist in their fight for SRHR and democracy in spite of an enormous personal toll on their health, lives and incomes. The movement’s protesters and organizers have experienced heavy trauma resulting from police and neo-Nazi violence and intimidation, arbitrary detention, and criminal charges.
