This poster was presented at the International Conference on Family Planning (ICFP) in Kigali, Rwanda in November 2018. World Vision is implementing a USAID-funded Healthy Timing and Spacing of Pregnancies/Family Planning (HTSP/FP) Project through a grant from the Advancing Partners & Communities Project (APC) in Northeastern Kenya in Garba Tulla. Mothers attending antenatal and maternal, neonatal, and child health (MNCH) services are responsive to discussions about HTSP and receiving voluntary FP care. Reaching male partners who accompany their wives at MNCH and antenatal visits is also an opportunity to provide men with FP counseling and contraceptive methods. The project aims to increase access to and demand for voluntary FP care through integrating FP/HTSP into MNCH care and promoting male and religious leader involvement in related discussions. By working with the Ministry of Health (MOH) at five health facilities, the project has supported 120 community health volunteers and rolled out a strategy to engage men and religious leaders to strengthen demand and use voluntary FP methods. FP information and services were also provided at MNCH, antenatal, and postnatal visits.

1. METHODOLOGIES
The project aims to increase access to and demand for
voluntary FP care through integrating FP/HTSP into MNCH
care and promoting male and religious leader involvement
in related discussions. By working with the Ministry of
Health (MOH) at five health facilities, the project has sup-
ported 120 community health volunteers and rolled out a
strategy to engage men and religious leaders to strength-
en demand and use voluntary FP methods.
FP information and services were also provided at MNCH,
antenatal, and postnatal visits. The main strategy engaging
faith leaders included:
• Providing male Muslim leaders with information and
skills to better understand, accept, and support the
provision of MNCH/RH/FP information and services at
the facility and community levels.
• Engaging a reproductive health trainer from the
Ministry of Health and a sheikh trained in HTSP/FP
to lead training sessions.
• Developing and using a training manual: Mobilizing
Muslim Religious Leaders for Reproductive Health
and Family Planning at the Community Level by
Extending Service Delivery.
• Training faith leaders to act as long-term advocates for
the health of mothers and children.
RESULTS
• Muslim religious leaders trained in HTSP: 80
• Public HTSP messages: 380+
• Recipients of FP/MNCH services: 7,073 women,
3,597 men
• Monitoring data show nearly 1/3 of all current FP users
are men, with condoms and Standard Days Method
(SDM) showing highest uptake. Among women using a
family planning method, injectables (12%) and SDM
(10%) were the most preferred methods reported.
• Male community health workers, volunteers, and
religious and local leaders have been successful in
building consensus on the need for HTSP for healthy
women, children, families, and communities.
• Birth spacing is now discussed openly and in a manner
consistent with religious beliefs of this conservative
community.
• HTSP messages resonate with imams, sheikhs, and
fathers as they better understand the health and
financial benefits that practicing HTSP/FP will bring
their communities and families.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS: Advancing Partners & Communities (APC) is a cooperative agreement funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development under Agreement No. AID-OAA-A-12-00047, beginning
October 1, 2012. APC is implemented by JSI Research & Training Institute, Inc., in collaboration with FHI 360. We acknowledge the contributions of the Drug Shop Task Force of the participating health workers;
VHTs, as well as the assistances of FHI 360/APC Uganda staff. The views expressed in this do not necessarily reflect the views of USAID or the United States Government.
Community Health Volunteers Trained
in HSTP/FP in Garba Tulla, 2014–2018
Female Male
65% 35%
Baseline 2014 2017
Garba Tulla Women Using
Modern Contraception
(χ²=45.9, P<0.000)
Muslim Faith Leaders as Family Planning Champions
An Experience from Kenya
Melanie Lopez1
, Lilian Chebon2
1
World Vision, U.S., 2
World Vision, Kenya.
BACKGROUND
Garba Tulla in northeastern Kenya's Isiolo County has one of
the country's lowest rates (27%) of family planning (FP)
uptake and a contraceptive prevalence rate of just 10.7%,
both the result of geographic, cultural, and religious factors.
In this semiarid region, 98% of the people are Muslims.
Imams, sheikhs, teachers, other male community leaders, and
men generally are the gatekeepers for their communities.
Composed largely of pastoralists, this male-dominated soci-
ety historically has strong cultural and religious proscriptions
against family planning.
PROGRAM INTERVENTION
World Vision is implementing a USAID-funded Healthy Timing
and Spacing of Pregnancies/Family Planning (HTSP/FP)
Project through a grant from the Advancing Partners &
Communities Project (APC) in Northeastern Kenya in Garba
Tulla. World Vision introduced the HTSP/FP project in 2014.
The key strategies are:
• Increasing access to voluntary quality FP services.
• Increasing demand for HTSP and modern contraceptive
methods via community and target-group mobilization.
• Creating an enabling environment for quality programs by
using World Vision’s social accountability methodology.
Iman engaging youth and adolescents in a family planning dialogue
in Garba Tulla
Family planning beneficiaries with In-Charge at Barambate Health Facility
PROGRAM IMPLICATIONS
Mothers attending antenatal and maternal, neonatal, and
child health (MNCH) services are responsive to discussions
about HTSP and receiving voluntary FP care. Reaching male
partners who accompany their wives at MNCH and antena-
tal visits is also an opportunity to provide men with FP coun-
seling and contraceptive methods.
Men and religious leaders must be included in any success-
ful family planning program. In Garba Tulla, they are consid-
ered gatekeepers and authority figures in the community.
HTSP training manuals are validated by, consistent with,
and supported by the teachings of Islam. HTSP messages
resonate with imams, sheikhs and fathers as they better un-
derstand the health and financial benefits that practicing
HTSP/FP will bring their communities and families.
Melanie Lopez/World Vision
Shano Guyo/World Vision
29%
38%