Innovative Funding from Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs Encourages Collaboration on MDG5

NGOs Gather to Share Results from Efforts to Reduce Maternal Mortality

THE HAGUE, Netherlands, November 5, 2010 - Representatives from seven international non-governmental organizations
(NGOs) receiving funding from the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs Strategic
Alliances with International NGOs (SALIN) program gathered in The Hague today
to share results with leading officials on their efforts to reduce maternal
mortality and guarantee universal access to reproductive health services. The
day-long technical briefing brought together partner organizations,
researchers, public health practitioners, women's health advocates and
developing country ministry officials to highlight successes, challenges and
lessons learned from collaborative efforts toward Millennium Development Goal
5, which calls for a 75 percent reduction in maternal mortality and universal
access to reproductive health by 2015. As this initial phase of the program
draws to a close, results are promising.

"Through the SALIN partnership, the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs has
shown exemplary commitment to the women of the world, allowing PSI and
partners to increase access to reproductive health services in some of the
most needy countries around the world," says PSI-Europe Director Nils Gade.
"Under this visionary financing scheme, millions of women have been provided
increased access to reproductive health care."

Developed in 2006 to better address failing efforts toward MDG5, SALIN
has provided funding for seven NGOs - including the Concept Foundation, the
International Consortium for Medical Abortion (ICMA), the International
Planned Parenthood Federation, the International Women's Health Coalition,
Ipas, Marie Stopes International, and PSI (Population Services International)
- to expand access to high quality information and comprehensive reproductive
health services to better meet the needs and rights of women and girls in
more than 40 countries. Collectively, partners under the SALIN program are
working to improve access to safe abortion services to reduce the thousands
of deaths and injuries of women caused by unsafe abortions annually, in
addition to their efforts to increase access to contraception for the 215
million women who lack access, and reduce maternal mortality. Estimates
indicate that efforts under the SALIN partnership have provided access to
safe abortion technologies and practices where legal and appropriate and
increased access to modern contraceptive methods, averting thousands of
maternal mortalities and preventing more than one million unplanned
pregnancies. SALIN partners work in many other ways to promote and protect
sexual and reproductive rights and health across Asia, Africa, and Latin
America.

"We welcome the joining of the SALIN partners to share the promising
results from their collaborative efforts," says Lily Talapessy, Policy
Coordinator for Sexual and Reproductive Health at the Dutch Ministry of
Foreign Affairs. "This reflects the vision behind our SALIN program,
highlighting the role international NGOs play in providing country specific
responses to maternal and sexual health needs."

About SALIN

The Strategic Alliances with International NGOs (SALIN) for 2006-2010
offers a framework for goal-oriented cooperation with international
non-governmental organizations in the form of strategic alliances. Under the
SALIN arrangements, seven organizations are supported by the Dutch government
to promote sexual and reproductive health and rights in low income countries.
The SALIN arrangement is one of the main funding mechanisms through which the
Dutch government contributes to the achievement of the Millennium Development
Goals, which aim at reaching key development objectives by the year 2015.

About PSI

PSI (Population Services International) is a leading global health
organization with programs targeting malaria, child survival, HIV and
reproductive health. Working in partnership within the public and private
sectors, and harnessing the power of markets, PSI provides life-saving
products, clinical services and behavior change communications that empower
the world's most vulnerable populations to lead healthier lives. For more
information and live updates, follow PSI on twitter at
twitter.com/PSIHealthyLives or subscribe to the PSI blog at
healthylivesblog.blogspot.com/. www.psi.org

About Concept Foundation

Concept Foundation is an international NGO based in Switzerland and
Thailand, working to ensure that low income women worldwide have access to
reproductive health products of assured quality at the lowest possible cost.
It works with governments and NGO partners to design and implement
access-to-medicines programs for contraceptives and drugs for medical
abortion by establishing: Public-Private Partnerships with developing country
pharmaceutical companies and undertaking systematic approaches to product
introduction. See www.conceptfoundation.org.

About ICMA

ICMA (International Consortium for Medical Abortion) is a global platform
for advocacy, debate and dialogue with an interest in promoting access to
medical abortion in the context of safe abortion. It has four affiliated
regional networks in Africa, Asia, Eastern Europe and Latin America (ANMA,
ASAP, EEARC and CLACAI). Their aims are to advocate for laws, policies and
regulations which make the access to safe abortion possible; facilitate
information sharing and networking to expand access to safe abortion; serve
as a resource center for information about medical abortion; disseminate and
support the development of guidelines, training curricula, information and
introductory strategies for medical abortion within the context of
comprehensive reproductive health services; and support capacity building for
advocacy, training, introduction and provision of medical abortion services.
For more information: www.medicalabortionconsortium.org.

About IPAS

Founded in 1973, Ipas is an international non-governmental organization
whose mission is to reduce maternal deaths and disabilities from unsafe
abortion and to increase women's ability to exercise their sexual and
reproductive rights. In the belief that every woman has a basic human right
to make safe reproductive choices, Ipas works to integrate woman-centered
comprehensive abortion care-including safe elective abortion, post abortion
care, contraception, and links to other reproductive health services-into
national health systems, with emphasis on capacity-building, quality of care,
and sustainability. Ipas' key strengths include a global pool of clinicians
trained in safe abortion care; technical expertise in improving
abortion-related services of public and private health systems and in
community mobilization and engagement; and technical leadership and support
in policy, research and evaluation.

About IPPF

The International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF) is a global
service provider and a leading advocate of sexual and reproductive health and
rights for all. IPPF is a worldwide movement of national organizations
working with and for communities and individuals in over 170 countries. For
more information, please visit www.ippf.org.

About IWHC

The International Women's Health Coalition leads global and local actions
to secure every woman's right to a just and healthy life. We are creating a
world where women are free from discrimination, sexual coercion and violence,
and have access to health services and information. For more information,
visit www.iwhc.org.

About MSI

Marie Stopes International is a not-for-profit sexual and reproductive
health (SRH) organization that uses modern business methods to achieve the
social goal of preventing unintended pregnancies and unplanned births in 43
countries worldwide. Marie Stopes International delivers state-of-the-art
programs in: family planning; safe abortion (including post abortion care)
(www.mariestopes.org/Health_programmes/Safe_abortion_%5e_post_abortion_care.aspx);
maternal & child health; and HIV/STIs
(www.mariestopes.org/Health_programmes/HIV%c2%acSTIs.aspx), including
male circumcision. For more information, visit www.mariestopes.org/.

Trey Watkins, +31-(0)-641-649-998, kcwatkins at psi.org, or Nils Gade, +31-(0)-621-267-177, ngade at psieurope.eu, both of Population Services International