Date: 28/08/2003
Source: North West Provincial Government
Title: Sefularo: Launch of partnership between North West and IPAS
ADDRESS BY THE MEC FOR HEALTH, DR MOLEFI SEFULARO, AT THE OCCASION OF THE LAUNCH OF THE WOMEN'S REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH RIGHTS ACCESS PARTNERSHIP WITH IPAS SOUTH AFRICA AND NORTH WEST DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH, 28 August 2003
Programme Director,
Monngalefatshe, Kgosi - Kgolo Jeff Montshiwa of the Barolong boo-Ratshidi,
Hon Mayor of Mafikeng, Cde Nomvula Hlangwana,
Ms Trueman,
Representative of IPAS South Africa,
Members of the media,
Ladies and gentlemen.
It is exactly twenty years and eight days ago when calls for partnership, civil society participation and community involvement reached high proportions with the formation of a broad front aimed at rallying all progressive sectors behind a common struggle for democratic change. That was the formation of the United Democratic Front, popularly known as UDF. As we mark the 20th anniversary of the formation of the UDF, we are also here today to mark another milestone partnership in the creation of a vision that every woman in South Africa should have access to good quality termination of pregnancy services when faced with an unwanted pregnancy as well as access to other reproductive health services.
I am deliberately reminding you of the spirit that prevailed twenty years ago with the birth of UDF because, what I am witnessing here today sends many of us back to those memory lane.
Many of our detractors called it a mere sloganeering process when we called for the building of a people's contract to better South Africa. When we called for private partnerships in the struggle to advance women emancipation and empowerment. I am definitely sure that today they are nowhere to be found or if they have heard of this event, they are very angry and disappointed. Our message to them is simple, the tide has turned, and the people's contract is taking shape.
Ladies and gentlemen, we are here today, just nineteen days after we celebrated the National Women's Day and paid tribute to the rural women of Mootla village for their sterling work around the People's Housing Project (PHP). We also renewed our commitment to live up to the obligation contained in our Constitution, to transform South Africa into a non-sexist country. Today's launch of the partnership between the provincial department of health and the IPAS, an international organisation based in the US dedicated to the advancement and training of our nurses to do professional termination of pregnancy work represents another giant step forward towards engendering our society. Our quest to provide quality and decent health care to all the women of the province is today receiving a massive boost.
Women's Reproductive Health Rights Access - A Major Challenge
Throughout their lives men and women should have the right to make choices about their bodies and lives. Without this fundamental right South Africans, particularly women, will continue to have no real say over the control of their bodies and lives. Despite many advances made by our struggle towards gender equity, we continue to live in a society in which our lives are governed by poverty, under development, ignorance and general want. Central to this is this patriarchal world in which men makes decisions for women. We are from a situation in which contraceptives services were free, but largely issued as an effort to control population growth amongst black South Africans.
We are also faced today with a situation in which hundreds of women die each year as a result of clandestine abortions and thousands more are treated for abortion related complications. Coercive family planning practices, poor quality care and stigmatisation lead many women to rely on unsafe backyard abortions to control their fertility. With this type of partnership that is going to yield better-trained nurses and doctors, we can proudly emphasis our central message, "knowing your rights is your wheel to freedom". This is enshrined in the bill of rights and empowered by Act No. 92 of 1996, Choice on Termination of Pregnancy Act.
With this launch today we hope to:
* Provide the broader community with information on the women's reproductive rights,
* Provide community with crucial information on the implementation of the Choice on Termination of Pregnancy Act (CTOP)
* Provide a civil society forum to interrogate the obstacles which hinders the acceptance of this service with the health workers or the providers of this service
* Sensitise community on the importance of women having a right to make their choices and regulate their fertility
* Profile the role of our partners like IPAS South Africa in building a united front to promote women's reproductive rights.
IPAS South Africa - Our True Partners
After having run a successful training and funding programme in Limpopo Province, this able team was bound to now focus on another rural province, North West. With their assistance in this programme 16 nurses were trained for the province and a fact-finding visit by the North West health officials was also funded by the programme. The launch of this partnership will see IPAS South Africa organising 8 workshops per our four districts with the tune of 40 000 each this financial year expecting to commence around September and October. The department is expected to focus on reproductive health issues with strong emphasis on choice available and a reach out plan to communities.
I am very much sure that, with the presence of our traditional leaders and local councils, this programme will indeed reach out to members of the public and in particular the large numbers of women who form the bulk of the South African population.
Cervical Screening Campaign
I have recently announced that we will be launching a big campaign for cervical screening amongst women between 25 - 60 years. Starting on 15 September, focusing on the four districts, the campaign is expected to target 150 000 women across the province.
All these will be women who have never had a pap smear before. The campaign will run for about 15 days ending 31 October. There is no doubt that this campaign will go a long way in improving the quality of the lives of women and broaden access for decent treatment. Ladies and gentlemen you will remember that, recently we unveiled the cervical screening policy for the department.
84 nurses were trained to run the campaign across our entire districts. Out of the 84, about 8 of them are master trainers. They are also training other nurses on the campaign. With this campaign, we hope to reduce drastically backlog cases and hopefully later integrate this treatment into our reproductive health system. All these are part of our efforts to better the lives of our women.
Decentralisation of the CTOP
Our people's government inherited a public health system that was oriented towards tertiary level care, located in urban areas. This system is still undergoing fundamental restructuring. The scope of the restructuring is enormous. It involves not only structural restructuring, but also relocation of funds from urban to rural areas and from tertiary to primary level to promote equity and the need to re-orientate health workers from a rules-driven system into a responsive, rights orientated service. We really have to implement this shift amidst the ongoing challenges.
As a department we have designated these services to the primary health level, i.e. in Mogwase and the facility is fully functional. Bafokeng is designated already and is having trained staff and ready to roll the service any time. All the four district have designated institutions and all are working except Bafokeng and Moretele.
Challenges
There is still a lot that needs to be done to tilt community attitudes towards positively embracing these interventions. Sustaining training for our health workers and lack of proper equipments and fear of stigmatisation remains some of the many challenges that we need to overcome.
Knowing neither legislative framework nor the main rights himself or herself on the termination of pregnancy remains the biggest challenge particularly around rural women. Between 1993 and 2003 we have trained 54 midwives working in 17 of the 15 functional designated facilities.
Conclusion
In pursuit of the vision espoused by the National Strategic Plan for the Implementation of the Choice on Termination of Pregnant Act No. 92 of 1996, our department is doing everything to better the lives of our women. Since it's passing into law, the anti-choice lobby groups challenged the CTOP. While its clear that, there are those who want to tackle this matter very emotional and use stereotyped religious and cultural factors to undermine women's hard fought advances. While its clear that we have a progressive laws in place, gains made by women for women's sexual and reproductive rights have to be guarded unashamedly.
While we launch this partnership we need not forget that:
* Sexual and reproductive health rights are part of the health rights,
* That everyone has a right to life, good quality reproduction health, especially women who have the right to choose to become pregnant and, to live through a safe and healthy pregnancy and childbirth
* Right to freedom and security
* Right to equality
* Right to privacy and confidentiality
* Right to freedom of thought
* Right to information and education
Knowing your rights remains your wheels to freedom and a better live for all. Much has been done to advance the course for women emancipation and empowerment, still need to be done and there is hope. Hope for the future and hope for thousands of women who are going to benefit from this historic partnership. Without any doubt, the people's contract for a better and prosperous South Africa is taking shape. What is left is to have many companies following in the footsteps of IPAS, municipalities and traditional authorities mobilising their people to access these services.
I wish this partnership, success and long lasting co-operation. I also like to take this opportunity to wish all the women of this country and the province in particular, prosperous women's month.
I thank you
Issued by North West Provincial Government
28 August 2003
Source: North West Provincial Government
Title: Sefularo: Launch of partnership between North West and IPAS
ADDRESS BY THE MEC FOR HEALTH, DR MOLEFI SEFULARO, AT THE OCCASION OF THE LAUNCH OF THE WOMEN'S REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH RIGHTS ACCESS PARTNERSHIP WITH IPAS SOUTH AFRICA AND NORTH WEST DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH, 28 August 2003
Programme Director,
Monngalefatshe, Kgosi - Kgolo Jeff Montshiwa of the Barolong boo-Ratshidi,
Hon Mayor of Mafikeng, Cde Nomvula Hlangwana,
Ms Trueman,
Representative of IPAS South Africa,
Members of the media,
Ladies and gentlemen.
It is exactly twenty years and eight days ago when calls for partnership, civil society participation and community involvement reached high proportions with the formation of a broad front aimed at rallying all progressive sectors behind a common struggle for democratic change. That was the formation of the United Democratic Front, popularly known as UDF. As we mark the 20th anniversary of the formation of the UDF, we are also here today to mark another milestone partnership in the creation of a vision that every woman in South Africa should have access to good quality termination of pregnancy services when faced with an unwanted pregnancy as well as access to other reproductive health services.
I am deliberately reminding you of the spirit that prevailed twenty years ago with the birth of UDF because, what I am witnessing here today sends many of us back to those memory lane.
Many of our detractors called it a mere sloganeering process when we called for the building of a people's contract to better South Africa. When we called for private partnerships in the struggle to advance women emancipation and empowerment. I am definitely sure that today they are nowhere to be found or if they have heard of this event, they are very angry and disappointed. Our message to them is simple, the tide has turned, and the people's contract is taking shape.
Ladies and gentlemen, we are here today, just nineteen days after we celebrated the National Women's Day and paid tribute to the rural women of Mootla village for their sterling work around the People's Housing Project (PHP). We also renewed our commitment to live up to the obligation contained in our Constitution, to transform South Africa into a non-sexist country. Today's launch of the partnership between the provincial department of health and the IPAS, an international organisation based in the US dedicated to the advancement and training of our nurses to do professional termination of pregnancy work represents another giant step forward towards engendering our society. Our quest to provide quality and decent health care to all the women of the province is today receiving a massive boost.
Women's Reproductive Health Rights Access - A Major Challenge
Throughout their lives men and women should have the right to make choices about their bodies and lives. Without this fundamental right South Africans, particularly women, will continue to have no real say over the control of their bodies and lives. Despite many advances made by our struggle towards gender equity, we continue to live in a society in which our lives are governed by poverty, under development, ignorance and general want. Central to this is this patriarchal world in which men makes decisions for women. We are from a situation in which contraceptives services were free, but largely issued as an effort to control population growth amongst black South Africans.
We are also faced today with a situation in which hundreds of women die each year as a result of clandestine abortions and thousands more are treated for abortion related complications. Coercive family planning practices, poor quality care and stigmatisation lead many women to rely on unsafe backyard abortions to control their fertility. With this type of partnership that is going to yield better-trained nurses and doctors, we can proudly emphasis our central message, "knowing your rights is your wheel to freedom". This is enshrined in the bill of rights and empowered by Act No. 92 of 1996, Choice on Termination of Pregnancy Act.
With this launch today we hope to:
* Provide the broader community with information on the women's reproductive rights,
* Provide community with crucial information on the implementation of the Choice on Termination of Pregnancy Act (CTOP)
* Provide a civil society forum to interrogate the obstacles which hinders the acceptance of this service with the health workers or the providers of this service
* Sensitise community on the importance of women having a right to make their choices and regulate their fertility
* Profile the role of our partners like IPAS South Africa in building a united front to promote women's reproductive rights.
IPAS South Africa - Our True Partners
After having run a successful training and funding programme in Limpopo Province, this able team was bound to now focus on another rural province, North West. With their assistance in this programme 16 nurses were trained for the province and a fact-finding visit by the North West health officials was also funded by the programme. The launch of this partnership will see IPAS South Africa organising 8 workshops per our four districts with the tune of 40 000 each this financial year expecting to commence around September and October. The department is expected to focus on reproductive health issues with strong emphasis on choice available and a reach out plan to communities.
I am very much sure that, with the presence of our traditional leaders and local councils, this programme will indeed reach out to members of the public and in particular the large numbers of women who form the bulk of the South African population.
Cervical Screening Campaign
I have recently announced that we will be launching a big campaign for cervical screening amongst women between 25 - 60 years. Starting on 15 September, focusing on the four districts, the campaign is expected to target 150 000 women across the province.
All these will be women who have never had a pap smear before. The campaign will run for about 15 days ending 31 October. There is no doubt that this campaign will go a long way in improving the quality of the lives of women and broaden access for decent treatment. Ladies and gentlemen you will remember that, recently we unveiled the cervical screening policy for the department.
84 nurses were trained to run the campaign across our entire districts. Out of the 84, about 8 of them are master trainers. They are also training other nurses on the campaign. With this campaign, we hope to reduce drastically backlog cases and hopefully later integrate this treatment into our reproductive health system. All these are part of our efforts to better the lives of our women.
Decentralisation of the CTOP
Our people's government inherited a public health system that was oriented towards tertiary level care, located in urban areas. This system is still undergoing fundamental restructuring. The scope of the restructuring is enormous. It involves not only structural restructuring, but also relocation of funds from urban to rural areas and from tertiary to primary level to promote equity and the need to re-orientate health workers from a rules-driven system into a responsive, rights orientated service. We really have to implement this shift amidst the ongoing challenges.
As a department we have designated these services to the primary health level, i.e. in Mogwase and the facility is fully functional. Bafokeng is designated already and is having trained staff and ready to roll the service any time. All the four district have designated institutions and all are working except Bafokeng and Moretele.
Challenges
There is still a lot that needs to be done to tilt community attitudes towards positively embracing these interventions. Sustaining training for our health workers and lack of proper equipments and fear of stigmatisation remains some of the many challenges that we need to overcome.
Knowing neither legislative framework nor the main rights himself or herself on the termination of pregnancy remains the biggest challenge particularly around rural women. Between 1993 and 2003 we have trained 54 midwives working in 17 of the 15 functional designated facilities.
Conclusion
In pursuit of the vision espoused by the National Strategic Plan for the Implementation of the Choice on Termination of Pregnant Act No. 92 of 1996, our department is doing everything to better the lives of our women. Since it's passing into law, the anti-choice lobby groups challenged the CTOP. While its clear that, there are those who want to tackle this matter very emotional and use stereotyped religious and cultural factors to undermine women's hard fought advances. While its clear that we have a progressive laws in place, gains made by women for women's sexual and reproductive rights have to be guarded unashamedly.
While we launch this partnership we need not forget that:
* Sexual and reproductive health rights are part of the health rights,
* That everyone has a right to life, good quality reproduction health, especially women who have the right to choose to become pregnant and, to live through a safe and healthy pregnancy and childbirth
* Right to freedom and security
* Right to equality
* Right to privacy and confidentiality
* Right to freedom of thought
* Right to information and education
Knowing your rights remains your wheels to freedom and a better live for all. Much has been done to advance the course for women emancipation and empowerment, still need to be done and there is hope. Hope for the future and hope for thousands of women who are going to benefit from this historic partnership. Without any doubt, the people's contract for a better and prosperous South Africa is taking shape. What is left is to have many companies following in the footsteps of IPAS, municipalities and traditional authorities mobilising their people to access these services.
I wish this partnership, success and long lasting co-operation. I also like to take this opportunity to wish all the women of this country and the province in particular, prosperous women's month.
I thank you
Issued by North West Provincial Government
28 August 2003
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