This publication features success stories from the Joining Forces for Voice and Accountability Initiative, a project that strengthens the capacity of civil society organizations to hold national governments accountable for their commitments to reproductive health and gender equality. The stories in this publication demonstrate how citizens in Peru, Mexico, Bolivia, Panama, and the Dominican Republic are working together to demand transparency and responsiveness from their governments.

The Handbook for Budget Work in Advocacy Projects is a tool to facilitate the process of incorporating budget elements into Advocacy planning. We do not expect organizations to be able to conduct in-depth analyses of public budgets thanks to this handbook. Rather, we offer a way to determine the steps necessary to identify and monitor specific areas of expenditure that contribute to achieving the political change sought by a particular Advocacy project. To use this manual, it is advisable to have developed the Advocacy project following the methodology provided in the Handbook for Advocacy Planning, from IPPF/WHR’s Advocacy Tools series.

Produced in collaboration with the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) and the “UNITE to End Violence against Women” campaign,  this manual provides tools and guidelines for health care managers in order to improve the health care response to violence against women in developing country settings. It includes practical tools to determine provider attitudes to gender-based violence, legal definitions and responsibilities, and quality of care.

UNIVERSAL ACCESS to reproductive health is key to achieving the Millennium Development Goals. MDG 5, “Improve Maternal Health,” particularly target 5b, “Achieve Universal Access to Reproductive Health,” is the most off-track of all MDGs, even though the critical importance of reproductive health to development has been widely acknowledged. Universal access to reproductive health is the key to:

• reducing maternal mortality
• preventing unwanted pregnancies
• curbing the spread of sexuality transmitted infections, including HIV, and AIDS
• empowering women and girls
• building a more sustainable world for all people

The Handbook for Political Analysis and Mapping is divided into three sections. The first one
analyzes all the structural and institutional features of the state that are related to the issue of Advocacy. The second one comprises activities that seek to give a comprehensive political content to the information analyzed in the first part. The last one is the analysis of the key actors involved.

Developing Advocacy activities entails carrying out a series of highly specialized actions. Associations must analyze political processes, State structure, current legislation at the various government levels, international commitments, and the social, economic, geopolitical, and human development context. With this information, they can suggest timely changes to legislation, public policy, and government programs to the appropriate agencies (Parliament, the Courts, Departments, Ministries, and others).

We must engage in Advocacy work because each nation must have the legal and institutional mechanisms to protect and promote the rights of their citizens, and thus foster the welfare of people and communities. We must also engage in Advocacy work because our efforts to inform, raise awareness, and articulate our work with decision makers, State and government actions addressing a specific issue will correspond to the reality that determines them.

Five years remain for governments to fully implement the Programme of Action agreed at the International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) held in Cairo in 1994.  There is an urgency to analyze and evaluate its implementation throughout Latin America and the Caribbean.  The experiences and outcomes of the last 15 years represent an urgent call for attention to prioritize and intensify the efforts to accomplish the intended program goals, with an emphasis on sexual and reproductive rights.