15 June 2023, Vientiane, Lao PDR - A delegation from the Ministry of Planning and Investment, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ministry of Health led by the Vice Minister of Planning and Investment, Mme Phonevanh Outhavong, visited United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA)’s supported programmes in Savannakhet, a province with the largest population in the country.
The objective of this field mission, which was undertaken under a warm welcome from Mme Lingthong Sengtavanh, Vice Governor of Savannakhet Province, is to observe the progress and achievements of the province through UNFPA’s Country Programme Action Plan (CPAP) 2022-2026, in alignment with the 9th National Socio-Economic Development Plan 2021-2025, the National commitments to the 25th International Conference on Population Development (ICPD25), and the United Nations Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (UNSDCF).
At Kaisone Phomvihane City, the delegation visited the Male engagement programme, where senior village elders and village authorities went through comprehensive training to champion the prevention of Gender-Based Violence and Sexual and reproductive health and rights in their community. The programme is a part of UNFPA’s collaboration with the Lao Women’s Union to work with men and boys to advance gender equality and end violence.
The visit was then followed by the Protection shelters for women victims of violence to see further the Lao Government-UNFPA’s joint effort to end the violence of all forms in Lao PDR. This is where accommodation, health care, food and clothes for survivors and their children, mental health and psychosocial counselling, life skills, and vocational training are offered for vulnerable women and girls seeking to remove themselves from a violent or unsafe environment.
UNFPA and private sector partnership is one of the key highlights of the mission. During the KP Beau Lao Cosmetic & Plastic Toys Factory visit, the delegation observed how this private entity incorporated Adolescent & Youth Friendly Service (AYFS) into caring for their employees' well-being. With technical support from UNFPA, a special, secure and discreet area was designated for young workers to consult on their reproductive health, Sexually Transmitted Infections (STIs), prevention of unplanned pregnancies, prevention of gender-based violence and other life and health challenges.
Mr Junichi Harada, Manager of KP Beau, said, “I am very appreciative of the Adolescent Youth Friendly Services implemented in our factory; this is not only helping our staff but also the community in this Special Economic Zone to reach the right information on sexuality and reproductive health and services to have good health and well-being, and I am looking forward to extending more peer educators in the factory because of the increasing number of staff.”
Read more about KP Beau’s investment in their employee’s wellbeing.
The mission wraps up successfully at Outhoumphone District Hospital and Provincial Health Department, where the delegation learns about the health sector’s critical role in supplying commodities and providing quality maternal health services to the people of Savannakhet.
Through the Ministry of Health, UNFPA is supporting the country in its efforts to overcome barriers to family planning and setting the stage for sustainability. Choice of modern contraceptives and life-saving maternal health medicines are being distributed into the hands of adolescents and women who need them most.
Mariam A. Khan, UNFPA Representative, said, “We will continue to strengthen systems of the Lao government at the National, sub-national and down to the grassroots communities to ensure that women and girls can access and use a choice of quality reproductive health commodities, including contraceptives for family planning, whenever they want or need them.”
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UNFPA, the U.N.'s sexual and reproductive health agency, works in over 150 countries, including Lao PDR, to achieve zero maternal deaths, zero unmet family planning needs, and zero gender-based violence.
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