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May 18, 2009
The award for "Peace and Friendships among Nations."
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Ipas Vietnam received a prestigious award for “peace and friendship between nations” from the Vietnam Union of Friendship Organizations (VUFO). This award, given only rarely by this government organization, recognizes Ipas Vietnam’s outstanding contributions to improving women’s reproductive health services and women’s health rights.

Ipas Executive Vice President Mary Luke received the award in Vietnam in a special ceremony on April 10. “It is a great privilege for Ipas to receive such an award from the people and government of Vietnam, especially recognizing that the award was given for our technical support rather than a large financial contribution,” says Wendy Darby, director of Ipas’s Asia programs.

The award also comes as Ipas Vietnam, having worked closely with local partners for 15 years to increase women’s access to safe abortion care, prepares to formally hand over program implementation to the Vietnamese Ministry of Health on June 30. Ipas will continue to support Vietnam in the supply of MVA equipment.

“Vietnam has been a key partner to Ipas. They helped us develop and pioneer our comprehensive, high-quality approaches that are now reflected throughout our worldwide programs,” says Elizabeth Maguire, Ipas president and CEO. This award will cement our long friendship for now and years to come. We are proud to see Vietnam graduate and move on to be an outstanding model for other countries in the region.”

Ipas began working in Vietnam in 1994 in partnership with the Vietnamese Ministry of Health, Pathfinder International and Engender Health. Since then, Ipas Vietnam has expanded comprehensive abortion care (CAC), a model of care that includes thorough explanations of abortion procedures, after care and contraceptive counseling, throughout all levels of the Vietnamese health system. More than 100,000 safe abortion services have been provided through these sites. Ipas Vietnam has also worked with the World Health Organization and the Vietnamese government to train obstetrician-gynecologists in medical abortion, thus expanding women’s options for safe pregnancy termination.


For more information, contact media@ipas.org