Recent literature suggests that climate change can impact sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) outcomes, especially since climate-related events may exacerbate persistent inequalities based on gender, disability status, sexual orientation, and age, among others. Climate change can also impact health infrastructure with an impact on SRHR access and outcomes. However, data are scarce when it comes to certain topical areas, types of evidence, and in using an intersectional approach. Based on a prior expert consultation exercise, we conducted a consensus and priority setting process to develop a list of priority research questions at the intersection of climate change and SRHR. For this, in 2024, we completed an iterative process over three rounds consisting of online surveys and consultations, following modified Delphi and Child Health and Nutrition Research Initiative (CHNRI) methodologies for which 100 people were included. For round one, 56 people responded to the 17-question survey framed around topical areas in SRHR, research methodologies, and intersectionality; 39 people participated in the online consultation. The round two survey had 36 respondents and 41 participants to the online consultation. The third round included a survey with a list of 31 questions that respondents were asked to prioritize. A final list of ten questions emerged which highlighted important areas where there continue to be gaps in evidence, including maternal and perinatal health, contraception and abortion access, and gender-based violence. Other critical areas include intersectional issues regarding gender and poverty and comprehensive sex education. The list can serve as a starting point to guide the SRHR research community to generate the evidence needed for policy action.
Democratic Republic of Congo: Safe abortion is a human right and must be treated as essential care for survivors of sexual violence without arbitrary time limits (Frontiers in Reproductive Health)
An analysis of how the Public Defender’s Office of the State of Rio de Janeiro has contributed, through public advocacy and the use of procedural paths, to overcoming barriers and implementing public health policies to guarantee access to legal abortion.
There are few studies in Brazil on the role of the Public Defender’s Office in achieving reproductive justice and, specifically, in guaranteeing the right to abortion. The institutional paths are tortuous for those who request the termination of pregnancy in health services, with several barriers to access to the procedure even within legal parameters. In a scenario of legal restrictions and human rights violations, the Public Defender’s Office acts as a mediator of demands with health services or through requests for judicial authorization from the courts. This article discusses pioneering actions and initiatives by the Public Defender’s Office of the State of Rio de Janeiro in recent years to guarantee legal access to abortion, against threats of regression in law and practice.
As the United States approaches its rescheduled 4th Universal Periodic Review (UPR), individuals’ sexual and reproductive health and rights continue to deteriorate across the country. Since our previous submission, there has been an increase in both restrictions on reproductive health-care access (in particular abortion care), and in targeted, state-sanctioned violence, intimidation, discrimination, and harassment of communities by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP).
Based on IDRC‑supported qualitative research conducted in Kinshasa, this policy brief examines how school environments shape the educational pathways of pregnant adolescent girls and unmarried young mothers. Despite recent policy reforms prohibiting their exclusion from schools, the findings reveal persistent stigma and systemic barriers. The brief calls for coordinated evidence‑informed action across education, health, and community systems to uphold girls’ right to education and advance gender equality.
Clinical Updates in Reproductive Health (CURHs) are designed to provide Ipas staff, trainers, partners and other health-care providers with access to up-to-date, evidence-based recommendations. In general, the recommendations are the same as those in the World Health Organization’s 2022 Safe Abortion: Technical and Policy Guidance for Health Systems, Second edition. In rare cases, the recommendations have been modified due to the settings where we work. In addition, if there is more current evidence to inform the recommendations, they will be updated here. Please note: Clinical Updates in Reproductive Health provides Ipas’s most up-to-date clinical guidance. Recommendations in this publication supersede any clinical guidance in Ipas curricula that differs from the guidance provided here.
Clinical Updates in Reproductive Health (CURHs) are designed to provide Ipas staff, trainers, partners and other health-care providers with access to up-to-date, evidence-based recommendations. In general, the recommendations are the same as those in the World Health Organization’s 2022 Safe Abortion: Technical and Policy Guidance for Health Systems, Second edition. In rare cases, the recommendations have been modified due to the settings where we work. In addition, if there is more current evidence to inform the recommendations, they will be updated here. Please note: Clinical Updates in Reproductive Health provides Ipas’s most up-to-date clinical guidance. Recommendations in this publication supersede any clinical guidance in Ipas curricula that differs from the guidance provided here.
In Central African Republic, women are arriving at hospitals with life-threatening abortion complications—too late for some, and almost all are preventable.
To address these gaps, the Thriving Pharmacies: Smart Business for Better Care training package was developed to strengthen the business acumen of community pharmacists and position family planning (FP), including post–MA FP, as both a vital health service and a sustainable business opportunity. The training package integrates entrepreneurship, financial management, and operational planning through practical, applied learning.
Presentation deck: Scaling medication abortion (MA) and post-MA contraception, meeting women where they are.