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.
Enabling civil society organizations (CSOs) in sub-Saharan Africa to develop research ensures equitable scholarly representation and addresses local problems in sexual and reproductive health. To this end, a transnational research collaboration was formed to evaluate abortion services and develop the research capacity of two CSOs in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The team included Karolinska Institutet, Partners for Reproductive Justice (IPAS) and the National Midwives’ Association (SCOSAF). The objective of this article is to discuss the context of the partnership, including research capacity-building inputs, processes, outputs, and outcomes, as well as lessons learned and recommendations. Activities were tailored to the research capacities of each CSO and the research team of clinical care providers over the two-year project period. Research capacity-building resulted in increased opportunities for team members to conduct research and manage research projects outside of academia. Overall, there were improvements in midwives’ capacity to design and conduct research, and in the midwives’ association’s capacity for research management and project administration. Recommendations for others include pragmatic incorporation of gender considerations, approaches to organizational and individual research capacity-building, and baseline CSO capacity assessments for research management. Health research conducted in a non-academic setting, specifically within CSOs, can be a pathway to research equity. In DRC, it strengthened health professionals in their capacity to generate evidence to influence local abortion policy and health services in Kinshasa, DRC.
Findings from literature reviews in Côte d’Ivoire, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Mali
A three-year project by Ipas and partners aims to deepen understanding and evaluate solutions to reduce gender-based violence (GBV) and discrimination in secondary schools in Côte d’Ivoire, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), and Mali.
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)
In the Democratic Republic of Congo, research shows that misoprostol was available in less than 50% of pharmacies and mifepristone and misoprostol in less than 2% of surveyed sites. Mystery client interactions reveal that most pharmacists need training on medication abortion counseling and regimens.
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)