Faith-Based Organizations Partnering On Population And Development

Building on a three decade legacy of engaging faith-based organizations and after hosting four regional conferences, the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) organized Global Forum of Faith-based Organizations (FBOs) for Population and Development in Istanbul, on October 20-21, 2008 with participation of the representatives of Christian, Muslim, Buddhist and Hindu groups from over 75 countries of the world. One of the major outcomes of the Forum was the launch of the Global Inter-faith Network on Population and Development as well as the Consensus on the Principles of the Network. Next year at the initiative of Armenia and Belarus Europe and Central Asia FBO Forum on Population and Development took place in Minsk. The Forum defined three thematic directions of partnership: maternal health and HIV/AIDS prevention; healthy families and healthy communities; addressing population and development from the youth perspective.

The Forum also launched Europe and Central Asia FBOs and UNFPA Partnership Network on Population and Development and initiated a survey to identify possible forms of future collaboration in the region.

In May, 2010 Yerevan hosted the meeting of the Network working group that was established to prepare the Minsk Forum. At the meeting Armenia Round Table Foundation was suggested to take the responsibility over the network coordination and the ART Executive Director was elected as a co-chair of the working group.

The working group reviewed the survey results and narrowed priority areas of Network cooperation to the areas of family well-being (maternal and reproductive health, women – men relationships, domestic and gender-based violence) and HIV/AIDS (prevention of high risk behaviour, combating stigma and discrimination). To ensure capacity building of the Network participants an agreement was reached to develop a database of best practices of faith-based organizations in selected thematic areas. A similar mapping was conducted on the UNFPA country offices’ experience of FBO engagement in the activities held within the UNFPA mandate.

On December 3-4, the Network Steering committee formed in the result of the working group reconstitution gathered in Minsk, Belarus to review recent developments of the Network. The meeting participants highly estimated the survey results that identified main challenges and needs together with the strategies applied by FBOs and UNFPA country offices in their program work. The presented valuable data may now serve as good baseline information for development of joint regional project which will ensure a more comprehensive approach to the solution of the problems of family well-being and HIV/AIDS existing in the region.

The Steering committee also underlined the need for enhanced communication and exchange of knowledge as main prerequisites for increasing network potential. It was decided that special attention would be paid to promoting deeper mutual understanding of FBO and UNFPA core values which would give a renewed impetus to advanced and active partnership. There is a hope that mutual efforts of the FBOs and UNFPA will open up new horizons for reinforced cooperation and will foster interfaith collaboration and regional development.