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| The key to development
It was only recently that health and rights connected to sexuality and pregnancy were acknowledged as human rights. The idea still faces fierce opposition. But in the most intimate lies the key to many of the major global challenges today, such as the fight to eradicate poverty, and the struggle to keep the mothers of the world alive.
SRHR in 2 minutes
Everyone is entitled to a satisfying and safe sex life. We all have the right to decide if, when and with whom we have sex, as well as if, when and with whom we have children. Those are some of the foundations in the work for sexual and reproductive health and rights – SRHR. Here are a few others:
Photo: Iofoto/Dreamstime.com
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| SRHR can stop Aids
 A GENERATION LOST. A boy hugs his grandmother in their home outside Maseru, Lesotho. In the worst affected African countries, one out of ten infants is expected to lose both parents to Aids.
Every day 14 000 people are infected with hiv, most through sex. These infections could be avoided if people got access to information about safe sex, and to contraceptives. A study from Moçambique revealed that 74 percent of the girls and 62 percent of the boys between the ages of 15 and 19 did not know how to protect themselves.
Photo: UNICEF/Pirozzi |
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Save the mothers!
 SOLUTION AT HAND. Saving the lives of mothers doesn't have to cost much.
Every year, more than half a million women die as a result of pregnancy, childbirth or unsafe abortion. Alltogether, more die because of pregnancy-related complications than from Aids, tuberculosis and malaria combined.
The good news is that simple and cheap measures can change this fact. Providing access to contraceptives, health care, sexual education and safe abortions go a long way. In Moçambique, for example, maternal mortality has been reduced by half over a period of fifteen years.
But more decision-makers need to take the issue seriously. The struggle against maternal mortality is lagging behind, compared to the progress made on the other Millennum goals. RFSU has undertaken several activities in order to push mothers' lives up the agenda, in Sweden as well as internationally. |
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| An investment against poverty
PREGNANCY AT ONE'S OWN RISK. For women of a fertile age, complications during pregnancy and childbirth is one of the most common causes of illness and premature death.
Today millions of people are unfit to work because of poor health related to sexuality and child-bearing. This creates poverty; not only for the immediately concerned but for the society as a whole. The treatment required by these patients places additional stress on countries' economies and development.
This creates a vicious circle, as being poor does in turn increase the risk of suffering from poor health. One example is the fact that many young people are forced to become sexually active in order to secure food, textbooks, or even a ride to school. That puts young people more at risk of contracting hiv and other infections, expecially the girls.
Preventive measures like access to safe abortions, contraceptives and sexual education save lives as well as money.
Photo: WHO/P. Virot |
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| |  | | | A collection of articles regarding safe abortion. | | | | | | |
| | | | | | A collection of articles about HIV/AIDS around the world. | | | | | | |
| | | | | | A collection of articles on the ICPD with a glossary of controversial terms. | | | | | | |
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RFSU and global sexual politics
PUSHING FOR CHANGE. RFSU has been engaged in international politics for more than 50 years. Today we are the Swedish organisation that most actively promote sexual and reproductive health and rights on a global scale. More than half of the work we do consists of international activities.
 Advocacy for SRHR
We do advocacy work in Sweden and the world and urge the Swedish government and the EU to consider SRHR, equality and young people's rights. Here are some of the things we did in 2007:
LET'S TALK ABOUT MOTHERS' LIVES RFSU creates media attention around the international conference Women Deliver, which deals with the much-neglected topic of maternal mortality. The effort yields coverage in several of the largest papers and shows.
MAKE LOVE FOR ZAMBIA The Love Support campaign kickes off, selling condoms for the benefit of Youth Vision Zambias work to promote sexual and reproductive health among young people. 370 000 SEK is raised.
FILM SCREENING FOR POLITICIANS RFSU helps to arrange a seminar in the Swedish parliament about the film "Abstaining from reality". The film shows the consequences of the policy of "abstinence only".
MONITORING FOREIGN AID Teaming up with other NGO:s, RFSU took a close look at the European Union's development funding with regards to SRHR. In the process, the Swedish foregin aid budget was also examined.
AFRICAN RELATIONS When the Ministry for Foreign Affairs developed a new strategy for co-operation with Africa, RFSU was involved.
TOUR ON HIV/AIDS Rättviseakademin (a young people's network for global justice) and RFSU joined up for a campaign called "Everyone's entitled to a life without hiv". Peer educators were trained to talk about the global issue of HIV/AIDS in schools. The campaign also stopped at festivals and gathered signatures to support demands directed at the minister of trade and the catholic church.
 International co-operation
RFSU works with sister organisations in many parts of the world. Here are some examples of what we did in 2007:
INDIA Together with MAMTA Health Institute for Mother and Child, RFSU arranged a network meeting on SRHR in Hyderabad that drew NGO's from seven states. The members of the network were also trained in LGBT issues.
RUSSIA RFSU continued its co-operation with its Russian equivalent, RFPA. Among other things, people working in the fields of education and health were brought together in order to improve the conditions for young people's sexual and reproductive health and rights. Russian policymakers made a study visit to Sweden and a conference on SRHR was held in Moscow. Staff working with youth in Kaliningrad were given training on how to deal with sexual violence.
KENYA, TANZANIA, UGANDA, ZAMBIA RFSU, IPPF and local sister organisations worked with Young men as equal partners – a project that aims to change young men's attitudes to sex and their view on women. The project entails training of school teachers on the subject of sexual education, improved service for young people at clinics and health stations and training of young peer educators.
AFRICA RFSU and Save the Children studied children's and young people's strategies and views on HIV och sexuality in nine African countries. The report was launched at the end of november, just before World AIDS Day.
Two courses on young people's sexual health were held in co-operation with medical university Karolinska Institutet. Representatives from 22 African countries participated.
SOUTH-EAST ASIA The course "Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender persons and Human Rights" was held in Stockholm wth participants from several Asian countries, both officials and activists. The participants designed their own projects aimed at improving the situation of LGBT people in their respective countries. The course was made in collaboration with the Swedish Federation for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Rights, RFSL. |
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What RFSU wants
• At least 10 percent of Swedish foreign aid should go to efforts for sexual and reproductive health and rights.
• The Swedish government should give attention to and contribute to securing access to contraceptives in the world.
• The Swedish government should consistently work for all women's right to safe and legal abortions.
• The high rates of maternal mortality related to childbirth and unsafe abortions must be powerfully adressed.
• Violence and abuse against women and children must be given attention and be fought internationally, and Swedish foregin aid must seek to support those who combat violence and abuse against women and children.
RFSU's work, locally as well as globally, is grounded in three freedoms: The freedom to choose, the freedom to enjoy, and the freedom to be.
Thank you for taking your time to read about SRHR! |
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| Women Deliver
– save women's lives
In October 2007, the conference Women Deliver was held in London. Its aim was to bring attention to and inspire action for women's health and rights – above all the right to safe abortion.
Read more about the struggle against maternal mortality here.
A SRHR-group in the Swedish parliament
An example of hw we work: The SRHR-group is an all party parliamentary group in the Swedish parliament that consists of members from all the represented parties in parliament.
Read more about the group.
Abortion – making it a right for all women in the EU
A PDF-file from a hearing on abortion, which took place in Brussels on the 18th of October 2005. At the hearing women testified about not being able to access abortion in the EU. The report contains short summaries as well as speeches in full length. It has a short introductory text on why the focus was on abortion as a right, what kind of manadate the EU has, the views on a mutual EU law on abortion – or not.
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Everyone should be given the information they need in order to protect themselves against unwanted pregnancies and sexually transmitted infections.
Everyone should have access to contraceptives. 
Everyone is entitled to choose for themselves whether they want to marry, and whom. 
Abortions should be legal, accessible and safe. 
LGBT people should be able to live their lives in the open, free from discrimination.
Mothers and infants should be given adequate health care. 
Sexual violence must stop.
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