With support from donors, collaboration with diverse strategic partners, valuable insight from our experts and staff, and the participation of individuals, communities, and healthcare systems, EngenderHealth brings high-quality, gender-equitable programming to hard-to-reach and historically un- and underserved individuals and communities.
EngenderHealth approaches every program with the belief that sexual and reproductive rights are human rights. Our programming builds on the lessons learned and best practices gained through working in more than 100 countries across 5 continents to support individuals, communities, and healthcare systems in delivering high-quality, gender-equitable programs and services that advance sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR). We focus on evidence-based decision making and innovative solutions to ensure the best possible outcome for every program.
We focus on our core impact areas of comprehensive abortion care, contraceptive care, maternal and newborn health, and gender-based violence to make sure our programming aligns with our expertise for the greatest possible impact.
To drive sustainability and results that last long beyond our programs, we focus on collaborating across sectors, transforming gender norms, meaningful youth participation, and health systems strengthening. The most important driver of EngenderHealth’s work is recognizing and valuing partnerships at every level—international, regional, country, community, public, and private. Partnerships allow us to maximize coordination, contribute knowledge, and ensure that supported activities are informed by current evidence and priorities.
A hallmark of EngenderHealth’s work is that we integrate key frameworks that safeguard the communities in which we work as well as our staff and partners to ensure that our programs do no harm from start to finish—from project design through implementation and evaluation.
The project expands on its pilot phase successes to empower women and young people to participate equally in society and realize their sexual and reproductive health (SRH) rights—including the rights to decide if, when, and how many children to have; access accurate SRH information and high-quality services; and live free from violence and coercion.
EngenderHealth’s Advocacy Solutions to Improve Primary Health Care (PHC) Delivery and Health Outcomes in Nigeria program strengthens primary health care services by driving demand, enhancing quality, and improving health outcomes through strategic advocacy in partnership with government and civil society. The program is funded by the Gates Foundation and implemented in Kano, Kaduna, and Lagos states in a consortium partnership with the Centre for Communication and Social Impact (CCSI), the International Society of Media in Public Health (ISMPH), and Legislative Initiative for Sustainable Development (LISDEL). To build a stronger policy and financing environment that upholds health commitments, this program implements five complementary approaches: Building Champions: We engage policymakers and community leaders to prioritize improved health access, fostering strong advocates for…
Making the World’s Most Common Surgery Safer Cesarean section (C-section) is the most common surgery in the world, with more than 30 million performed every year. While medically necessary in many cases, C-sections are associated with a higher risk of death than vaginal births, a risk that is particularly large in low-resource settings where women face maternal death rates up to 50 times higher than in high-income countries. To change that, EngenderHealth, in partnership with Ariadne Labs, is developing and testing an innovative Cesarean Safety Checklist (CSC)—a practical tool designed to improve surgical teamwork, strengthen quality of care, and save the lives of mothers and newborns. From Setback to New Support The checklist was originally developed under the MOMENTUM Safe Surgery in Family Planning and Obstetrics program.…
Together with our partners, EngenderHealth both supports and delivers a holistic package of sexual and reproductive health (SRH) and nutrition services, including family planning (FP) support; gender-based violence (GBV) prevention and response services; adolescent-friendly antenatal, postnatal, and postabortion care; nutrition support and counseling; and life skills training to adolescents in the Tabora region of Tanzania. Currently, there is limited access to these services in this region. By breaking down barriers to access and increasing collaboration across services, we are ensuring adolescents can realize their SRH and nutritional care rights. Tabora is the largest and one of Tanzania’s most remote regions—and adolescents comprise a quarter of its population. According to the World Bank, the fertility rate in Tanzania in 2021 was…
Program Overview EngenderHealth’s Elevate Access to Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights program, funded by the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, is committed to ensuring that all individuals, particularly girls and women can fully exercise their bodily autonomy and sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR). The program expands equitable access to high-quality, gender-sensitive, and age-appropriate SRHR information and services, including postabortion care (PAC) and comprehensive abortion care (CAC). Implemented across Mainland Tanzania and Zanzibar, the program works in close partnership with the Ministry of Health in Mainland Tanzania, the Zanzibar Ministry of Health (ZMoH), five local organizations, and a network of PAC/CAC champions. Building on decades of expertise in sexual and reproductive health, EngenderHealth addresses the socio-cultural and systemic…
Together with our partners and with funding from the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, EngenderHealth is working through our Elevate Access to Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR) in Tanzania Mainland and Zanzibar program to ensure that women and girls in mainland Tanzania and Zanzibar have access to high-quality, gender-equitable, and age-appropriate sexual and reproductive health (SRH) services. According to the Guttmacher Institute, an estimated 99 million unintended pregnancies occur each year globally, and it is estimated that between 2015 and 2019, 46% of all pregnancies in Tanzania were unintended. According to the Tanzania DHS, among sexually active, unmarried women, the use of any modern method has decreased from 46% in 2015–16 to 36% in 2022. The program will…
Expanding Access to Hormonal IUD Services in Nigeria Through the Hormonal Intrauterine Device (HIUD) Roll Out and Scale Up program, EngenderHealth provides technical assistance to Nigerian public health facilities across Bauchi and Sokoto states to improve their ability to offer high-quality HIUD services. Funded by the Clinton Health Access Initiative’s Catalytic Opportunity Fund, this program strengthens the capacity of national- and regional-level trainers to provide instruction to healthcare workers on HIUD service provision, and it enhances the readiness of public health facilities to offer those services. In Nigeria, access to modern contraceptive care remains uneven. While many women want to prevent or delay pregnancy, far fewer can choose long-acting family planning (FP) options like HIUDs, and unmet need for modern contraception remains high. EngenderHealth is working with local and national partners…
EngenderHealth is strengthening family planning services in Kenya by providing technical assistance to public health facilities across Embu, Laikipia, Makueni, and Nyamira counties. This program focuses on improving the delivery of hormonal IUD and subcutaneous Depo-Medroxyprogesterone Acetate (DMPA-SC) self-injection services, increasing access to modern, effective contraceptive options for women and girls. Program Overview Addressing Unmet Need for Family Planning in Kenya According to FP2030, as of 2022: The modern contraceptive prevalence rate for all women in Kenya was 45.4% Only 3.1% of women were using an IUD The unmet need for contraception among all women was 14% EngenderHealth is working to close this gap by strengthening Kenya’s health systems and ensuring equitable access to a full range of contraceptive…
Expanding hormonal IUD access across Kenya EngenderHealth and our partners are working with Kenya’s Ministry of Health to bring hormonal IUD (HIUD) services closer to where people live, starting in seven counties: Homa Bay, Kakamega, Kiambu, Kirinyaga, Nakuru, Nyandarua, and Nyeri. By expanding services in busy public facilities and strengthening referrals from the community, we’re helping more women in Kenya prevent unintended pregnancies and choose HIUDs when that’s the method that fits their lives. To achieve this, we will focus on three linked outcomes: Expanding access to HIUDs to diversify the contraceptive method mix and increase treatment options for heavy menstrual bleeding Increasing demand and strengthening linkages that support voluntary, rights-based HIUD and contraceptive method uptake Building an enabling environment…
In Ethiopia, 86% of postpartum women express a desire for family planning—yet only 36% access it. This discrepancy is largely due to gaps in healthcare provider training, service integration, and community awareness. To contribute to reductions in maternal and newborn morbidity and mortality, EngenderHealth and partners are supporting the expansion of post-partum family planning (PPFP) and selected RMNCH services across 300 high- and 600 low-caseload health facilities in the regions of Oromia, Amhara, Sidama, Southern Ethiopia, Central Ethiopia, and Addis Ababa. EngenderHealth leads this initiative in partnership with the Ethiopian Pediatrics Society, the Ethiopian Midwives Association, the Ethiopian Society of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, and St. Paul’s Hospital Millennium Medical College. We collaborate with health system actors, including the Ethiopian Ministry…
EngenderHealth’s Protecting SRHR in the Context of Fertility Decline pilot project is funded by the David and Lucile Packard Foundation and implemented in partnership with the Population Reference Bureau (PRB). Through this project, we are exploring how concerns about declining fertility at national and sub-national levels influence support for investments in contraception and other reproductive health services. This exploratory effort will gather insights from representatives from global and national spheres to identify and understand fertility anxiety, develop contextualized messages that champion sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) amid shifting fertility trends, and support a range of actors including journalists in communicating about the topic. Why This Project Matters Fertility trends are reshaping national and global SRHR priorities. Concerns about…
The Reach, Expand, and Access Community Health (REACH) program in Ethiopia’s Jimma and Borena zones is a four-year initiative funded by the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. This program aims to ensure access to information and services for integrated sexual and reproductive health and rights, menstrual hygiene management, and water, sanitation, and hygiene (WaSH) services for women and young people. The REACH project is implemented by EngenderHealth along with its consortium partners: Amref Health Africa and DKT Ethiopia. The project has four objectives: Improve women’s and young people’s agency through comprehensive and inclusive life skills training and engage them in interventions that improve self-efficacy to access and utilize REACH interventions and services Improve schools and surrounding communities’ support…
EngenderHealth is strengthening family planning services in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) by providing technical assistance to public health facilities across two health zones and 50 health facilities in Kwango province. In partnership with the International Youth Alliance for Family Planning RDC (IYAFP-RDC) and the Ministry of Health, this program focuses on improving how self-injectable DMPA-SC services are recorded in the national health information system and on building community awareness of self-injection—expanding access to a discreet, convenient contraceptive option for women and girls in remote communities. Courtesy of Images of Empowerment. Some rights reserved. Program Overview Funded by the Clinton Health Access Initiative’s Catalytic Opportunity Fund, this program supports the Ministry of Health’s plan to scale up DMPA-SC self-injection (SI) by closing a critical…
Pastoralist communities in Ethiopia continue to face significant barriers to accessing quality health services. Geographic isolation, population movement, inadequate health infrastructure, recurrent droughts, conflict, and shortages of essential supplies all contribute to disparities in maternal, newborn, and child health outcomes. While Ethiopia has made important progress in improving health indicators nationally, substantial gaps remain in lowland regions such as Afar and Somali, where access to skilled maternal care, immunization, nutrition, and family planning services remains significantly below national averages. EngenderHealth is partnering with the Ministry of Health, Regional Health Bureaus, and district health authorities to revitalize essential lifesaving reproductive, maternal, newborn, and child health and nutrition (RMNCH-N) services in pastoral communities. Key interventions include: Strengthening antenatal, childbirth, postnatal, newborn, child…
The Strengthening Local Youth- and Women-Led Organizations (YWLOs) to Become Key Actors in Promoting Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR) and Improving the Management and Prevention of Gender-Based Violence (GBV) in West Africa program is a unique collaborative initiative generously funded by the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation. EngenderHealth is supporting an established network of youth- and women- organizations across multiple countries in West Africa, including Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, and Togo, to advocate for expanded access to a full range of sexual and reproductive health (SRH) services and addressing the root causes of GBV. The program aims to ensure that women, girls, and young people in West Africa can exercise their SRHR and create a world where…
Through the Support to Gender-Based Violence (GBV) and Gender Equality Initiatives in Benin program, EngenderHealth is supporting the efforts of the Ministry of Social Affairs and Microfinance in the fight against GBV and to promote gender equality in Benin. Our work focuses on national-level strategies to prevent GBV. We are partnering with organizations in Benin to expand and strengthen the vital work that they are already doing. According to UNFPA data in 2018, 14.6% of ever-partnered women aged 15–49 in Benin experienced physical or sexual intimate partner violence in the preceding 12 months. GBV profoundly damages individual lives, societies, and economies. Addressing and preventing GBV is critical to transforming gender norms and advancing gender-equitable communities.
With funding from the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), EngenderHealth supports the expansion of the Government of India’s flagship adolescent health programs by providing technical assistance, developing and implementing innovative strategies, and evidence gathering. The Technical Assistance—School Health and Wellness Program operates across six states in India (Bihar, Delhi, Odisha, Rajasthan, Punjab, and Madhya Pradesh). The program’s overarching goal is to enhance the responsiveness and effectiveness of existing national adolescent health programs, promote the holistic development of adolescents, and address challenges in adolescent health and well-being. India has the largest adolescent (age 10-19) population in the world, estimated at 253 million, over 20% of the total population, according to the International Center for Research on Women. The Guttmacher Institute estimates…
EngenderHealth’s Technical Support for Expanding RMNCHA Program in Bihar is designed to enhance the planning, implementation, and oversight of Bihar’s government-funded adolescent health programs while exploring pathways for integrating preconception care to improve the health and well-being of women and girls. The program is funded by the Gates Foundation and implemented in Bihar, in close partnership with the Government of Bihar, the Piramal Foundation, and the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) Patna. In Bihar, around one in ten adolescents are either pregnant or give birth before they turn 19. About 42% of married women of reproductive age want to postpone pregnancy by two or more years after marriage; however, only 9% use contraception in first two years of…
We are asking some big questions. What is the future for SRHR INGOs? How must INGOs change to remain relevant, sustainable, and legitimate? Transforming to meet the moment is a complex journey. The TIME initiative was created with the understanding that one INGO can’t do this alone, but if we work as a community of INGOs, NNGOs, and donors, we can chart a course together that is equitable, resilient, and accountable. This year, during Phase 2 of the initiative, 18 SRHR INGOs have come together to collectively engage on three different levels on how they must evolve, transform, and transition their operating models to be more equitable, sustainable, relevant, and legitimate. What We’re Doing TIME for SRHR at ICFP ICFP…
The WISH P&S project is led by Palladium and implemented in consortium with EngenderHealth, Population Reference Bureau (PRB) and BBC Media Action. WISH P&S is uniquely designed to respond to the emerging challenges and opportunities to advance sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) and Demographic Transition (DT) by providing demand-led, flexible technical assistance on SRHR and DT by prioritizing greatest need and countries that have exited service delivery support under previous WISH programs. WISH P&S is part of the FCDO WISH Dividend, and it builds on the successes of FCDO’s Women’s Integrated Sexual Health program, which spanned 27 countries across Africa and Asia between 2018 and 2024. Strengthening SRHR Policy and Legal Frameworks This project will increase the capacity of African institutions, stakeholders, and individuals to use population data to inform multi-sectoral decision making, resulting in sustainable economic growth. Additionally, the project will provide technical assistance to improve policies…
