Arbab Khatoon Tunio: Empowering women in rural Sindh through PSI Pakistan's initiative

On World Contraception Day 2025, Baji Connect, 𝗣𝗮𝗸𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗻'𝘀 𝗳𝗶𝗿𝘀𝘁 𝗱𝗲𝗱𝗶𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗲𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗼𝘆𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗽𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗿𝗼𝗱𝘂𝗰𝗲𝗱 𝗯𝘆 Greenstar Social Marketing Pakistan (Guarantee) Limited, 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗻𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗹𝗮𝘀𝘁-𝗺𝗶𝗹𝗲 𝗳𝗲𝗺𝗮𝗹𝗲 𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗹𝘁𝗵 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗱𝗶𝗴𝗻𝗶𝗳𝗶𝗲𝗱 𝗷𝗼𝗯 𝗼𝗽𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁𝘂𝗻𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗲𝘀, reaffirms its role in advancing Pakistan’s FP2030 commitments by ensuring that women and families have access to accurate information, counseling, and family planning services at the community level. Through our growing network of 4,500+ Sitara Bajis, trained and trusted women health workers, we are breaking barriers of stigma, distance, and affordability, making contraceptive choices safer and more accessible. Every conversation, every counseling session, and every referral brings us closer to a future where women are empowered to make informed decisions about their reproductive health. Together with FP2030 and our partners, Baji Connect is working to ensure that family planning is not just a service, but a right. A right that builds healthier families, stronger communities, and a brighter Pakistan. #WorldContraceptionDay #FP2030 #FamilyPlanningMatters #HealthyChoices #ReproductiveRights #WomenSupportingWomen #CommunityCare #BajiConnect #SitaraBaji #HealthierPakistan

Resilience.Sustainability and Scale for Family planning and Maternal/ Child health programs can also be materialised if platform like " Baji Connect" for developmental work make commercial sense after the program ends , for the on-the-ground stake holders e.g. Community Mobilisers ( Sitara Bajis and Sattar Bhais ). Greenstar, creating employment around healthier women and children.

World Contraception Day is always a moment of reflection for me but this year it carries special meaning. Over the past five years, I have had the privilege of leading a team at Jhpiego-Pakistan that worked side by side with the Government of Punjab, the Gates Foundation, and our partners to introduce something truly transformative: DMPA-SC self-injection. When we began, the idea of women in Punjab confidently self-injecting a contraceptive method felt ambitious. There were questions. Would women accept it? Could the health system support it? Would providers be ready to counsel and coach? Step by step, our team built the foundations: training providers and community workers, preparing facilities, creating demand in communities, and above all, listening to women. The journey has been inspiring. We reached over 8,500 women in Kasur and Khanewal districts. Our research showed that 69% of DMPA-SC users continued after 12 months, compared to 49% for DMPA-IM. And perhaps most striking of all, 74% of women were confidently self-injecting at one year, their confidence and skill growing with every dose. Behind these numbers are women who overcame hesitation, trusted their own abilities, and embraced a new way to care for themselves. As Punjab advances toward its FP2030 commitments, I am proud that the evidence and lessons from this project will help shape policies and programs that expand access and choice for women across Pakistan. Today, on World Contraception Day, I am deeply grateful to the Government of Punjab, the Gates Foundation, our partners, and above all, the dedicated Jhpiego team who stood with women every step of the way. Together we have shown that when women are given knowledge, trust, and the right tools, they do more than plan their families—they shape their futures. Debora Bossemeyer, Somesh Kumar,Heather Harrison, Megan Christofield, Hannah Tappis, Amrita Mathew, Anne Pfitzer, Jennifer Younus, Kanwal Qayyum Gates Foundation,United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA),World Health Organization,UNICEF Pakistan,Bill Gates,KfW,Asian Development Bank (ADB),The World Bank #WorldContraceptionDay #FamilyPlanning #SelfCare #WomenEmpowerment #DMPASC #FP2030 #Jhpiego #Pakistan

🌍 🤝 We’re excited to be working with the Missing Billion Initiative to co-design disability adjustments for Halla Health, our digital self-care companion. We have also partnered with MBI to co-design and test the sexual and reproductive health module of Halla Health in South Africa. By embedding inclusion from the start, we aim to make self-care more equitable, accessible, and empowering for all. #Inclusion #ClimateHealth #SelfCare #DigitalHealth #HallaHealth

Halla Health’s mental health, extreme heat, sexual and reproductive health, menstruation, bodily autonomy, immunization and new self-care modules under development are being built to be inclusive of people living with disabilities of all kinds, we are doing this work with young people living with disabilities and in partnership with the leading expert group in accessible health, the Missing Billion Initiative

💡Does Wealth Shape Women’s Access to Contraception? The data says yes! The wealthier a woman is, the more access she has to family planning methods. This also means that women from poorer households face the greatest barriers to contraception. 📊 In Nigeria, contraceptive use among married women rises steadily: from just 6% in the lowest wealth group to 39.2% among the wealthiest. This data highlights the power of women’s economic empowerment. When women have financial independence, they gain control over their health and can significantly improve their lives. #zeromortality #womenshealthindex #familyplanning #datalyspeaking

Women's voices matter! We need policies that prioritize their reproductive autonomy and involve them in decision making. Dr Funmilola OlaOlorun says that this is not just about access to contraception, it is a step forward towards respecting their rights and choices. It is important to break the silence and address the concerns of those who have had negative experiences. It's time for honest conversations and informed decisions. We're collaborating with WomenLift Health to provide guidance to women globally this Contraceptive Week 2025. #ContraceptiveWeek #NLJImmersion

🎥 Expert Voices | From evidence to impact “Excitement comes when you have evidence-based tools you know will work — and you see them implemented in countries.” In this video, Karima Gholbzouri explains how global research and systematic reviews become practical, country-level guidance that improves care across the full sexual and reproductive health continuum, from family planning to antenatal, labour and postpartum care. By supporting countries to implement these guidelines, HRP helps ensure women and couples everywhere benefit from proven, high-impact interventions. WHO Regional Office for the Eastern Mediterranean (EMRO) #SRHR #HealthForAll

Let’s talk about the newly passed bill, and what that means for adolescents in Rwanda, and more specifically adolescent girls. Rwanda has taken a historic step by lowering the age of consent for accessing health services, including sexual and reproductive health care, from 18 to 15. This landmark reform removes one of the biggest barriers that kept young girls from seeking timely and confidential care. It means that a 15-year-old girl can now independently access contraception, family planning, and other SRH services without fear or the need for parental approval. This move directly tackles high rates of teenage pregnancy, which have long resulted in school dropouts, early marriages, and cycles of poverty. Beyond preventing unintended pregnancies, it protects adolescent girls’ health, reduces maternal risks, and empowers them to take control of their futures. This is a historic win, one that African countries should learn from and implement!

🌸 As the sunshine sneaks into spring, so does the September issue of Health Consumers Connect! 🌸 Here are just a few things our September issue brings: 🌻 Two new articles from us, written in collaboration with lived experience experts, exploring health literacy and the art of facilitation 🌻 Opportunities to shape the future of research for people with autism, asthma, and those accessing paediatric intensive care 🌻 Resources to empower disabled people in their sexual and reproductive rights, a guide to meaningfully involving lived experience experts in research, and workshops to build confidence and skills in lived experience storytelling Check out the link below for more information 👇 https://lnkd.in/eKTWDaHT