International Programmes

Sexual Wellbeing Aotearoa’s International Programmes team works closely with colleagues and partners in the Pacific. As one of the many island nations connected by the Pacific Ocean, New Zealand has a shared interest in a stable and prosperous Pacific. Our Pacific neighbours receive the majority of Official Development Assistance from New Zealand.  

Under the Sustainable Development Goals, New Zealand and all UN member countries in the Pacific have committed to achieving universal access to sexual and reproductive health by 2030. However there remain significant sexual and reproductive health and rights challenges in the region. 

• Unmet need for modern contraception in the Pacific is among the highest in the world. Recent modelling estimates that one in three women (35%) of reproductive age in the Pacific are not accessing the contraceptive they need.
• There are high rates of sexually transmissible infections (STIs) and cervical cancer, as well as high adolescent birth rates in the Pacific.
• Sexual and gender-based violence remains a major challenge for many countries.

We are a member organisation of International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF) — a global healthcare provider, and leading advocate of sexual and reproductive health and rights. There are 150 member associations in IPPF.

Our approach to working internationally is through effective, respectful partnerships so that development is sustainable, and driven by local communities. We are guided by our partners’ knowledge and expertise about the needs of their own communities, and our work supports local health agendas and priorities.  

We provide funding, support, and training to our Pacific partners to expand clinical and health promotion services, sexuality education, and research. Our work is evidence-based, and informed by international best practice. 

Our Pacific partners include International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF) member associations, local governments, and community groups and organisations.  

Learn more about our approach to international development

Currently in the Pacific region, barriers such as limited training for health professionals, medical supply shortages, and infrastructure challenges make it difficult for people to access sexual and reproductive health services. There may also be legislative barriers, lack of government or other funding, and stigma around sexual and reproductive health that prevents awareness, and access to a variety of services. Real change requires action at the policy level, as well as within communities.  

That’s why we have three core areas of international work:  

We champion sexual and reproductive health and rights progress at the national, regional, and international level.

We support NZ-based members of parliament to use their voices to raise key issues, and support our Pacific partners to fight for policy and legislative change.    

People need to be informed in order to make the right choices for them.

Through our work we collaborate with experts to undertake research to build up and share information on sexual and reproductive health in the Pacific. We also support partners with health promotion and awareness-raising in their communities including with youth, and other key population groups.  

We want to enable our partners to provide more and better services, so we prioritise investing in service provision in communities.

Our projects in Vanuatu and Kiribati include funding that goes straight to our partners so they can provide outreach clinics in hard-to-reach communities that may not otherwise have regular access to sexual and reproductive health services. We also have a focus on upskilling staff, including clinicians, to better understand and respond to the needs in their focus areas.   

Our international work is guided by: 

International Conference on Population and Development  

The 1994 ICPD Conference was the largest intergovernmental conference on population and development ever held at the time. There were around 11,000 registered participants in total – from UN specialised agencies and organisations, intergovernmental organisations, non-governmental organisations and the media, as well as 179 governments participating, including New Zealand.

Through the conference and the PoA, a new vision was developed about the relationships between population, development, and individual wellbeing. All 179 countries adopted the forward looking 20-year PoA to guide people-centred development progress in a way that recognised reproductive health and rights, as well as women's empowerment and gender equality, as cornerstones of population and development programmes. 

Lean more about ICPD

Sustainable Development Goals 

In 2015, the 193 member states of the United Nations, including New Zealand, unanimously adopted the Sustainable Development Goals, a set of 17 goals aiming to transform the world by 2030. The goals reflect a shared vision to end poverty, rescue the planet, and build a peaceful world. For us, there are three key goals:  

1. Good health and wellbeing: Reproductive health problems are a leading cause of ill health and death for women and girls of childbearing age in many parts of the world. This goal calls for achieving universal access to sexual and reproductive health care, reducing global maternal death rates, and ending the AIDS epidemic by 2030
2. Quality education: There continues to be inequities in access to education between girls and boys, and young people continue to lack adequate information on sexual and reproductive health. This goal is about improving access to education and lifelong learning for all  
3. Gender equality: This goal calls for the elimination of all forms of violence against women and girls, the end of all forms of gender-based discrimination, the elimination of harmful practices such as child marriage and female genital mutilation (FGM), and ensuring universal access to sexual and reproductive health and reproductive rights  

Learn more about Sustainable Development Goals