For the years 1997-2000, the Task Force on Social Science and Reproductive Health concentrated on three key women’s issues, namely, domestic and family violence, unsafe abortions, and reproductive tract infections (RTIs). These key issues provided new opportunities for the sharing of responsibilities and commitment among the Task Force members, as well as challenges for innovative strategies in advocacy.
Seminars. A total of eight dissemination seminars were conducted in different parts of the country. There were two seminars on unsafe abortions, five on RTIs, and three on domestic/family violence and on men’s participation in reproductive health.
Domestic/Family Violence Health Curriculum Project. This is a major initiative implemented by the Task Force within the last three years in collaboration with the three pilot health training institutions.
Resource Center for Gender, Sexuality, and Reproductive Health. The resource center contains a collection of local and foreign materials on reproductive health, gender, sexuality, population, and health social science. It is intended to serve government agencies, non-government organizations, women’s groups, people’s organizations, and graduate students of the DLSU Health Social Science Program.
Networking. The Task Force continued to forge close and harmonious working relationships with funding agencies (UNFPA, USAID, and UNICEF); government agencies (DOH, DOST, DSWD, CHED, POPCOM, and PLPCD); non-government and people’s organizations (FPOP, Likhaan, ReproCEN, PNGOC, and Population Council); and with academe (UP-Manila, Cebu Doctors College, and Silliman University). Linkages were also maintained through the Task Force’s membership in steering committees or working groups formed by government agencies and civic organizations and through the Task Force’s activities on reproductive health, rights, and ethics.
