Malawi called to nominate young leaders in family planning
Malawi and other nations across the globe have been urged to nominate accomplished and inspiring young people who are making a difference in family planning and reproductive health in their countries.
The call was made by the Bill & Melinda Gates Institute for Population and Reproductive Health when it launched ‘120 Under 40’, a new project that will recognise and highlight the achievements of the next generation of family planning leaders worldwide.
The project was launched on World Contraception Day which is commemorated every year on September 26 and puts international attention on enabling young people to make informed decisions about family planning and reproductive health.
Jose Oying Rimon, director of the Gates Institute says in a statement issued by the institute that the 120 Under 40 shines a light on the ‘positive disruptions’ made by young leaders in family planning, enabling others to model their behaviours and build on their success.
“The project’s international profile will increase awareness of family planning as critical to young people’s health and wellbeing and essential to sustainable global development,” says Rimon.
Over the next five years, 120 Under 40 will recognise and galvanise the accomplished and inspiring young people who are making a difference in family planning and reproductive health worldwide.
The nomination period opens January 1 2016. Nominees must be 40 years or younger by December 31, 2016, and must have made significant contributions to family planning at the local or national level in one or more of the following categories: advocacy, programming/programme implementation, research, service delivery, demand generation, policy/government or media.
To demonstrate the depth and breadth of the young leaders’ involvement in the family planning movement, all nominees will be posted on the 120 Under 40 website.
From this pool of nominees, an expert review board and the public will choose 40 winners who will be announced on World Contraception Day 2016.
The process will repeat in 2018 and 2020, and a roster of 120 outstanding young leaders will be assembled by 2020—the year by which the Family Planning 2020 (FP2020) partnership aims to enable 120 million additional women and girls to access life-saving contraceptives and other reproductive health supplies.
To nominate, visit 120Under40.org.
