Azerbaijan

With 69% of married women not wanting any more children, 57% reporting their last pregnancy as unintended, and only 12% of women with partners using a modern contraceptive, there is clearly a strong need for reproductive health programs in the former Soviet republic of Azerbaijan.

Due to a variety of factors, including a lack of contraceptive supplies in the public health system, abortion is the primary method for fertility regulation in Azerbaijan. Not only do providers rely on it as a source of income, but as a result of an inherent cultural mistrust of modern methods typical of former Soviet countries, health care providers (especially gynecologists) do not support the use of modern contraceptive methods, and sometimes even openly discourage it.

Working closely with the Ministry of Health, communities, and the private sector (such as apteks, or local pharmacies, and pharmaceutical companies), the ACQUIRE Project is implementing a comprehensive program to advance the use of facility-based family planning services, while also strengthening linkages with communities, to meet the needs of clients. The various program components are synergistically linked with a logo using a graphic of a pomegranate (seen to the right) to create an overall positive image for family planning. The project addresses the supply and demand sides simultaneously to:

improve the quality of family planning services
make quality contraceptives more widely available
increase the sustainability of family planning services
improve knowledge of and attitudes toward modern contraception

On the supply side, ACQUIRE has trained 155 providers to deliver counseling services, has broadened the pool of providers eligible to do counseling (including pediatricians and midwives), and has introduced a monitoring system. ACQUIRE has a social marketing partnership with pharmaceutical companies Schering and Gedeon Richter to promote their registered products featuring the pomegranate logo, which is attached onto products sold in pharmacies. ACQUIRE has also trained and coached 40 pharmacists to provide accurate information to clients.

Finally, ACQUIRE is working with Ministry of Health officials, members of Parliament, and other key leaders to advocate for increased leadership support and commitment, including priority and funding to be directed to family planning and the provision of contraceptives in the public health sector.

On the demand side, ACQUIRE is using a multichannel approach to provide up-to-date information about contraceptives to community members and to encourage them to take a -fresh look- at modern contraceptive methods. To date, the project has reached more than 50,000 villagers through community peer education and health festivals and will be launching a two-year mass media campaign in April 2007.

ACQUIRE-s partners in Azerbaijan include the Adventist Development and Relief Agency International (ADRA) and Meridian Group International, Inc. ACQUIRE is currently working in 14 districts in Azerbaijan. The ACQUIRE Project is supported in Azerbaijan by an Associate Award through the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).

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