Washington, DC … Yesterday, the Senate Appropriations Committee approved a funding increase and important advances in the policies governing international family planning and reproductive health (FP/RH) programs in adopting its version of the fiscal year 2009 bill funding the Department of State and U.S. foreign assistance programs.

Washington, DC … With the State-Foreign Operations Appropriations Subcommittee's approval today of the fiscal year 2009 foreign assistance bill, the House of Representatives has taken a major step forward in addressing the family planning needs of millions of women and couples in poor, developing nations. The $600 million allocated for international family planning and reproductive health programs is the largest total amount ever provided by the United States for family planning programs (not accounting for inflation) and the largest one-year dollar increase in these programs on record. It marks a 28 percent increase above current (FY 2008) levels and an 83 percent increase above the President's request.

Washington, DC … The Senate passage of legislation to extend and expand the U.S. commitment to addressing the HIV/AIDS crisis – the largest single commitment by any government -- deserves recognition for the life-saving impact it has, and will continue to have, on the lives of millions in need. Population Action International applauds this level of commitment to fighting this pandemic. But as an organization that works to improve the health of men, women and children in the developing world, PAI is profoundly disappointed in the failure of Congress to use the reauthorization process to make the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) even more effective and successful in preventing the transmission of this deadly disease.

Washington, DC… Because the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) provides funding for health services, including voluntary family planning, in China where the government maintains a “one-child policy,” the Bush administration decided Thursday to once again unjustly withhold U.S. funding to UNFPA, as it has for the last seven years. While the decision was not a surprise, it was no less disappointing. Contrary to the administration's assertions, UNFPA provides alternative and voluntary approaches to China's compulsory family planning program. Now, however, the Bush administration has threatened to dramatically expand the interpretation of the so-called Kemp-Kasten amendment, which until now has been limited only to UNFPA, to also cut off funding to other nongovernmental organizations solely because they operate health programs in China.

Washington, DC… Following an extensive year-long analysis, Population Action International (PAI) has committed to a multi-year, multi-disciplinary program to identify and explore the connections between population and global climate change (GCC). PAI's research will focus on conducting in-depth analysis into these connections and illuminate how access to voluntary family planning and reproductive health (FP/RH) services can help enhance GCC mitigation and adaptation efforts. The goals are to gain a better understanding of the influence of demography on GCC and how FP/RH improves the well-being of those vulnerable to global climate change.

On April 2nd the House of Representatives is scheduled to consider a bill reauthorizing the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR). HIV/AIDS prevention & treatment organizations have partnered with sexual and reproductive health organizations to send a letter to more than 30 key members of Congress. The letter (copied below) urges members of Congress to remove restrictions on family planning services from PEPFAR.

Washington, DC… President Bush is traveling around Africa this week, where he has been touting his HIV/AIDS program. While the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) is a historic effort to combat HIV, there are critical flaws in the program that Congress is poised to address. The arbitrary funding mandate on abstinence and be-faithful programs are tying the hands of programs on the ground and HIV-positive women are in need of the contraceptives that will allow them to plan the timing and spacing of their children.

President Bush's proposed budget for Fiscal Year 2009, released today, would dramatically cut funding for international family planning and sexual and reproductive health programs. The proposed funding level of $327 million represents a $134 million (or 29%) cut from current levels.

To build on the success Population Action International (PAI) has experienced in reaching out to national elected officials and to international policymakers and advocates, its Public Policy/Strategic Initiatives department has been split into two distinctive divisions. Tod Preston has been promoted to Vice President for U.S. Government Relations and Suzanne Ehlers has been promoted to Vice President for International Advocacy. The creation of two distinct departments will help achieve a more intense focus and more robust knowledge base in both the domestic and global arenas, at a time of increasing interdependency and collaboration.