This resource highlights discussions and presentations from "Media Advocacy for Contraceptive Security: An Asia Regional Workshop". Held from September 30 through October 1 2003 in Penang, Malaysia, this workshop brought together 87 representatives from donor organisations, governments, the private and non-government organisation (NGO) sectors, and the media to address ways in which media advocacy could be used to build a constituency for "contraceptive security". This term describes a state in which "people are able to choose, obtain and use high quality contraceptives and condoms when they want them for family planning and HIV/STI [sexually transmitted infection] prevention."

According to the authors, "by 2015, the global gap in financing for subsidized contraceptives could reach $210 million annually. The gravity of this situation will be severe. The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) estimates that for every $1 million shortfall in contraceptive supply assistance, there are 360,000 unintended pregnancies, 800 maternal deaths, and 11,000 infant deaths." To address this challenge, the Health Communication Partnership (HCP) hosted the Penang meeting in collaboration with John Snow International (JSI)/DELIVER, the Futures Group/POLICY, and Population Action International (with support from USAID).

Working in teams, participants from Bangladesh, Indonesia, Nepal, Pakistan, and the Philippines identified obstacles, opportunities, and key messages and players in collaborating with the media to advocate for contraceptive security. They then developed country-specific media advocacy action plans that committed them to activities including preparing press releases; devising overall strategies; increasing the media's access to relevant data, messages, and human interest stories; awarding excellent coverage; and organising television and radio talk shows.

This report summarises the proceedings of the workshop. Following a general discussion of the purposes and nature of the meeting, Part II includes summaries of each of the presentations (divided by topic). The third part of the resource includes country team presentations, with a focus on key findings and lessons that were shared during the conference. Recommendations for further action by country team members are included in Part IV, which also lists each participant's name and his or her affiliation and email address.

"Next steps planned at the regional level include a listserv, a 'one-stop' web-based information source for reporting on contraceptive security, and a media toolkit."

Click here for the full resource in PDF format. The report is accompanied by a CD-ROM that includes country and expert presentations, the workshop agenda, photos, and a participant contact list; please email info@hcpartnership.org to request a copy.