Professor Bo Jacobsson, FIGO Division Director of Maternal and Neonatal Health 2021-2025, was the Maternal and Newborn Health Theme Leader of the FIGO World Congress Scientific Programme Committee. He discusses strategies to reduce maternal and neonatal mortality worldwide, and the importance of tackling preterm birth. 

Dr Laura Gil, Chair of FIGO Committee on Safe Abortion, was one of our keynote speakers at the FIGO World Congress 2023. She talks to us about the urgency to improve access to safe abortion globally and her deep commitment to end the preventable pandemic of unsafe abortions.  

FIGO celebrates World Contraception Day 2023 announcing the winners of the Contraception Reimagined Challenge 

Led by FIGO's Committee on Contraception, the Contraception Reimagined Challenge invited visionary minds from FIGO's membership societies to reimagine the language used in conversations about contraception.  

After careful consideration of all the submissions received, the selection committee are delighted to announce that the winning entries are:  

On 28 September, we join forces with activists and partner organisations worldwide to mark International Safe Abortion Day. The theme for this year is Unstoppable Movement: Movement building, solidarity, and justice for the right to safe abortion 

The fourth episode of the FIGO Podcast unpacks the Cartagena Declaration, which asserts that access to sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) is a basic and non-negotiable human right of every woman and girl in the world. 

Coordinated by FIGO’s Committee on Contraception, the Contraception Reimagined Challenge will run until 15 August 2023. The winners will be announced as part of FIGO's 2023 World Contraception Day campaign.

Dr Anne Beatrice Kihara is FIGO’s current President-Elect, set to become the first African woman to be FIGO President from October 2023. Since 2021, Dr Kihara has been the President of the African Federation of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists.  

What have been the key achievements of the Maputo Protocol? 

While abortion remains a stigmatised health care matter, progress has definitely been made with the adoption of the Maputo Protocol on several issues related to gender equality and gender rights.  

Dr Darolles Mwadjie Wekam is an obstetrician-gynaecologist (OBGYN) with a passion for preventive medicine, communication and teaching, and a particular interest in infertility and breast cancer in Africa. She is Head of the Gynaecology-Obstetrics Department at the Gynaecology-Obstetrics and Paediatrics Hospital in Douala, Cameroon. For a number of years now, she has advocated for the wellbeing and rights of girls and women through the Advocacy for Comprehensive Abortion Care within the Société Gynécologues-Obstétriciens du Cameroun (SOGOC).

Dr Carolyne Atieno Odula is a Reproductive Health Specialist with over 20 years’ experience in her field. She is a Senior Medical Specialist based at the University of Nairobi Health Services, Obstetrics and Gynaecology Department. She is also a member of The East, Central and Southern Africa College of Obstetrics and Gynaecology (ECSACOG) – FIGO Community of Practice. 

Dr Simon Peter Kayondo is an obstetrician-gynaecologist and Project Coordinator at the Association of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Uganda (AOGU). Within AOGU, he works on FIGO’s Advocating for Safe Abortion Project, and he is also a member of the East, Central and Southern Africa College of Obstetrics and Gynaecology (ECSACOG) – FIGO Community of Practice.