The Bi-National Annual Meeting on SSC between Indonesia and the Philippines was organized jointly by BKKBN and UNFPA Indonesia and was attended by eight Filipino and twelve Indonesian participants. Dr. Juan Antonio Perez III, Executive Director of Population Commision, headed the delegation from the Philippines and the Indonesian delegation was led by Prof Dr. Fasli Jalal, Chairperson of BKKBN.

The meeting provided a backdrop for sharing lessons learned by Indonesia and the Philippines on the implementation of the South-South Cooperation. An action plan outlining the 2014 implementation of the Cooperation was agreed by the delegates. The initiation of the SCC between Indonesia and the Philippines was marked by the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding on 30 August 2012, and then strengthened with signing the Declaration of Commitment on 26 September 2013 by the Chairperson of BKKBN representing Indonesia, and the Executive Director of Population Commission representing the Philippines.

Mr. Jose Ferraris, UNFPA Representative in Indonesia, emphasised the benefit of the collaboration in bringing fresh perspectives and insights to both countries, remarking that, “South-South Collaboration has shown that we can seek out new ideas, new approaches, and new initiatives that are of benefit to our two countries.” He recognised the SCC as a “valuable strategy to increase collaboration and cooperation by relying on countries' comparative advantages.”

A field trip to Yogyakarta enabled the delegates to see the Indonesian family planning programme first hand and in particular the role of Moslem leaders in the programme. Discussions on family planning were held with several religious leaders. This was followed by a visit to the Islamic-based hospital of Muhammadiyah, and observation of Islamic-based Adolescent Reproductive Health (ARH) and Mosque-based Beyond Family Planning Programme.

Dr. Juan Antonio Perez III, Executive Director of Population Commission of the Philippines, indicated in his closing statement that the Government of the Philippines was pleased to learn from Indonesia about Moslem leaders’ involvement in and support of family planning. This is of particular relevance in the Southern Philippines area of  the Autonomous Region in Muslim Minanao (ARMM) and it is expected that that lessons learned from Indonesia in this regard will benefit the people of the ARMM.

Tags: reproductive health