ICFP Program Implementation Subcommittee - IBP Track

Program Implementation Subcommittee

The Program Implementation (PI) Subcommittee undertook an 18-month collaborative journey—identifying themes, voting and agreeing on topics, identifying partners, developing sessions, and ultimately delivering a rich, multi-language track at ICFP 2025. The subcommittee brought together governments, practitioners, scientists, and youth-led organizations from across regions, creating a unique collaborative space to exchange insights on what works, what does not, and how to adapt practices to context. In partnership with the WHO/IBP Network, the PI Subcommittee advanced family planning and SRHR through civil society engagement and equitable partnership, with a strong emphasis on local expertise, diverse voices, and shared experiential learning.

Major Events, Activities, and Impact

Historic First Spanish-language Pre-conference at ICFP

For the first time in ICFP history, a pre-conference was held entirely in Spanish. This landmark moment enabled organizations from Latin America that have traditionally been absent from global conversations to participate fully and contribute meaningfully. The event highlighted the invaluable contributions of civil society in Latin America, the longstanding struggles the region has faced, and the achievements that must be safeguarded. It encouraged many regional colleagues to then engage in the broader implementation track—including three sessions held exclusively in Spanish—and reaffirmed the power of a united civil society that has generated responses now serving as examples for the world.

Hispanophone Sessions: Centering Regional Knowledge

Three Spanish-language sessions created dedicated spaces for Latin American and Caribbean knowledge exchange covering: strengthening access to Comprehensive Sexuality Education through civil society organizations; lessons learned from the LAC region on successes and challenges; and Indigenous voices for sexual and reproductive health—centering perspectives often missing from global conversations. These spaces were key moments to celebrate regional achievements and envision new solutions for evolving contexts.

Francophone Track: Historic Visibility and Recognition

The Francophone presence at ICFP 2025 was historic—visible, structured, and formally recognized. Francophones participated across 40 sessions, 10 side events, over 25 posters, and 10 exhibition stands throughout the conference. Three dedicated Francophone sessions in the PI track featured teams involved in moderation, co-creation, and sharing field experiences. A significant innovation was linguistic inclusion in coordination meetings, where French-language participation was welcomed—encouraging greater Francophone engagement, improving collective understanding, and ensuring teams felt fully integrated in the process. Powerfully, the Francophone voice was carried at the closing ceremony on behalf of the entire group—more than a symbolic gesture, this was institutional recognition.

Anglophone Track: Elevating Global South Leadership

The Anglophone track brought remarkable energy and fresh perspectives, with 90% of attendees being first-time ICFP participants, the majority from the Global South. Lively cross-regional dialogue engaged government, civil society, and youth voices in co-creating solutions. Sessions focused on embedding family planning innovations in primary healthcare systems, financing for sustainability through domestic resource mobilization, and elevating African-led organizations as strategic partners in global FP/SRHR leadership.

Lunch and Learn Roundtables: Peer Learning in Action

Four Lunch and Learn roundtable sessions created intimate peer-learning spaces on four critical themes: financing, digital health, local leadership, and scaling innovations. Framed as “conversation over lunch,” these sessions fostered open, cross-regional dialogue and sparked new partnerships post-ICFP. The format proved highly effective—combining high participation and enthusiasm with a multilingual setup—demonstrating that implementation-focused dialogues are a powerful tool for translating global commitments into local action.

Impact

The PI Subcommittee’s work at ICFP 2025 demonstrated that when implementers from diverse contexts share knowledge in their own languages, global guidelines become locally actionable and local innovation informs global standards. Francophones were visible and recognized across the entire conference—not just in their dedicated track. Latin American civil society organizations that had never before had a seat at ICFP’s global table contributed, led, and shaped the conversation. New partnerships were sparked across regions and sectors through the Lunch and Learn roundtables. Most significantly, the subcommittee proved that equitable co-creation over 18 months produces something more powerful than any single event: a community of implementers who trust each other, share credit, and are committed to carrying the work forward.

Key Takeaways

Language Is a Gateway to Equity

Creating dedicated spaces in French, Spanish, and English—and allowing language flexibility in coordination—was not merely logistical but transformational. It enabled organizations historically excluded from global ICFP conversations to participate, contribute, and lead. Linguistic inclusion is an equity issue, and this subcommittee modeled what that looks like in practice.

Local Expertise and Diverse Voices Are the Core of Implementation

The 18-month co-creation process—rooted in shared decision-making on themes, topics, and partners—produced a track that genuinely reflected diverse regional realities. Shared vision and shared credit sustain impact and survive political transitions. FP/SRHR progress depends on trusting local implementers as strategic partners, not just delivery mechanisms.

Structural Barriers Require Structural Responses

Health systems in the LAC region continue to grapple with long-standing barriers—racism, classism, and coloniality of knowledge—that restrict access to sexual and reproductive health services. Addressing these requires spaces that integrate Indigenous knowledge, intergenerational dialogue, and evidence-based approaches that challenge embedded power structures in service delivery.

The Collaborative Journey Is the Product

The 18-month process of building this track—collectively identifying themes, engaging new partners, co-creating and delivering sessions—was as valuable as the sessions themselves. This model of equitable co-creation, where all voices shape the agenda, is what distinguishes genuine partnership from participation.

Powerful Voices