PNG learns from RI's family planning program

KUTA, Bali (JP): Indonesia's experiences and methods in implementing its family planning program have become an important base of knowledge which could be adopted by many countries to improve their family planning programs.

An official from Papua New Guinea, Thalia Wat, said on Wednesday that learning from Indonesia's experiences had helped to improve the family planning program in her country.

"Since 1996, my country has sent 163 officials to join the Indonesian International Training Program (ITP) and managed to adopt the country's methods," she said during a one-week international conference here.

One of the methods widely employed in Indonesia and supposedly being adopted elsewhere was the non-scalpel vasectomy.

"It was very surprising to find that the male population in my country is willing to participate in the family planning program by undergoing the method," she added.

The conference, which began on Sunday, was held to evaluate the outcome of the ITP program, which was launched 12 years ago. There are 25 participants from 12 Asian countries and 45 participants from donor foundations.

The participants visited family planning centers at the village level, which have been lauded as the backbone of Indonesia's successful family planning program, on Tuesday to observe the methods employed by local workers and residents.

Thalia said Papua New Guinea wanted to learn more on how Indonesia could have such a wide-scale and active public participation in implementing family planning.

A Tanzanian participant disclosed his country's interest in the Indonesian community-based family planning program. Ngirwamungu said that in 1996 Tanzania established three community-based programs as pilot projects.

The country named the program Posyandu, adopting the name of Indonesia's program, he said.

Noting that the program went well, he said that in 1997 they managed to establish five more Posyandu in Tanzania.

"The activity of the Posyandu has supported 38.5 percent of the family planning program participants in my country," he added.

A Philippine participant, Virginia Sarmiento, said her country had adopted Indonesia's method in including religious and community leaders to promote the family planning program.

"The involvement of Muslim leaders in Mindanao region was part of our effort to increase the general public's participation in the program," she said.(zen/04)