Asia Reproductive Health Rights Working Group COVID-19 Statement
A joint statement of the Reproductive Health Rights Working Group (RHRWG) to ensure Sexual and Reproductive Health Services and Rights and its continuity during the pandemic of the Novel Corona Virus (COVID-19) for protecting women and girls’ lives and health in Nepal. The statement was developed jointly by the RHRWG members.
The statement urged the government to ensure respect, protect, and fulfill SRHR and create an enabling environment for women and girls for safe, quality, affordable, and accessible with dignifying services.
The joint statement is in Nepali language. It stated that the Reproductive Rights are Human Rights which are guaranteed by the Constitution and Laws of Nepal. Similarly, Nepal has obligations under UNTMB, and their Court decisions, to ensure SRHSR for women and girls. In this context, SRHRs should be ensured to women and girls for protecting their lives and health.
Below are the key points covered in the statement
- Ensure that women and girls receive a quality education, information, counseling, and services related to sexual and reproductive health
- Ensure respect for the right to abortion and service including post-abortion care services
- Ensure access to quality and respectful maternal health care services
- Ensure quality information and services on contraception including emergency contraception
- Ensure reproductive morbidities services
- Ensure the right to receive reproductive health services that are needed at different stages of life cycle accessibly, acceptably, and securely
- Ensures the availability of personal protection equipment, medicines and other materials required by the service provider, women, and girls
- Ensure all service providers i.e. government, non-government, service providers of the private sector, health institutions have uninterrupted mobility and enabling environment to provide service, and women/girls seeking service have uninterrupted mobility.
