Infocraft is the first educational video game in Mexico designed to fight misinformation about abortion with medication, especially misoprostol. Developed by Mexfam, IPPF ACRO Member Association in Mexico, in collaboration with SocialTIC, with support from Idea and Planned Parenthood Global, this innovative tool shows how technology can be a powerful ally to share safe information regarding abortion procedures. Starring a little frog and her owl friend, Infocraft takes players through a journey of discovery, decision-making, and mini-games based on real-life testimonies. With a supportive, non-judgmental approach, the game offers clear, accessible information about abortion, opening space for respectful conversations with young people who are searching for answers.    “It’s a way to speak to those who use TikToks, video games, and social media,” said Daniel Martínez García, Youth Officer at Mexfam. The project reflects Mexfam’s commitment to adapting to current challenges and reaching young people through the channels and formats they use every day.  The story takes the player along with Frog, who will get support from her friend Owl. Together, they overcome misinformation and ill-willed encounters, until they make their way to a safe and self-managed abortion. Infocraft doesn’t just share facts; it sends a powerful message: doubts can be addressed, support is available, and comprehensive sexuality education can be delivered in friendly, safe, and stigma-free ways.  At the official launch, Daphne Cuevas Ortiz, Secretary for Women’s Affairs of Mexico City, emphasized: “No other right has been so passionately and creatively defended by civil society as the right to choose.”  Infocraft is now available online at www.infocraft.games, offering an empathetic, educational, and innovative resource for anyone navigating important decisions about their sexual and reproductive health.   

We will not allow the rollback of our rights by Eugenia López Uribe, Regional Director at IPPF ACRO   Last week, deputies from Mexico’s right-wing political party Acción Nacional (PAN) approved an amendment to the penal code to limit access to abortion from 12 to 6 weeks. This is a grave violation of the principle of non-regression of human rights for women and people who have abortions. The Supreme Court of Justice (SCJN) has already established that the right to decide and access legal abortion are key components of reproductive autonomy and the right to privacy.  Aguascalientes, a state in the Bajío region of Mexico, is known as a stronghold of anti-rights groups, and the PAN has governed there since 1998. The current governor, Teresa Jiménez, proposed this amendment to further restrict access to abortion and increase the criminalization of those who seek abortions.  Since 2021, the Supreme Court has ruled that it is unconstitutional to criminalize abortion absolutely. It unanimously declared that restricting abortion violates the right of women and pregnant persons to decide about their own bodies. This marked the first time the Court issued a guideline to harmonize abortion legislation with its ruling.  In 2023, following an injunction filed by local feminist organizations, the Court ruled that the Congress of Aguascalientes must eliminate the articles criminalizing abortion in the state. Ignoring the secular nature of the constitution, Governor Jiménez responded by declaring that “in her government… they are pro-life.” She criticized the fact that Aguascalientes’ deputies had to comply with the Court’s ruling to avoid administrative sanctions.  A week ago, local legislators debated the governor’s initiative. With 19 votes in favor, they once again modified the penal code, reducing the time limit for abortion access from 12 to 6 weeks and narrowing the grounds on which abortion services could be requested.  In their arguments, legislators claimed that “the laws established… should find a fair and reasonable balance” between the right to decide and the right to life. Misinterpreting the Supreme Court’s 2021 ruling, they set the 6-week limit, citing “the period in which it is possible to detect the heartbeat of the product.”  The legislators also referenced a 2012  ruling, which stated that “there are no absolute human or fundamental rights.” They used this to justify restricting abortion, even though the 2021 Supreme Court ruling affirmed that abortion is key to reproductive autonomy and the right to privacy, and these are absolute rights that should take precedence over earlier interpretations.  Let’s be clear: this reform, and the strategies of anti-rights groups, are a direct attack on the autonomy, rights, and freedom of individuals to decide about their own bodies and lives. These are attacks that should not be happening, especially in a country where Article 4 of the constitution guarantees the right of all people to decide when and how many children to have. Globally, these rights are supported by the Declaration of Human Rights, the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW), the Cairo Programme of Action, and the Beijing Platform for Action.  Contrary to legislators’ claims, the “pro-life” or rather, anti-rights narrative, is one that constrains, limits, coerces, and punishes. This reform is further evidence of that. The imposition of a double medical screening process increases the risk of medical complications, unsafe procedures, and criminalization. Fear of prosecution can deter medical personnel from providing appropriate care, further exacerbating the vulnerability of those seeking abortions.  At IPPF, we are proudly pro-abortion—proud to stand with the people, their choices, their dreams, and their futures. This is what it truly means to be pro-life: to support the right to health, the freedom to build the families we want, and to love who makes us feel whole.   So how can we prevent what happened in Aguascalientes from being repeated in other states and across the region? The deputies in Aguascalientes exploited a legal vacuum because the Supreme Court did not clearly establish a minimum standard for abortion legislation. Abortion should be removed from penal codes and recognized as key part of absolute rights to health, to privacy, guaranteed to all people regardless of their circumstances. Otherwise, anti-rights groups and their conservative allies will continue to find loopholes to restrict access to abortion.  No set of exceptions or time limits will be enough. We need to end the criminalization of abortion. It is time to move beyond exceptions and legal barriers, and to stop treating the lives and bodies of women and other identities who have abortions as matters to be governed by penal codes and laws.  It is our needs, our realities, that should shape legislation, not the other way around. With one in four women having had an abortion, it is clear how the law should progress: toward the total decriminalization of abortion. 

Today, the Congress of Aguascalientes, a state in Mexico, has taken a serious step backward for sexual and reproductive rights by reducing the legal limit for abortion from 12 to 6 weeks of gestation. This decision directly violates the rights of women and people who seek abortions and contradicts the ruling of the Mexican Supreme Court of Justice, which mandates the repeal of laws criminalizing voluntary abortion in the State Penal Codes. We reaffirm IPPF ACRO's commitment to the sexual and reproductive rights of all people and will continue to advocate for the freedom to choose an abortion without time restrictions. With deep solidarity, we embrace the local organizations, collectives, and activists who have fought to guarantee access to safe abortion in Aguascalientes and across the country. We join their efforts: we will not allow a regression in rights that have already been recognized, and we will move forward together to ensure that cis women, trans men, non-binary people, and other dissidents are included in abortion legislation. Together, we will continue to build networks of rights, care, and resistance!    

The International Planned Parenthood Federation’s Regional Office in the Americas and the Caribbean (IPPF ACRO) congratulates Claudia Sheinbaum, who has made history as the first female president in Mexico. We share our hope that this election represents an opportunity to renew efforts in advancing gender equality and sexual and reproductive rights.  “The cultural shift happening in Mexico that has allowed a woman to be elected as president cannot go unnoticed,” said Eugenia López Uribe, IPPF ACRO Regional Director. “Indeed, it is not only a historic moment for Mexico, but for the region, an opportunity to face the anti-rights movements positioned in the highest government levels, and to react to them with human rights- based polices, programs and services.”  In the past few years, Mexico has, on several occasions, proven its commitment to be a secular state that respects reproductive and sexual autonomy. In 2022, the Mexican Supreme Court declared abortion criminalization to be unconstitutional. The Court mandated every state must take steps to guarantee access to safe abortion, and 20 of the 32 states adopted reforms that recognize and protect transgender people when they wish to officially change their gender marker on identity documents. Both are examples of significant progress towards sexual and reproductive justice, which has allowed public institutions and civil society organizations, including the Mexican Family Planning Foundation, Mexfam, to provide sexual and reproductive health access to underserved communities around the country.  Mexican women and girls in all their diversity, LGBTQI+ folks, sex workers, people living with HIV, youth, displaced people, people living in poverty, and those in more vulnerable situations need not only progress in law making processes, but efficient public policies to guarantee they have real access to such rights. In this historical moment, IPPF ACRO urges the newly elected government to continue building a human rights-based structure that will eliminate social and legal barriers hindering access to sexual and reproductive health and rights. This includes essential services such as gender-based violence prevention, abortion care, fertility care, HIV and STI treatment, and gender-affirming care. Particular attention must be given to those who, due to race, gender, age, sexual orientation, geography, education, or financial situation, have been systematically left behind.  “There has been considerable progress made towards advancing sexual and reproductive rights in the last years,” stated Eugenia López Uribe, who is Mexican herself. “Our hope is that president-elect Claudia Sheinbaum together with the more than 20,000 public officials elected on June 2 will join us to further guaranteeing adequate financing to guarantee the right to high-quality services related to sexuality and reproduction, to the 127.5 million people living in Mexico.” 

Through the 'Ready, SEt, Go!' series, the Social Enterprise Hub showcases organizations that received IPPF funding in the 2021/2022 financial year and shares insight and visuals into each Association’s Social Enterprise (SE) journey, from ideation to establishment, learnings and plans for the future.  This year there were three Members Association chosen to be featured from the IPPF Americas and Caribbean Region - Peru, Trinidad and Tobago, and Mexico, as well as other organisations.   Download the features in .pdf HERE  

La oficina regional y las asociadas miembro de IPPF en las Américas y El Caribe se unen a la celebración de México por el fallo histórico de la Suprema Corte de Justicia de la Nación (SCJN) que avanza en la lucha por las libertades de las mujeres y personas gestantes reconociendo su derecho a decidir interrumpir un embarazo en su etapa temprana, y, por lo tanto, eliminando la pena legal que existe para quien aborte.  La Fundación Mexicana para la Planeación Familiar, MEXFAM, ha hecho un trabajo sistemático con actores clave en México para incidir a favor del reconocimiento de la autonomía corporal, incluyendo el trabajo con la SCJN. Su compromiso está reflejado también en su participación como líder de la Coalición de Acción del Foro Generación Igualdad de Autonomía Corporal. El fallo histórico contribuye, además, con la lucha de los movimientos feministas y defensores de los Derechos Sexuales y Derechos Reproductivos de nuestro continente que han logrado avances trascendentales: Cuba, Guyana, Barbados, Uruguay, Chile, Argentina, Ecuador y ahora México le muestran al mundo que en materia de Derechos Humanos no hay espacio para el retroceso por lo que reiteramos nuestro trabajo decidido para que en otras latitudes como Centroamérica y otros países de El Caribe, donde se mantienen las restricciones más fuertes para acceder al aborto en el mundo, la garantía de derechos sea pronto una realidad. El turno ahora es para Colombia. Profamilia, organización líder en la defensa, promoción y garantía de los Derechos Sexuales y Derechos Reproductivos en el país, celebra este avance y espera que la decisión de la SCJN sea un ejemplo para las autoridades judiciales en la región, en especial para la Corte Constitucional de Colombia, la cual está próxima a pronunciarse sobre la demanda de inconstitucionalidad frente al delito de aborto. Profamilia reitera que la despenalización total del aborto es el mejor camino para proteger y garantizar los derechos de las mujeres y personas gestantes, reduciendo los estigmas y efectos de la criminalización sobre la salud pública y los prestadores de salud. INNPARES, desde Perú, felicita al equipo de MEXFAM por este logro histórico que tendrá repercusión en la lucha que nos une para que todas las mujeres y personas gestantes sean realmente dueñas de sus cuerpos y de sus decisiones. En este sentido, INNPARES, como integrante la Mesa de Vigilancia por los Derechos Sexuales y Reproductivos, está redactando el proyecto de ley marco de Promoción y Protección de los Derechos Sexuales y Reproductivos, que será presentada muy pronto en el Congreso de la República. La Asociación de Planificación Familiar de Trinidad y Tobago (FPATT) una organización líder en el Caribe, con foco en la salud y los derechos sexuales y reproductivos de todes, celebra con su socio regional de México, el histórico fallo de la SCJN. Este avance en el reconocimiento de un derecho fundamental y la libertad de las mujeres demuestra un enfoque sistémico de la salud con visión de futuro. FPATT continuará abogando por una decisión similar para Trinidad y Tobago y confiará en que el gobierno, socios clave y partes interesadas reconozcan la oportunidad de impactar positivamente la vida de las mujeres como nunca antes se ha hecho. La Asociación de Planificación Familiar de Barbados (BFPA) también recibe con júbilo la noticia del éxito en México. Desde 1983, el derecho de las mujeres a tener control sobre sus cuerpos ha sido reconocido y apoyados por la constitución de Barbados. Esto ha llevado a una sociedad más equitativa, conduciendo al mayor período de desarrollo social y económico en la historia del país. Debemos mantener y multiplicar estos logros de equidad e igualdad para todes porque la oposición nunca duerme, y nosotros tampoco debemos hacerlo. La Afiliación Caribeña de Planeación Familiar (CFPA) se une a la celebración de las personas en México por este importante avance. El hecho de que México sea el segundo país con más población católica en el mundo es inspirador porque nos enseña que los derechos humanos, la justicia social y la salud reproductiva de las mujeres están en concordancia con la práctica de la fé. Demasiadas mujeres han sufrido altos costos en su salud y muchas han muerto como consecuencia de abortos practicados en condiciones de riesgo. La descriminalización del aborto reconoce que el derecho de las mujeres para decidir es un tema de gran relevancia, no solo para las mujeres, pero también para los hombres y la sociedad en su conjunto. Planned Parenthood Federation of America (PPFA) celebra esta victoria para las mujeres y personas gestantes de México, y ve con optimismo el impacto que la decisión de la corte tendrá para pavimentar el camino hacia la legalización en todo el país. Los avances latinoamericanos para garantizar que ninguna persona sea castigada por decidir de manera autónoma sobre su cuerpo continúan inspirando al resto del mundo en la lucha por la libertad reproductiva. Ahora más que nunca, y frente al retroceso que representa la Ley S.B. 8 que entró en vigencia en Texas la semana pasada, pasos como el dado por México trae esperanza para las mujeres y personas con capacidad de gestar de Estados Unidos y cambia el panorama de acceso al aborto en una frontera cruzada por personas que buscaban servicios de salud reproductiva en Texas y otros estados fronterizos cuando no podían acceder a ellos en México. Nuestro compromiso como Federación se mantiene, seguiremos acompañando a los movimientos para que todas las mujeres y personas gestantes de todos los rincones de las Américas y El Caribe puedan decidir libremente sobre sus cuerpos y sus vidas para que se garanticen los derechos sexuales y reproductivos y la maternidad elegida. No pararemos hasta lograr la justicia reproductiva en nuestro continente! ADS - Asociación Demográfica Salvadoreña/Pro-Familia. BFPA- The Barbados Family Planning Association, FPATT - Family Planning Association of Trinidad and Tobago, INPPARES - Instituto Peruano de Paternidad Responsable, JFPA - Jamaica Family Planning Association, MEXFAM - Fundación Mexicana para la Planeación Familiar, A.C., PPFA - Planned Parenthood Federation of America – United States of America, Profamilia - Asociación Pro-Bienestar de la Familia Colombiana, Stichting Lobi Suriname, CFPA - Caribbean Family Planning Affiliation: Anguilla Family Planning Association-The Primary Health Care, Antigua Planned Parenthood Association, Foundation for the Promotion of Responsible Parenthood (FPA), Bahamas Sexual Health and Rights Association, Bermuda Teen Services, Curaçao Foundation for the Promotion of Responsible Parenthood (FPRP), Dominica Planned Parenthood Association, Grenada Planned Parenthood Association, Association Guadeloupéenne pour le Planning Familial, Association Martiniquaise pour I'Information et l'Orientation Familiales, Saint Lucia Planned Parenthood Association, St. Vincent Planned Parenthood Association Oficina Regional para las Américas y el Caribe de la Federación Internacional de Planificación Federal – IPPF ACRO    

Declaración de Mexfam sobre el fallo de la Corte Suprema de Justicia- Ciudad de México, 07 de septiembre de 2021. MÉXICO EMITE UN FALLO SIN PRECEDENTES PARA LA DESPENALIZACIÓN DEL ABORTO Mexfam statement on the Supreme Court ruling - Mexico City, 07 September 2021. MEXICO ISSUES AN UNPRECEDENTED RULING FOR THE DECRIMINALISATION OF ABORTION  

IPPF collaborates with UNAIDS and The PACT to implement ACT!2030 (formerly ACT!2015), a youth-led social action initiative which engages young people in 12 countries with advocacy and accountability around the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and other SRHR agreements/frameworks. ACT!2030 was initiated in 2013 as a way to increase youth participation in the negotiations leading up to the adoption of the post-2015 development agenda, and for two years focused on establishing alliances of youth-led and youth-serving organisations in 12 countries across the world. The project is currently in Phase 4, which runs until the end of 2017, and aims to establish youth-led, data-driven accountability mechanisms to ensure youth engagement with the implementation of the SDGs and build an evidence base for advocacy. Ultimately, Phase 4 of ACT!2030 seeks to identify, assess and address key policy barriers to young people’s sexual and reproductive data by using existing data, supplemented by youth-collected data, to advocate and lobby for policy change. This phase involves four main activities: indicator advocacy (persuading decision makers to adopt youth-friendly SRHR and HIV indicators, including on things like comprehensive sexuality education (CSE) and access to youth-friendly services, into national/global reporting mechanisms); evidence gathering (creating national databases on quality of and access to youth-friendly services and CSE); communications (transforming this data and evidence into communications pieces that can be used to advocacy and lobby at national and international level); and global exchange (facilitating global visibility to share advocacy and engagement learnings and increase youth-led accountability in global and regional processes). ACT!2030 is implemented by national alliances of youth organisations in 12 countries: Algeria, Bulgaria, India, Jamaica, Kenya, Mexico, Nigeria, Philippines, South Africa, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe.