Democratic Republic of the Congo

Pathfinder works with local partners to provide accessible, quality reproductive health services to millions of people—offering women and adolescent girls the support they need to protect their health and their futures. Pathfinder expands access to contraceptive services, advocates for safe and quality abortion care, improves maternal and newborn health, and supports gender-based violence prevention and support services. Our programs engage local communities to change harmful gender norms, train health providers to offer quality care, and promote inclusive, youth-friendly sexual and reproductive health services. 

Our programs engage local communities to change harmful gender norms, train health providers to offer quality care, and promote inclusive, youth-friendly sexual and reproductive health services. 

• Contraceptive Choice  
  Pathfinder improves access to quality, client-centered contraceptive services by strengthening and expanding services in health facilities and communities. This has included supporting the community health workforce to manage the introduction and scale-up of Sayana Press—a self-injectable preferred by many women—and using innovative community-based approaches to reach rural communities with a full range of contraceptive methods. 
• Comprehensive Abortion Care 
  Pathfinder contributes to an environment that supports women and girls to make their own sexual and reproductive health choices. This includes advocating for policies, systems, and social norms that support access to safe, comprehensive abortion care. We work toward policies and systems that provide access to abortion self-care, have strong referral networks between communities and health facilities, and contribute to an environment that removes barriers to reproductive choice.  
• Adolescent and Youth Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights 
  Pathfinder offers adolescents and youth the information and skills they need to attain sexual and reproductive health. We encourage healthy behaviors and attitudes that support informed decision-making about contraceptive use and healthy relationships, particularly through our work with youth leaders and youth organizations. We advocate for policies that create an environment where youth can assert their sexual and reproductive rights without difficulty. 
• Maternal and Newborn Health Services 
  Pathfinder is expanding access to maternal health services in health facilities across communities.  We ensure quality of care through continuing education and close clinical mentoring of health workers, as well as the establishment of quality assurance committees in health facilities. Our community-based approaches aim to transform sociocultural perceptions that prevent pregnant women from starting prenatal visits in the first trimester of pregnancy, so that they can benefit from the full package of maternal health care offered.