Expanding Effective Contraceptive Options (EECO) Year 4 Workplan (October 2016- September 2017)

The project, led by WomanCare Global (WCG), is supported by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and has a five-year duration. The project's vision is to support the research, development, and introduction of new contraceptive methods and approaches that better meet the needs of women and girls as their sexual and reproductive health concerns change over time. The EECO project will be implemented in five countries: Zambia, Malawi, Madagascar, India, and Pakistan. The project's objectives are aligned with USAID's Objectives 1, 3, and 4, which focus on refining existing family planning (FP) methods, developing new FP methods, and conducting research to foster the introduction and uptake of new and/or underutilized woman-initiated methods. The project will address method-related reasons for non-use, improve access to and use of methods for postpartum and breastfeeding women, and increase access to and demand for new/underutilized woman-initiated methods. The EECO project will introduce two new contraceptive products: the Woman's Condom and Progering. The Woman's Condom is a non-hormonal, on-demand protection against unintended pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections (STIs), including HIV and the Human Papillomavirus (HPV). Progering is a safe and effective, hormone-based, woman-initiated intra-vaginal ring (IVR) that does not need to be fitted by a provider and is easy to use. The project will work with manufacturers and developers to create a robust product dossier for Progering, which can be adapted for country-level product registrations and WHO prequalification. The EECO project will also promote the Woman's Condom as an improved non-hormonal barrier method. The project will conduct value chain creation and management for the Woman's Condom, Progering, Amphora, SILCS, and Avibela. The project will also conduct formative and market research, product registration, and advocacy to increase access to and demand for new/underutilized woman-initiated methods. The project will target women and girls of reproductive age with an unmet need for FP, breastfeeding and/or post-partum women, providers, male partners, Ministries of Health, and other stakeholders and influencers. The project will be piloted in limited sites in Lusaka in Zambia, and Delhi and Uttar Pradesh in India, and will aim to reach broader scale by working through social franchise networks and more far-reaching distribution channels in Malawi and Madagascar. The EECO project's results framework provides overarching guidance for activities from October 2016 through September 2017 and sets the ultimate objectives for all project activities in this work plan. The project will initiate and proceed at varying speeds for different products, and will describe the status of each EECO product in relation to this continuum as well as the necessary steps to move it to the next stage.