News from the Regions

An International Symposium on Behavioral Sciences and Millennium Challenges in Developing Countries, was held from 7-9 March 2000 under the auspices of the Eastern Mediterranean Region of WFMH at the University of Aden, Yemen. The Symposium was organized by Regional Vice President Dr. Hassan Kassim Khan to celebrate the tenth anniversary of the Yemen Psychological Association.

WFMH was represented at the opening ceremonies by Prof. Eugene B. Brody, M.D., former WFMH President and Secretary General. Official greetings from the American Psychological Association were brought by former WFMH Board member and chairman of its Committee on Responsible Parenthood, Dr. Henry David who directs the Transnational Family Research Institute of Bethesda, Maryland, USA. Greetings were also conveyed by Prof. Michael Sabourin of the International Union of Scientific Psychology. Local hosts, in addition to Dr. Kassim Khan, were Prof. Saleh Ali Basurah, Rector of Aden University, and Mr. Taha Ganem, Governor of the Aden Governorate. The ceremonies were ended by an observance of Womens International Day organized by the new Womens Research Centre of the University of Aden, headed by Dr. Rukhsana M. Ismail.

The theme of the first day of scientific sessions was reproductive health and responsible parenthood, recognizing these as the basic prerequisites of child and adult mental health and recalling the 1979 WFMH Resolution (passed by the Board meeting in Salzburg, Austria) that children should be wanted and loved.* By special invitation Dr. Brody spoke on Managing Ones Own Fertility: The Male Perspective and Dr. David, who had been the WFMH representative at the UN Population Conference in Cairo in 1994, spoke on From Cairo to Aden: Reflections on Reproductive Rights and Responsible Parenthood. They were joined by sociologist Dr. Gulur Kuribeava of Tashkent, Uzbekistan, recruited by Dr. David, who spoke on reproductive health in her country. Lively discussion was led by Dr. Mohd Taha Shamsan, Director of Health Services for Aden.

The second scientific session, chaired by Dr. Brody, included papers on reproductive health by Yemeni colleagues including one by Dr. Kassim Khan on Training Health Professionals in Reproductive Behavior.

WFMH participants in succeeding days included Dr. Madeleine Riviere, our representative to UNESCO Paris, who spoke on Psychotherapy, Psychoanalysis and Human Rights and chaired the scientific sessions on mental health therapies. Dr. Leila F. Dane, Executive Director of WFMH member organization, the Institute for Victims of Trauma in McLean, Virginia, USA, chaired the scientific session on conflict resolution and spoke on Prevention of Violence and Rehabilitation of Victims.. She also spoke on a special memorial panel for the late WFMH President Dr. Gamal Abou El Azayem, at which Dr. Kassim Khan read a tribute from Dr. Brody.

Consultations in Sanaa

Prior to the Aden symposium, Drs. David and Brody engaged in a series of consultations on reproductive health and responsible parenthood in the capital city of Sanaa from 3-6 March. These began with an interview with Dr. Abdullah Abdul Wali Nasher, Minister of Public Health, during which they reviewed relevant sections of a newly issued document, Health Sector Reform Strategy, designed to be implemented over a five-year period with a central commitment to primary health care.Extensive discussions were held with Nagiba A. AbdulGhani, M.D., M.P.H, M.Sc., Ph.D., the Health Ministrys Director of Reproductive Health. She has summarized her views and findings in A Situation Analysis of the Reproductive Health Program in Yemen: An Exploratory Study published in Autumn 1999 by the US Population Council and the UN Population Fund (UNFPA) and obtainable through the Council in New York City. Dr. AbdulGhani supplies knowledgeable and forthright leadership in a section of the Ministry which, due to her efforts, is beginning to be recognized as crucial to the future of the country.A most encouraging visit was made to the Yemen Family Care Association (formerly the Family Planning Association) headed by Mrs. Jamila Al-Sharie, National Programme Officer (reachable via e-mail at [email protected]). She demonstrates the impact of an enthusiastic NGO, with the support of the International Planned Parenthood Federation, in a setting with much resistance. Mobile clinics, audiovisual and school information, education and communication programs, and staff workshops are already making a difference.

In Aden Dr. David made a special effort to talk with women leaders and policy makers. Especially important were conversations with Dr. Ismail of the Womans Research and Trainng Center. She may be reached by e-mail at [email protected].Despite obstacles and a male-dominated traditional culture attributing high value to large families, a process of social change has begun. The Public Health Ministry believes that it will lead to greater freedom for women, longer intervals between births, lower infant mortality, and lower obstetrical death rates. All of these are important for a physically and mentally healthier population.

* The Republic of Yemen suffers from high rates of illiteracy, infant mortality and obstetrical mortality, associated with one of the highest fertility rates in the world. Malnutrition has worsened during the past decade and government health facilities lack basic drugs and services.

Pictured at the Sana’a office of the Yemen Family Care Association are (seated, from the left) Henry David; Jamila Ghalib Al-Sharie, Programme Cooredinator of the Association; and Eugene B. Brody. Standing behind them (from the left) are Atif A. Saghayroun, the International Planned Parenthood Federation’s medical consultant for the Arab region; Maan A. Barry, President of the Yemeni Mental Health Association and Head of the Department of Behavioral Sciences in Aden University Faculty of Medicine; and Zaki Mubarak Saeed, Director of the Neuro-Psychiatric Teaching Hospital in Aden.