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WASHINGTON, Indonesia Today - DKT International, a non-profit family planning and HIV/AIDs prevention organization working in Africa, Asia and Latin America will begin distribution of high quality, affordable contraceptives in Ghana in the coming month.

“It is extremely rare to hear of any donor-supported development project becoming financially self-sufficient as has DKT Indonesia, but it is even more unusual for such a project to use its surplus funds to help a lower-income country on the other side of the world”

DKT Ghana, which began operations in 2011, is in the final stages of its work with the Ghana Food and Drugs Board (FDB) to register three brands, five products and more than 10 product variants for safe and effective family planning use. DKT Ghana’s program will follow the unique social marketing model used globally by DKT to leverage two effective strategies. These include driving demand through mass media and non-traditional communication, and improving commodity availability via broad and deep distribution of high quality, affordable contraceptives.

In a unique and innovative collaboration, funding for the Ghana contraceptive distribution effort was provided by DKT’s program in Indonesia. The Indonesia program now generates substantial revenue and is able to use some of these to support the Ghana initiative.

“It is extremely rare to hear of any donor-supported development project becoming financially self-sufficient as has DKT Indonesia, but it is even more unusual for such a project to use its surplus funds to help a lower-income country on the other side of the world,” said Christopher H. Purdy, Executive Vice President of DKT International. “By starting operations in Ghana, DKT brings to 20, the number of family planning and HIV/AIDS prevention programs established worldwide. Our goal is to establish high-quality, affordable products and services through Ghana’s public and private health outlets as well as midwives and rural medical practitioners.”

Ghana has attained Middle Income Country (MIC) status but the country’s very low contraceptive prevalence rates and high total fertility rate lag its MIC successes. Maternal mortality is high and modern contraceptive use is declining even as the unmet need for family planning has increased. The new DKT Ghana initiative is a vital step in addressing these major health concerns.

“We believe that Ghanaians will be highly receptive to the social marketing techniques that DKT International has used successfully in other countries,” stated Mary Aikenhead, Country Director for DKT Ghana. “Our model combines private and government health channels and providers to deliver cost-effective products. Our organization is preparing for national sales of contraceptives this year. And in keeping with DKT’s objectives, we expect to cover a significant percentage of in-country operating expenses even as we keep contraception product prices low to effectively help Ghanaians with their family planning and related health needs.”

Since 1989, DKT International’s core mission has been to provide safe and affordable options for family planning and HIV prevention through social marketing. DKT programs serve over 22 million couples annually, establishing it as one of the largest private providers of family planning products and services in the developing world. (Indonesia Today)