Adrienne Germain was named President-Elect of the International Women's Health Coalition (IWHC) on October 14, 1997 by the organization's board of directors. Ms. Germain, who is currently IWHC's Vice President, will succeed Joan Dunlop, the organization's president for the past 14 years, on April 1, 1998. In addition to naming Ms. Germain as President, IWHC's board also elected new officers during its meeting. Ms. Dunlop will join IWHC's board of directors when she steps down as President.

"Adrienne Germain's profound understanding of the complex issues involved in women's health in the international arena, her first-hand experiences of the realities of women's lives in many countries, and her crystalline vision for the future of IWHC make her the right person to lead us forward," said Ellen Chesler, Ph.D., IWHC's newly elected Chairperson. "Joan and Adrienne have worked shoulder to shoulder to build this organization, making this a natural transition of leadership."

Ms. Germain has worked for 25 years to promote women's opportunities and reproductive health and rights in Southern countries. She joined the staff of the International Women's Health Coalition in 1986 as Vice President and has been the architect of the organization's programs. Prior to joining IWHC, Ms. Germain worked for 14 years at the Ford Foundation, where she was the first woman to serve as a Resident Representative. In this capacity, she spent four years in Bangladesh directing a grants program in agriculture, rural employment, international economics, women's rights, arts and culture, and reproductive health. She also worked for two years as Staff Associate at the Population Council. Among her many distinctions, Ms. Germain serves on Human Rights Watch/Asia, the Advisory Committee of the Women's Rights Project of Human Rights Watch, and the editorial board of Reproductive Health Matters. She is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and an advisor to the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida). Ms. Germain was a member of the official United States delegations to the international conference on population in Cairo (1994) and the international conference on women in Beijing (1995). She is an alumna of Wellesley College and the University of California, Berkeley, where she earned degrees in sociology and demography.

"Every year, the lives of some 600,000 women are needlessly sacrificed to unsafe childbirth, botched abortions, violence and sexually transmitted diseases," said Ms. Germain. "Many millions more suffer severe illnesses and traumas that are entirely avoidable. We're determined to change this picture by ensuring that women's voices are heard and heeded -- in their relationships, in their communities and in the corridors of power, nationally and internationally."

In her new role, Ms. Germain will oversee the more than 50 projects of a New York-based organization with an annual budget of approximately $4 million and a staff of 22. IWHC provides practical, moral and financial support to groups promoting women's health in eight countries, including Nigeria, Brazil and Bangladesh. IWHC also advocates on the international level for realistic, humane and effective population and development policies that make women's reproductive and sexual health and rights a priority.

Dr. Ellen Chesler, IWHC's newly elected Chairperson, is a scholar and longtime activist who resides in New York. She is the author of Woman of Valor: Margaret Sanger and the Birth Control Movement in America. Other new board officers include two Vice Chairs: Jacqueline de Chollet, who is Deputy Chair of London's Southern Housing Group; and Dr. Gita Sen, Professor of Economics, Indian Institute of Management in Bangalore, India. IWHC's immediate Past Chairperson, Judith Lichtman, remains on the board as chair of the nominating committee. Ms. Lichtman is Executive Director of the Women's Legal Defense Fund, Washington, DC. Two new members were elected to IWHC's board of directors: His Excellency Dr. Pascoal Manuel Mocumbi, Prime Minister of the Republic of Mozambique, and Dr. Jo Ivey Boufford, Dean, Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of Public Service, New York University.

Founded in 1980, the International Women's Health Coalition (IWHC) is a non profit organization based in New York that works with individuals and groups in Africa, Asia and Latin America to promote women's reproductive and sexual health and rights. IWHC provides technical, managerial, moral and financial support to reproductive health service providers, advocacy groups and women's organizations in Southern countries.