Papua New Guinea highlands – Marie Stopes and Oxfam NZ

The highlands of Papua New Guinea is a beautiful, exhilarating place. I was lucky enough to return there recently to document Marie Stopes International and Oxfam NZ’s work.

Marie Stopes provides family planning advice and contraception. It’s something many of us take for granted but the demand across much of the developing world is massive.

After a few days travelling to villages with the Marie Stopes outreach team I was left with a huge sense of respect for the tireless dedication of the staff. Long hours, brutally rough roads, setting up clinics in shacks with dirt floors, delivering dozens of implants and vasectomies – it’s all in a day’s work.

What’s more, I was struck by the hunger among women for, primarily, family planning information and, following the light bulb moment, contraception. In the highlands, as elsewhere, women don’t need much convincing that a smaller family is a healthier, more prosperous one.

Continuing the reproductive health theme, I spent a day with Oxfam covering a groundbreaking reusable sanitary pad project.

Then it was off to Chimbu province, known for its towering peaks and plunging valleys. Oxfam NZ has been working there for some years to support onion farmers, who harvest bountiful crops on ludicrously steep slopes.

Perched high on a mountainside, these villages had a touch of Shangrila: fresh mountain air, stunning views, traditional thatched houses and a wonderfully cohesive sense of community.

Onions have brought a modest prosperity. Unusually in the developing world, many young people see a viable future in farming and are happy to stick around rather than head straight for the bright lights of the city.