THE BARBADOS FAMILY PLANNING ASSOCIATION (BFPA) is appealing for volunteers to assist in its work to safeguard the reproductive health and rights of Barbadians.

Making the appeal while delivering the annual report at the association's 53rd annual general meeting at Grand Barbados hotel recently, president Jefferson Kirton announced a membership fair would be conducted later this year to address the shortage. He described efforts to recruit new members as a struggle.

Kirton also reported that the BFPA's Bay Street headquarters had undergone a comprehensive facelift with a refurbished, fully air-conditioned clinic and an upgraded operating theatre. The facilities, he said, would be rented to private surgeons to generate "much needed revenue".

Delivering the feature address at the AGM, Acting Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Health, National Insurance and Social Security, Irvine Best, said the BFPA's contribution had been a factor in Barbados' ranking at the top of developing countries on the United Nation's Human Development Index.

He encouraged the association to continue to seek innovative ways to contribute to national development in the face of the current global situation, and urged re-examination of its mission in seeking ways to improve the overall quality of life for Barbadians.

Best listed "health-seeking behaviour", especially among men, and coping with the challenges of obesity and HIV/AIDS among the issues demanding attention, and he encouraged the BFPA to work aggressively to enable men to adopt healthy lifestyles and take control of their health.

He said the Ministry of Health would continue to make reproductive health a priority through the provision of comprehensive services for men, women and children in the island's polyclinics, as he assured the BFPA of the Government's continued support with the provision of accommodation and the annual subvention for the services provided by the BFPA. (GC)