International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF), one of the world’s largest abortion providers, oversaw the hiring of prostitutes for staff, donors and guests attending official functions, according to allegations reported in the Daily Mail.
Lucien Kouakou, the Africa regional director who was dismissed over the allegations, has made claimed that IPPF offered sexual ‘gifts’ to guests at African events for several years.
In an email sent to an official at the IPPF’s London headquarters responding to the threat of dismissal, Mr Kouakou said that under a previous regime ‘there was promoting of prostitution within the organisation, where prostitutes would be organised for IPPF staff, donors and partners during functions’.
He repeated the charges in Kenyan court documents filed in February, which say that under a previous leadership ‘the region solicited the services of prostitutes for guests during official functions of the organisation’.
The court documents add: ‘Young volunteers within the region were being offered to invitee guests during African gatherings and functions for sex or sexual pleasure.’
Despite the fact that this scandal has been going on for months, the Department for International Development (DfID) continues to use British taxpayer money to fund the abortion provider overseas.
In January of this year, DfID gave IPPF £132 million in funding for a two-year programme. In April, Penny Modaunt MP, as International Development Secretary, pledged a further £42 million to IPPF (alongside Marie Stopes International) to look at the “neglected issue” of safe abortion in developing countries.
Right to Life spokesperson Clare McCarthy said:
“After the scandal with Oxfam, the public were strongly assured that UK aid money would not go to any organisation that did not meet the ‘high standards’ of safeguarding and protection required. However, it seems an exception has been made for this giant abortion provider, allowing UK aid money to be pumped into funding abortions, whatever the cost and with little scrutiny.”
“The Department for International Development are apparently so committed to promoting abortion overseas using taxpayer money, that they are willing to continue funding an organisation mired in sexual scandal.”
