Director-General

Dr Gill Greer

The International Planned Parenthood Federation has announced that Dr Gill Greer has been appointed as the new IPPF Director-General. Dr Greer will be taking up her post at IPPF’s Central Office on 25 September 2006, following the retirement of current Director-General, Dr Steven W. Sinding .

Gill Greer is a highly experienced and committed sexual and reproductive health professional and has been the Executive Director of the New Zealand Family Planning Association, with a staff of 300 people, and IPPF Member Association, since 1998.

She also chairs the Asia Pacific Alliance (a network of 30 NGOs in seven countries), and the New Zealand NGO Ministry of Health Forum (a network of more than 100 NGOs).

Dr Greer has been a member of the New Zealand government delegations to the United Nations General Assembly Session on HIV/AIDS (2006), the United Nations World Summit (2005), the Commission on the Status of Women (2005) and the Commission on Population and Development (2004).

She has recently been awarded the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to family planning.

The post of Director-General of IPPF is one of the most challenging in the field of international development. As the strongest global voice for sexual and reproductive health and rights, IPPF’s network of national Member Associations works to provide vital, often life saving, services to some of the poorest and most marginalized people in more than 180 countries worldwide. IPPF sometimes carries out this work in the face of powerful opposition from conservative governments and religious groups to sexual and reproductive health and rights and, more generally, women’s rights.