Between September 1995 and June 2005, POLICY formed and/or strengthened over 100 networks and coalitions designed to advocate for improved FP/RH, adolescent reproductive health, maternal health, and HIV policies and programs. Networks were formed at national, regional, and district levels and involved a range of organizations, including NGOs, women’s and youth groups, people living with HIV, faith-based organizations, businesses, journalists, healthcare providers, human rights groups, public health researchers, and, in some cases, partnerships with government officials.

Most of POLICY’s technical assistance to networks focused on policy analysis and advocacy training, provision of small grants to support network building and/or advocacy activities, and organizational capacity development. To guide its work with networks, POLICY produced Networking for Policy Change: An Advocacy Training Manual in 1999. The manual is a key training resource, available in major languages, and has been supplemented by topic-specific materials focusing on issues such as maternal health, contraceptive security, and adolescent reproductive health. The 11 case studies feature networks in Ghana, Guatemala, India, Nepal, Peru, Philippines, Romania, Russian Federation, Uganda, Ukraine, and Turkey.