Today, the second annual International Conference on Family Planning (ICFP) in Dakar, Senegal began. This conference is co-hosted by The Bill and Melinda Gates Institute for Population and Reproductive Health at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and the Ministry of Health and Prevention in Senegal to bring together participants to share research, best practices, and progress on national strategies to deliver family planning services, with the ultimate goal of universal access to family planning.
Currently, over 215 million women worldwide want but do not have access to family planning tools. “We’ve made a lot of progress in putting maternal health on the global agenda; now we must call on leaders to put family planning on their to-do list. Every individual deserves this – women, men, and young people,” said Jill Sheffield, President and Founder of Women Deliver.
Photo Credit: David Colwell
A press conference moderated by Ms. Heather Anderson, Vice President, Global Health Strategies included speakers such as:
- Hon. Moudou Diagne Fada, Minister of Health, Senegal (TBC)
- Hon. Stephen O’Brien, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, UK Department for International Development (DFID)
- Dr. Babatunde Osotimehin, Executive Director, United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA)
- Dr. Judy Manning, Health Development Officer, Office of Population and Reproductive Health, U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID)
- Dr. Ward Cates, President, Research, FHI 360
These speakers reinforced the importance of the demographic dividend – the concept that health and social development, enabled by full access to contraception, are inextricably linked with strong economic growth. They provide examples of success in Asia, where declining fertility, spurred by rising contraceptive use, have led to increased education, improved health, and market-driven economic policies which have allowed for significant income growth. With an expanded world population of over seven billion, “Now is the time to prioritize family planning – as a strategy to reduce maternal mortality, to improve the lives of women and their families, and ultimately, to enable broad and enduring economic development,” said Dr. Amy Tsui, Director of the Gates Institute for Population and Reproductive Health, Professor at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, and a lead conference organizer.
To proceed into the future, investments must be made in the health sector maintaining adequate numbers of midwives, OB/GYNs, facilities, etc. and examining past successes around the globe. As Hon. Stephen OBrien stated, having a child should bring joy not dying in childbirth and women must be able to plan for the future. Family planning is smart and cost-effective. As Dr. Osotimehin stated, we must empower young people to take control of their futures along with the future of their countries and make sure that economic and social justice drives this process. Issues of family planning are issues of human rights.
According to Judy Manning from USAID, their priorities include: 1) Improve existing methods to make them more acceptable, easier to use and more affordable like injectable forms of contraceptives. 2) Develop new contraceptives to fill gaps such as duration of effectiveness between 3 month injectables and 5 year inserted rings. 3) Develop technologies that simultaneously prevent pregnancy, HIV & other STDs like the silk diaphragm which delivers tenofovir.
Clearly there is an immense need for family planning access, affordability, and effectiveness. Fortunately, there are also attainable solutions. Meetings such as ICFP brings together a wealth of scientific knowledge, family planning experience, and critical discussions to help ensure that universal access to family planning becomes a reality.