Imagine a world where men bear the burden of family planning but lack the power to make decisions about it; a world in which the societal expectation to be fathers and husbands overrides their human rights. This dystopian scenario is the reality for millions of girls and women globally.
Access to sexual and reproductive health for all is a right, yet its denial has been normalized. An estimated 218 million women and girls around the world have an unmet need for modern contraception. In Sub-Saharan Africa, nearly 25% of women in need of contraception did not have access to modern family planning methods as of 2020, despite the region having both the highest fertility and maternal mortality rates in the world.
Factors such as age, literacy and economic ability can determine the uptake of modern family planning methods. Across Africa, culture and religious beliefs that equate women’s worth to their ability to bear children have permeated our health systems, contributing greatly to inadequate investment in family planning. While it would cost US$22.50 per capita per year to meet all women’s reproductive health needs, African countries currently spend an average of US$6 per capita per year – about US$7.8 billion annually – leaving wide gaps in the provision of sexual and reproductive health (SRH) care.
The lack of access to SRH services not only upholds the existing imbalance of power between the sexes that violates women’s right to health, education, and economic opportunity; in instances where it results in high-risk pregnancy, abortion and sexually transmitted infections such as HIV, this lack of investment violates women’s right to healthy, productive lives.
Family planning is crucial for advancing global health equity, achieving gender equality and supporting sustainable and equitable development. It is the silent driving force behind many opportunities and advancements that we enjoy today.
Every woman should have the right to decide if, when to have children, how many children to have, and how to space them. Access to modern contraception not only gives women–married and unmarried–greater control over their reproductive lives, it can dramatically reduce the number of unintended pregnancies and unsafe abortions and improve health outcomes by lowering maternal and child mortality. Therefore denying women this choice strips them of their freedom, dignity and fundamental rights–and exposes them to grave risk.
In Africa, where rapid population growth is both a blessing and a ticking time bomb, increasing access to quality, affordable, and acceptable reproductive health services can unlock countless opportunities and transform communities. When women have a greater say in their reproductive choices, they are more empowered to enter and remain in the workforce and have greater economic power, therefore reducing the dependent population and lowering unemployment.
Increasing men’s understanding and use of family planning methods can reduce barriers for women, support equality within families and communities, improve health outcomes, and reduce household healthcare expenditures, freeing up funds for education, savings, and investment.
Those who hide behind culture, religion and patriarchal structures to deny equitable access to family planning ignore its consequences: poverty driven by unsustainable population growth; poor health outcomes and high healthcare costs associated with unintended pregnancies and unsafe abortions; and overburdened health and social protection systems that cannot meet the needs of the populations they are meant to serve.
Family planning is not just a health intervention; it can be a strategic development tool for African countries. Every $1 invested in women’s health yields $8 in benefits for families and communities–such high returns are key to building stronger, more resilient economies.
Funding commitments made at UNGA 2024 saw governments and philanthropies pledge US$350 million to expand access to family planning. These efforts aim to reach 28 million people in 54 countries, prevent 8 million unintended pregnancies, avert 2 million unsafe abortions, and save thousands of lives. Leaders also endorsed the Pact for the Future, calling for universal access to sexual and reproductive health and health coverage—a promise we hope holds true.
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These pledges reignited hope for women and girls, especially in low- and middle-income countries.
However, urgent action is needed to realize equitable access to modern contraception and other SRH services. Beyond the donor pledges, governments have a responsibility to do right by Africa’s women and girls by upholding their commitments to invest in and protect the right to family planning as a social and economic imperative. The private sector, civil society and philanthropy must also play their part by holding governments accountable to these commitments, which will empower millions of women and girls to make informed decisions about their reproductive health, with tangible benefits.
By putting the power of choice in their hands, we can give something back to the millions of women and girls living in a world that asks them to give so much of themselves but offers little in return.
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