Importance of Family Planning

Posted by rajaram patil on February 4th, 2020

If you a women of reproductive age, there is a 64% chance that you use some or the other form of contraception. One of the most crucial public health advancements in the last century, family planning can be loosely defined as the ability of a woman to decide if and when she wants to have children. Counseling, education, access to contraception and safe abortion are some of the key family planning services. Thanks to the growing awareness about family planning, the worldwide fertility rate has reduced from 3.7 to 2.4 since 1980. However, having said that, one can hardly overlook the fact that when it comes to developing countries, women have to confront various barriers in terms of family planning. These include, lack of access to services, personal opposition or opposition from partners/community leaders, inadequate knowledge about family planning or its benefits, and so on.

Statistics reveal that currently there are over 214 million women in the developing world who would ideally space out their pregnancies but do not have access to modern contraception including birth control pills, thanks to the above-mentioned challenges. Roughly 40% of all pregnancies are unintended. It goes without saying that women with unintended pregnancies are not fully-prepared to go through the journey, be it mentally, emotionally, or financially. They are also more prone to complications, have insufficient antenatal care and are also not in a position to meet needs, post-delivery. Needless to say, these consequences are more intense in the underprivileged sections of the society. Family planning, empowerment, and human capital development are all inter-related. The core purpose of family planning tablets is to allow women to plan when they choose to be pregnant and avoid unintended pregnancies.

Being able to plan their pregnancies allows women to have better control over their lives and families, paves the way for their better education and professional developments, and realize their career ambitions. It should also be noted that new-age contraceptives are not only family planning tools, but also ensure other health benefits such as decreasing menstrual pain or bleeding, which in turn reduces the risks of ovarian, uterine and bowel cancers, amongst others. Consequently, women can stay healthy and productive, and also be part of the workforce for longer periods.

Family planning, even in the form of the male birth control pill, can save the lives of both mothers and infants by reducing unintended pregnancies to the minimal and also by promoting better maternal and infant health with longer intervals between pregnancies. Thus, one simply cannot ignore the multiple benefits of investing in family planning and thus ensure good health, social well-being, economic empowerment and human capital development for women in the long run. Government budgets too should treat this issue with the attention it deserves.