Moazzam Ali, World Health Organization (WHO)
Investing in family planning is often positioned as a cost-effective intervention for enhancing maternal and child health, improving the social-economic status of women, and contributing to sustainable development globally. Some still consider the evidence linking family planning to women’s health, survival and socio-economic status as weak or lacking, raising concerns about the relative returns on investments in family planning programs. WHO’s six systematic reviews study the magnitude and the quality of the evidence on regarding the strength of the relationship(s) between family planning use and women’s health outcomes and as well as on their socio-economic status. The evidence accumulated, synthesized and assessed established the numerous health and non-health benefits of family planning in menstrual, mental, high-risk pregnancies, cancers and empowerment and agency. Morbidity and mortality risk due to pregnancy complications and high-risk childbearing are reduced. Contraceptive use also provides young women the opportunity to avoid early and risky childbearing and enables them to realize their potential for higher education and employment leading to improved agency and empowerment in decision-making and use of resources. Contraception empowers women and positively impacts their overall health and wellbeing by reducing health risks, contributing to a healthier life and conferring greater agency
Keywords: Family Planning and Contraception, Fertility, Health and Morbidity, Data and Methods