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READ MORE population matters Lack of reproductive health Worldwide, more than 200 million women have an ‘unmet need’ for modern contraception, in that they say they want modern contraception but do not use it. In 2008, there were 75 million unintended pregnancies1 of which just over half ended in induced abortions2. Lack of reproductive health services results not only in abortions and unplanned births but in high levels of maternal and child mortality and of pregnancy-related illness. Despite its multiple benefits, aid for family planning declined1 from 8.2 percent to 3.2 percent between 2000 and 2008 as a proportion of total aid to health, an absolute decline. One reason for this was that funding for HIV/AIDS was increased 13-fold between 1995 and 2003. Moreover, during the Bush Administration, US commitment to programmes which would help stabilise population was hampered by conservative policies seeking to promote “sexual abstinence”. In particular, there was a ban on funds for family planning and more general ‘reproductive health’ services that might be suspected of supporting abortion facilities3. In 2010, the UN, US and UK all pledged sharp increases in the funding for reproductive health programmes, with the UN announcing a $40bn programme for improving the health of women and children. Unplanned pregnancies in the UK Unplanned pregnancies are also an issue in the UK and other developed countries, albeit at a lower level. The UK has one of the MILLENNIUM DEVELOPMENT GOAL (MDG) 5b This aims to provide universal access to reproductive health care by 20154. Although more women are receiving antenatal care, the Millennium Development Goals Report 2010 makes it clear that there is still a long way to go before the aims are met: Glossary • Inequalities in care during pregnancy are striking. Only one in three women living in rural areas in developing regions receives the recommended level of care during pregnancy. • Progress has stalled in reducing the number of teenage pregnancies. • Poverty and lack of education perpetuate high adolescent birth rates. • Progress in expanding the use of contraceptives by women has slowed. • Use of contraception is lowest among the poorest women and those with no education. • Inadequate funding for family planning is a major failure in fulfilling commitments to improving women’s reproductive health. In-depth 1 /2 © 2011 Population Matters READ MORE population matters Lack of reproductive health, contd. highest rates of unplanned pregnancies in the developed world and survey data and abortion rates suggest that the rate is significant even amongst older women. There could be a number of reasons for this. One is the variable quality of Sexual and Reproductive Health Education in Britain’s schools, as noted by Ofsted, the National Association of Head Teachers and the Youth Parliament 5,6,7,8. Another is the relatively low take-up by international standards of long acting reversible contraceptives such as implants, injections and intrauterine devices. References Internet references accessed 06/12/2010 1. Adding it Up, 2009 Guttmacher Institute http://www.guttmacher.org/pubs/AddingItUp2009.pdf 2. Joseph Speidel et al, The Potential of Long-Acting Reversible Contraception to Decrease Unintended Pregnancy, Contraception Editorial Sept 2008 http://www.arhp.org/publications-and-resources/contraception-journal/september-2008 3. Joseph Speidel, Population Issues and Answers, Presentation to the UK APPG Oral Hearing 7 June 26 2006 4. http://www.un.org/millenniumgoals/pdf/MDG%20Report%202010%20En%20r15%20low%20res%2020100615%20-.pdf page 30 5. http://ofstednews.ofsted.gov.uk/article/395 6. http://ofstednews.ofsted.gov.uk/article/617 7. http://www.independent.co.uk/news/education/education-news/lack-of-confidence-is-harming-sexeducation-1958685.html 8. http://www.ukyouthparliament.org.uk/sre Glossary In-depth 2 /2 © 2011 Population Matters