According to the UNFPA, for every 3 months the lockdown continues, up to 2 million additional women may be unable to use modern contraceptives. Many health facilities are closing, and women may not feel that they are able to contact services due to fear-mongering within the media and its portrayal of limited services. Around 47 million women in 114 low- and middle-income countries are projected to be unable to use modern contraceptives if COVID-19-related disruption continues for 6 months with major disruptions to services.
Not only is access to family planning a human right, but it saves lives. Access to contraception relates to healthier populations, better health systems and stronger economies. The last 25 years has yielded large amounts of progress to make family planning methods widely available, with the number of women using modern contraceptive methods almost doubling from 470 million in 1990 to 840 million in 2018.
This reduction in contraceptive use could have huge consequences up to a staggering 15 million unintended pregnancies if high disruptions are seen for a period of 12 months. It is thus imperative that women have access to the information they need to maintain autonomy over their own contraception during this time. Stay safe, stay informed!
