Family Planning Saves Mothers’ Lives

Recent research indicates that between 25 per cent to 40 per cent of maternal deaths could be avoided by ensuring access to family planning. This data was cited in the 2009 Report of the UN Secretary-General to the Commission on Population and Development, World Population Monitoring, E/CN.9/2009/3, on page 20, citation 35, which is an article by Oona M.R. Campbell and Wendy J. Graham, “Strategies for reducing maternal mortality: getting on with what works”, that appeared in The Lancet, vol. 368, 2006. The Lancet article states:

“Family planning programmes consisting of a dozen or so effective contraceptive technologies (including emergency contraception) and a range of means of distribution, from traditional clinic-based strategies, to mobile clinics, community-based distribution, and social marketing, have been implemented all over the world. Although a small mortality risk is associated with contraception, all methods are safer than pregnancy and delivery. Globally, coverage of contraception is 61%, whereas unmet need for contraception ranges from 6% in Europe to 23% in sub-Saharan Africa. 41% of pregnancies globally are unwanted, with 22% resulting in induced abortion. These data suggest that between a quarter and two-fifths of maternal deaths could be eliminated if unplanned and unwanted pregnancies were prevented.”