In most cases, countries with high unmet need for family planning (FP) are also poor and resource-constrained. Political leaders often do not understand that FP is a strong complement to other efforts to reduce poverty or spur development.
Background
Thus, health systems do not devote sufficient resources to FP, country loan requests do not include strong FP elements, and political leaders do not make public pronouncements that give government officials and lower level politicians the space they need to implement FP programs.
However, through advocacy and coordination, additional resources can be mobilized (see Securing Increased Government Funding for Contraceptives on the next page).
In West Africa, for example, modern contraceptive use averages about 9 percent. This is also a region with high unmet need, relatively low HIV prevalence, and high maternal and infant mortality rates. In some low-prevalence settings where demand is also low, couples are often unaware of how to access high quality services. Furthermore, services may be nonexistent, where they are most needed at the community level.
