Family planning in West Africa has increased in popularity in recent years, as local religious leaders, community groups and health outreach programs have gotten behind the message. This multi-pronged approach is responsible for rising contraceptive use, according to the United Nations Population Fund West Africa Regional Director Mabingue Ngom. Places such as Ethiopia, Kenya, Madagascar and Senegal have see an average 2 percent growth in contraceptive prevalence each year, he said.
“Countries are beginning to take family planning very seriously, even within fiscal efforts from their own budget to support family planning related initiatives,” Ngom said.
However, a 2015 United Nations research on trends in contraceptive use still points to Africa as the region with the lowest contraception use, at just 33 percent of reproductive-aged women.
About the author
Christin Roby@robyreports
Christin Roby worked as the West Africa Correspondent for Devex, covering global development trends, health, technology, and policy. Before relocating to West Africa, Christin spent several years working in local newsrooms and earned her master of science in videography and global affairs reporting from the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University. Her informed insight into the region stems from her diverse coverage of more than a dozen African nations.
