How can public health programs oriented toward increasing family planning access and use ensure they reach as many people as possible with lifesaving contraception in a way that respects, protects, and fulfills human rights?
Today, the Futures Group and EngenderHealth launched a joint publication, Voluntary Family Planning Programs that Respect, Protect, and Fulfill Human Rights: A Conceptual Framework that presents a new framework for holistic, quality family planning (FP) programs with clients and their rights at the core. This practical framework integrates human rights law and principles with FP program and quality of care frameworks, and depicts how key concepts translate into concrete interventions, outputs, and outcomes into programming. It offers a pathway for governments and other implementing partners to fulfill their commitments to the provision of voluntary FP services that respect, protect, and fulfill individuals’ human rights as programs pursue health and development goals.
A mother and child in Mwea Village, Kenya. Photo credit: The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
“In the wake of the London Summit on Family Planning, we have seen a reenergized commitment among governments and donors to expand access to FP, especially under the FP2020 initiative,” said Jan Kumar, Senior Technical Advisor at EngenderHealth and one of the framework’s authors. “As this framework highlights, however, it is critical that any efforts to scale up family planning over the next decade must be met by equal attention to ensuring that programs respect, protect, and fulfill human rights and put clients’ needs and preferences at their core.”
The framework has undergone extensive review and reflects the input of many rights, FP, and program experts. It illustrates what rights-based FP programs look like, taking into account the broad context in which programs operate, as well as essential programmatic elements necessary for ensuring human rights at the policy, service, community, and individual levels. It also highlights the need for FP, human rights, and women’s health advocates to combine efforts with governments, NGOs, donors, and communities to support and safeguard human rights as countries strive to meet national FP goals. Publication of the framework’s two supporting documents — Voluntary Family Planning Programs that Respect, Protect, and Fulfill Human Rights: A Systematic Review of Evidence and Voluntary Family Planning Programs that Respect, Protect, and Fulfill Human Rights: A Systematic Review of Tools.
The framework’s authors want to hear what you think!
- What issues in the framework are the most pressing in your work or program?
- What do you see as the biggest challenges to applying this framework?
- How will you contribute to the dialogue around expanding access to FP and respecting, protecting, and fulfilling human rights?
Read the Summary Brief here.
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