Decision Makers Forum On Family Planning Programme Domestic Resource Mobilization
Decision Makers converge in the Coastal City of Mombasa for a two day meeting to forge an amicable agreement on domestic resource mobilization for Family Planning programme in Kenya.
In a Forum organized by the National Council for Population and Development (NCPD), the two-day forum aims to address the urgent need for sustainable financing of Family Planning(FP) commodities in the country.
The meeting main objective is to examine the challenges currently affecting the family planning (FP) programme and their broader implications, secure a firm commitment from the government for the allocation and timely disbursement of funds for FP commodities and to develop a comprehensive roadmap for establishing family planning as a strategic national programme.
At present, one of the key development partners, the USAID, is unable to provide assurances regarding its continued support for family planning (FP) commodities.
The recent executive order issued by the President of the United States has introduced additional uncertainty into the foreign aid landscape.
With this shift, there is an urgent need for the government to reinforce its health programmes among these, the family planning programme which emerges as a critical area requiring focused attention in order to prevent potential setbacks in the national health outcomes.
Speaking during the forum in Mombasa, the State Department for Economic Planning, Dr. Bonface Makokha highlighted Kenya’s pioneering role in sub-Saharan Africa, being among the first to adopt a national family planning programme in 1967.
He applauded the country’s remarkable progress over the years, with modern contraceptive use among married women rising from 39% in 2003 to 57% in 2022 alongside significant drops in teenage pregnancies and total fertility rates which dropped from 3.6 percent to 3.4 percent in 2004/ 2005.
“Family planning is a development agenda. It impacts health, poverty reduction, gender equality, education, and even environmental sustainability,” PS Makokha stated.
The PS further revealed Kenya’s commitments under global frameworks such as the Sustainable Development Goals and the International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD25), calling for consistent investment and delivery of family planning supplies.
According to the State Department for Medical Services, Principal Secretary, Dr. Ouma Oluga, the department is committed to engaging key Government agencies so as to explore effective solutions such as classifying FP commodities as strategic health commodities for predictable funding.
Additionally, PS Ouma emphasized on the advocacy role of the NCPD which entails advocating for family planning commodity security.
He stressed that reliable access will help in empowering women and couples to make informed choices about their families.
By placing greater emphasis on family planning and tackling current challenges, Kenya can enhance its socio-economic growth and advance the overall well-being of its population.
The Forum being attended by high level development partners representatives was told that Kenya is likely going to run out of FP commodities by 2026 yet the country got a global award for championing Family Planning some year’s back.
This shortage of FP commodities will increase the population in a a few years to unmanageable levels. This will result in increased poverty, threaten food security, lead to higher unsafe abortions, economic strain and loss of lives among many other things.
Advocacy for Domestic Financing for Family Planning Programme will improve maternal and child Health, lower maternal mortality rates, support economic growth, reduce population pressure and support sustainable development.
“The government must come in to support FP programme and this should start during the budget process, policy formulation and through aggressive lobbying with the right institutions.” Said Dr. James Nyikal, Chair of the National Assembly Departmental Committee on Health.
Others present were; NCPD Director General Dr. Sheik Mohammed, FP2030 Country Director, Dr. Sheila Macharia, Acting Economic Planning Secretaries, James Gakuu and Festus Wangwe among others.
