KINSHASA, Democratic Republic of the Congo – As part of efforts to expand access to voluntary family planning, the Democratic Republic of the Congo has increased its contributions for contraceptives for 2016 from $300,000 to $2.5 million.
This increase could enable the country to reach the demographic characteristics needed to stimulate economic development, improve the health and well-being of women and girls, and reduce the current high unmet need for family planning, which stands at 28 per cent.
“The Democratic Republic of the Congo must demonstrate its commitment to manage the demographic transition by providing women and girls in the country access to contraceptives in order to create opportunities to enable them to improve their own future and that of their families,” said Prime Minister Augustin Matata Ponyo Mapon.
The Minister of Public Health, Dr. Felix Kabange Numbi, believes that this contribution, combined with the support of partners such as UNFPA, the United Nations Population Fund, will reduce maternal death in his country, where two women die of pregnancy-related complications every hour.
“This is a major contribution from the Government and in partnership with the National Programme for Reproductive Health, we will ensure that these contraceptives are distributed throughout the country, to reach beneficiary populations,” said Diene Keita, UNFPA Representative in the DRC.
The increase in internal resources could provide nearly one million additional women and girls with access to contraceptive services, which represents 20 per cent of the unmet need for contraceptives. In 2015, more than one million new users of modern family planning methods were registered in the areas of intervention of the UNFPA–DRC cooperation programme.
For more information, please contact:
Assane BA, Communications Specialist, UNFPA DR Congo, +243 815 304 42
Brigitte Kiaku, Communications Specialist, UNFPA, DR Congo, + 243 818 302 437
