PARIS: Some 12 million women may have lost access to contraception due to pandemic health disruptions, the United Nations sexual and reproductive health agency said on Thursday, warning that the poorest and most vulnerable were the hardest hit. But the poorest and the most vulnerable now are seeing the most dire consequences,” UNFPA Executive Director Natalia Kanem told Agence France-Presse. UNFPA said that recent evidence suggested there were concentrated declines in family planning services in April and May, but that many countries were able to restore access after that. They suggested that 12 million women may have been unable to access family planning because of the pandemic, although its estimates were a broad range from four million to 23 million. Kanem said the data suggests the international community was able to prevent the worst case scenario, with previous research early in the pandemic suggesting anywhere between 13 and 44 million women could have lost access to contraception.

Source: Manila Times March 11, 2021 05:26 UTC