Zim pushes for universal access to family planning

Zim Now Writer

Zimbabwe is pushing for universal access to contraceptive, sexual and reproductive healthcare services and placing family planning key strategies for eradicating poverty.

Speaking ahead of the International Conference on Family Planning (ICFP) to be held in the city of Pattaya, Southeast of the capital, Bangkok in Thailand Minister of Health and Child Care, Vice President Constantino Chiwenga said family planning and quality reproductive health services were key pillars of a thriving health system in Zimbabwe.

Chiwenga joins other global health leaders, health practitioners and economists from about 125 countries and his delegation hopes to tap from global best practices in efforts to improve global family planning and reproductive health approaches.

“The importance of this international conference we have come to attend is that it is dealing with population and family planning,” he said.

“We would also be looking at the issue of how the population is balancing so we want to measure ourselves and compare with what is happening the world over,” said Chiwenga.

Zimbabwe had made commendable progress, he said, in the control of maternal deaths and providing quality family planning in the last five years.

The ICPF brings together governmental health leaders, researchers, health practitioners, economists among other important players as they seek to find solutions in ensuring universal access to family planning and access to reproductive health services.

The ICPF interaction comes after four-year Covid-19-induced hiatus with the Rwandese capital Kigali having hosted the last edition.