A family planning strategy for the Rohingya refugee humanitarian crisis in Cox’s Bazar 2022–2025 was formally launched on Thursday by the Directorate General of Family Planning (DGFP) of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, according to UNB.
The strategy proposes a technique for increasing the demand for contemporary contraceptive methods among women and girls of the Rohingya and neighboring host groups through community-based family planning interventions and facility-based family planning services.
Under the direction of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, the Health Sector Cox’s Bazar, and the Sexual and Reproductive Health (SRH) working group, sponsored by the UN agency for sexual and reproductive health, UNFPA, the strategy was prepared and adopted in October 2022.
Services for sexual and reproductive health are provided through health facilities and women-friendly areas located throughout the camps by partners in the health sector operating there.
Health facilities will experience a 200 percent increase in family planning visits between 2018 and 2022, according to a media release, reflecting the sharp rise in demand for family planning services over the past five years.
This growth is the result of community outreach, particularly to men, and awareness-raising to dispel myths and misconceptions regarding contraception, in addition to the vast availability of services and skilled medical staff.
“This multi-year strategy covering 2022–2025 will guide humanitarian partners to make family planning accessible, voluntary, and choice-based for everyone,” said Ashrafi Ahmad, additional secretary at the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MOHFW).
“I commend UNFPA and other partners for their hard work and I am hopeful that this strategy will be a beneficial resource for providers and planners to scale up our humanitarian efforts,” he added.
According to Kristine Blokhus, a UNFPA representative in Bangladesh, they are happy to have collaborated successfully with the Bangladeshi government to develop a family planning strategy that emphasizes both community demand and facility health services, as well as advocacy and coordination to ensure partnerships and efficiency.
